What part of speech is protested?

"Protested" can be a few different parts of speech depending on how it's used in a sentence:

* Verb (past tense): This is the most common usage. For example: "The students protested the new policy."

* Adjective: This is less common, but possible. It means something that was objected to, like a "protested decision."

* Noun: This is even rarer, but it can refer to the act of protesting itself. For example, "The protest was met with violence."

To determine the part of speech, you need to look at the context of the sentence.