Present Participles
Formed from a verb, a present participle is a word used as an adjective or for verb tense. All present participles end "-ing." Here are two examples of present participles:
(1) "laughing" (from the verb "to laugh")
- Here it is as an adjective: The laughing gnome
- Here it is forming a verb tense: The gnome was laughing .
(2) "boiling" (from the verb "to boil")
- Here it is as an adjective: Some boiling water
- Here it is is forming a verb tense: The water has been boiling for an hour.
Table of Contents
- Examples of Present Participles As Adjectives
- Real-Life Examples of Present Participles As Adjectives
- Present Participles in Participle Phrases
- Present Participles Used in Verb Tenses
- The Two Types of Participle
- Video Lesson
- Present Participles vs Gerunds
- Forming the Present Participle
- The Five Forms of a Verb
- Why Present Participles Are Important
- Test Time!
Examples of Present Participles As Adjectives
Here are some examples of present participles being used as adjectives:
| The Verb | The Present Participle |
|---|
| To run | running water |
| To flourish | flourishing business |
| To discourage | discouraging glance |
Real-Life Examples of Present Participles As Adjectives
- Always be wary of any helpful item that weighs less than its operating manual. (Author Terry Pratchett)
- Somewhere on this globe, every ten seconds, there is a woman giving birth to a child. She must be found and stopped. (Comedian Sam Levenson)
- Love is the big booming beat which covers up the noise of hate. (Comedian Margaret Cho)
- All existing business models are wrong. Find a new one. (Cartoonist Hugh Macleod)
Present Participles in Participle Phrases
- My mother is next to the lady wearing the red hat . (The participle phrase "wearing the red hat" describes "the lady.")
- I know a pond teeming with fish . (The participle phrase "teeming with fish" describes "a pond.")
- Frantically shuffling through her coppers , Jackie hoped to find another silver coin. (The participle phrase "Frantically shuffling through her coppers" describes "Jackie.")
- Relying on Mark's inability to cast accurately , Lee plonked his bait exactly where Mark had just caught the small pouting. (The participle phrase "Relying on Mark's inability to cast accurately" describes "Lee.")
Present Participles Used in Verb Tenses
As well as being used as adjectives, present participles are also used to form verb tenses. Here are the verb tenses (present participles shaded):
| The 4 Past Tenses | Example |
|---|
| simple past tense | I talked |
| past progressive tense | I was talking |
| past perfect tense | I had talked |
| past perfect progressive tense | I had been talking |
| The 4 Present Tenses | Example |
|---|
| simple present tense | I talk |
| present progressive tense | I am talking |
| present perfect tense | I have talked |
| present perfect progressive tense | I have been talking |
| The 4 Future Tenses | Example |
|---|
| simple future tense | I will talk |
| future progressive tense | I will be talking |
| future perfect tense | I will have talked |
| future perfect progressive tense | I will have been talking |
Note that present participles are used to form the progressive (or continuous) tenses. The progressive tenses show an ongoing action. Read more about the progressive tenses.
The Two Types of Participle
- The Present Participle
- The Past Participle (Past participles usually end "-ed," "-d," "-t," "-en," or "-n.")
"broken" (from the verb "to break")
- Here it is as an adjective: The broken plate
- Here it is forming a verb tense: We have broken the plate.
- Here it is forming a passive sentence: The plate has been broken.
Video Lesson
Here is a video summarizing this lesson on present participles. video lesson
Are you a visual learner? Do you prefer video to text? Here is a list of all our grammar videos.
Present Participles vs Gerunds
Present participles should not be confused with gerunds, which are nouns formed from verbs. Gerunds also end "-ing." There is no difference between gerunds and present participles in terms of spelling. They differ by function. Gerunds are nouns. Present participles are adjectives or used in verb tenses. In these examples, the words in bold are gerunds, and the shaded words are present participles.
Forming the Present Participle
A present participle is formed like this:
- play > playing
- shout > shouting
- prepare > preparing
- ride > riding
- lie > lying
- untie > untying
- run > running
- forget > forgetting
The Five Forms of a Verb
The graphic below shows the five forms a verb. This page is about the present participle form, which is also called the "-ING" form.
Why Present Participles Are Important
Understanding participles (present participles and past participles) is essential if you're learning or teaching English because adjectives and verb tense are fundamental building blocks. in any language.
Generally speaking, present participles do not cause writing errors among native speakers. The same is not true for participle phrases though. Participle phrases are responsible for an error called a misplaced modifier. But, it's not all bad news with participle phrases. They also offer a benefit.
Here are two good reasons to think a little more about present participles (specifically when they're used in participle phrases). Let's start with the benefit.
(Benefit 1) With a fronted participle phrase, you can say two things about your subject efficiently.
- Demonstrating level headedness in all business dealings , Matt listens actively and engages appropriately when in disagreement. (This example features a present participle (bold) in a participle phrase (shaded).)
(Trap 1) Beware misplaced modifiers and dangling modifiers!
When using the sentence structure in "Benefit 1," writers sometimes create ambiguity by failing to put the participle phrase next to the word it's modifying. For example:
- Demonstrating level headedness in all business dealings , customers routinely offer positive feedback on Matt. (In this example, the participle phrase (shaded) could be modifying "customers" instead of "Matt." This is called a misplaced modifier.)
A misplaced modifier makes your sentence ambiguous or wrong. You can avoid a misplaced modifier by placing your modifier next to whatever it's modifying. Let's fix the example.
- Demonstrating level headedness in all business dealings , Matt routinely receives positive feedback from customers. (The participle phrase is now next to "Matt." The ambiguity has gone.)
Sometimes, writers create a worse error called a dangling modifier. With a dangling modifier, the word being modified isn't even present in the sentence. For example:
- Demonstrating level headedness in all business dealings , customers routinely offer positive feedback and return to place more orders. (In this example, the participle phrase (shaded) has nothing to modify. "Matt" isn't mentioned. This is called a dangling modifier.)
Read more about misplaced modifiers.Read more about dangling modifiers.
Key Points
- Present participles are key building blocks in any language.
- Using an upfront participle phrase lets you cram more information into a sentence.
- If you use an upfront participle phrase, put the word being modified next.
Take a different test on present participles.
This page was written by Craig Shrives.
