Passive Participles: mafʿūl

The pattern مَفْعول (mafʿūl) turns a root into a passive participle: the person or thing the action was done to. It behaves like an adjective and is everywhere on signs and in daily talk:

• ف-ت-ح → مفتوح (open), م-ن-ع → ممنوع (forbidden), ك-س-ر → مكسور (broken), ش-غ-ل → مشغول (busy)
• Watch the spelling: د-ع-و → مدعوّ (invited, the two و merge), س-أ-ل → مسؤول (responsible, the hamza sits on و)

It agrees like any adjective: add ة for a feminine noun and for non-human plurals (الصحون مغسولة), and ون for a group of men or a mixed group (الموظفون مشغولون). After a definite noun it takes ال (الزجاج المكسور, the broken glass). With verbs that need a preposition, keep the preposition: التصوير مسموح به (photography is allowed).