- It is the most trusted company
- It is a branded shirt
Do these two sentences use the past or past participle? Which form of verb is there?
I often come across similar sentences in my life where I also get confused with which form is used.
These are the verbs whose past tense and past participle are both same so it becomes difficult to identify.
As a learner I would say, in your two sentences the verb is the linking verb is. After linking verbs you can use either an adjective or a noun phrase. The important thing is that a past participle can play three main different roles:
For example, this book is invaluable; here invaluable is an adjective. Similarly you can say: He is an old and trusted friend.
For example, New buildings are constructed by the company.
For example, Having walked for a while, he returned to the house.
In your question, the branded and trusted are adjectives.
Moreover, I think it is important to mention that the superlative and comparative forms for such adjectives are constructed using most and more.
To say which tense a sentence is using, you need to check the tense used from the main verb. Since the main verb is is, both the sentences are using the Simple Present Tense.
Trusted and branded are past participles, and they are used as attributives of, respectively, company and shirt.
