A2 Verb Tenses 1 min read Fácil

The Past Participle as a Main Verb (-san)

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Practícalo

Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

The -san suffix turns a verb into a past tense action, describing something that has already happened.

  • Add -san to the verb stem: 'bi yawsan' (I went).
  • Use -san for completed actions in the past.
  • Negate by adding -güi: 'bi yawaagüi' (I did not go).
Verb Stem + -san = Past Action

Past Tense Conjugation

Verb Stem Suffix Past Form Meaning
Yaw
-san
Yawsan
Went
Id
-sen
Idsen
Ate
Uze
-sen
Uzesen
Watched
Och
-son
Ochson
Arrived
Unsh
-san
Unshisan
Read
Ir
-sen
Irsen
Came

Meanings

The -san suffix is the primary way to express the past tense in Mongolian, indicating a completed action or state.

1

Completed Action

An action that finished in the past.

“Bi nom unshisan.”

“Ter irsen.”

Reference Table

Reference table for The Past Participle as a Main Verb (-san)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Stem + -san
Yawsan
Negative
Stem + -aagüi
Yawaagüi
Question
Stem + -san uu?
Yawsan uu?
Past Continuous
Stem + -j baisan
Yawj baisan
Negative Question
Stem + -aagüi üü?
Yawaagüi üü?

Espectro de formalidad

Formal
Bi delgüür luu yawsan.

Bi delgüür luu yawsan. (Daily life)

Neutral
Bi delgüür yawsan.

Bi delgüür yawsan. (Daily life)

Informal
Delgüür yawsan.

Delgüür yawsan. (Daily life)

Jerga
Delgüür orson.

Delgüür orson. (Daily life)

The -san Suffix Map

-san

Usage

  • Past Completed action

Harmony

  • -san/-sen Vowel matching
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Ejemplos por nivel

1

Bi yawsan.

I went.

2

Ter irsen.

He came.

3

Bi nom unshisan.

I read a book.

4

Bid khool idsen.

We ate food.

1

Chi kino uzesen üü?

Did you watch the movie?

2

Bi öchigdör ajillaagüi.

I didn't work yesterday.

3

Ter khaan yawsan be?

Where did he go?

4

Bid Mongol ruu nissen.

We flew to Mongolia.

1

Bi ene nomoo khoyor jiliin ömnö unshisan.

I read this book two years ago.

2

Ter namaig khüleej baisan.

He was waiting for me.

3

Bid khotod ireed olon yum uzesen.

We came to the city and saw many things.

4

Chi yagaad irsen be?

Why did you come?

1

Tüünii khelsen üg nadad ikh nölöölsön.

The words he said influenced me a lot.

2

Bidnii khüssen ür dün garch irsen.

The result we wanted has emerged.

3

Ter ajlaa amjilttai duusgasan.

He finished his work successfully.

4

Ene bol bidnii yarij baisan sedev.

This is the topic we were discussing.

1

Tüünii khelsen bükhniig bi sanaj baina.

I remember everything he said.

2

Bidnii khüleej baisan tsag irsen.

The time we were waiting for has arrived.

3

Ter ööriin khüssen zamaraa yawsan.

He went the way he wanted.

4

Ene bol bidnii khüleej baisan khariult.

This is the answer we were waiting for.

1

Tüünii khelsen üg bol bidnii khüleej baisan züil.

His words were what we were waiting for.

2

Bidnii khüssen bükh züil biyelüülsön.

Everything we wanted has been realized.

3

Ter ööriin khüssen züilee khürtesen.

He received what he wanted.

4

Ene bol bidnii khüleej baisan khariult.

This is the answer we were waiting for.

Fácil de confundir

The Past Participle as a Main Verb (-san) vs Present Tense

Mixing up -san and -na.

Errores comunes

✗

Bi yaw-san

✓

Bi yawsan

Don't add a hyphen.
✗

Bi yawaagüi

✓

Bi yawaagüi

Correct, but watch for vowel harmony.
✗

Bi yawsan baisan

✓

Bi yawsan

Don't double up past markers.
✗

Bi yawsan

✓

Bi yawsan

Contextual usage is key.

Patrones de oraciones

Bi ___ -san.

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Yawsan!

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💡

Vowel Harmony

Always check the last vowel of the stem.

Smart Tips

Check the vowel.

Bi yawsan → Bi yawsan

Pronunciación

yawsan vs uzesen

Vowel Harmony

The vowel in -san must match the root vowel.

Question

Yawsan uu? (rising)

Asking for confirmation

Memorízalo

Mnemotecnia

Think of 'SAN' as 'SAW AND NOTICED'—it happened in the past.

Asociación visual

Imagine a stamp labeled 'DONE' hitting a piece of paper every time you say a verb ending in -san.

Rhyme

When the day is done and gone, add the suffix -san.

Story

Yesterday, I woke up (bosson). I ate (idsen). I went (yawsan) to school. I studied (surtsan).

Word Web

YawsanIdsenUzesenIrsenUnshisanOchson

Desafío

Write 5 sentences about what you did yesterday using -san.

Notas culturales

The past tense is used heavily in storytelling.

Ancient Mongolic past participle.

Inicios de conversación

“

Chi öchigdör yu khiisen be?

Temas para diario

Write about your last trip.

Errores comunes

Incorrect

Correcto

Incorrect

Correcto

Incorrect

Correcto

Incorrect

Correcto

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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank.

Bi nom ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: unshisan
Past tense.

Score: /1

Ejercicios de practica

1 exercises
Fill in the blank.

Bi nom ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: unshisan
Past tense.

Score: /1

Preguntas frecuentes (1)

No, it changes based on vowel harmony.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish moderate

Pretérito perfecto

Mongolian uses suffixes, Spanish uses auxiliary verbs.

French moderate

Passé composé

Mongolian is agglutinative.

German moderate

Perfekt

German uses 'haben/sein'.

Japanese high

Ta-form

Japanese has more irregulars.

Arabic moderate

Past tense

Arabic is root-based.

Chinese moderate

Le

Chinese is isolating.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Related Grammar Rules

A1

The Present-Future Suffix (-na/-ne/-no/-nö)
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