simple past tense and past participle of attend
"She attended the wedding last weekend but missed the reception because she got stuck in traffic."
In plain English: Attended means you were present at an event or place for it to happen.
"She attended the meeting on time."
Usage: Use "attended" to describe being present at an event or successfully completing a duty in the past. Do not use it to mean "paid attention to," which requires the phrasal form "paid attention."
playing or singing with instrumental or vocal accompaniment
"The choir attended their own song while the orchestra played softly in the background."
attending
"She attended every single meeting to ensure the project stayed on track."
In plain English: Attended means something that has been taken care of, handled, or paid attention to by someone.
"The student had an attended class where everyone was present and listening."
Usage: Do not use "attended" as an adjective in modern English; it is strictly the past tense verb form indicating someone was present at an event or place. Instead, use words like "attentive," "occupied," or specific adjectives such as "well-attended" to describe things related to being attended.
Derived from Old French atendre, which means to wait upon or be ready, this past participle originally signified being present at an event or taking care of someone's needs. The root ultimately traces back to Latin attendere, combining ad- (to) and tendere (to stretch), literally meaning "to stretch toward.