Participle Modifiers 2 -ed / -ing
Completed State vs. Ongoing Process
Completed -ed /Ongoing -ing
| COMPLETED STATE |
|---|
Some past participles, ending in -ed or -en, -t, may be used to modify a noun and express a completed state. The modifier has some adjective and some verb-like properties. |
| COMPLETED |
|
Grown children often move out of the house. |
Broken dishes were all over the floor. |
Fallen trees littered the forest floor. |
Fried potatoes would taste good right now. |
He was a well-loved child (beloved) |
| ONGOING QUALITY OR STATE |
|---|
Some present participles, ending in -ing, may be used to modify a noun and express a process that is still in action. |
| ONGOING |
|
Growing children need a lot of food. |
Breaking dishes and shouts could be heard in the kitchen. |
Falling trees are a danger to hikers. |
Frying potatoes smell delicious. |
He is a loving husband. |
Participle Modifiers (Adjectival passives)
Completed vs. Ongoing
Participle Modifier List
| COMPLETED | |
|---|---|
Adjectival passives can be used after a be verb or seem, become, appear, looks, or acts. (static verbs) The glass was broken. It was broken glass. |
|
aged (wine, cheese) |
fried (potatoes) |
broken (glass) |
exploded (fireworks) |
boiled (milk) |
frozen (water) |
brewed (coffee) |
grown (children) |
changed (man) |
loved (person) |
closed (subject) |
melted (ice) |
cooked (food) |
occupied (region) |
crossed (lines) |
rotten (fruit) |
cut (flowers) |
turned (page) |
dripped (wax) |
wound (watch) |
| ONGOING | |
|---|---|
Present participlial modifiers are pre position and are derived from reduced clauses. He reported news that was breaking. It was breaking news. |
|
aging (parents) |
frying (potatoes) |
breaking (glass) |
exploding (fireworks) |
boiling (milk) |
freezing (water) |
brewing (coffee) |
growing (children) |
changing (times) |
loving (person) |
closing (argument) |
melting (ice) |
cooking (food) |
occupying (force) |
crossing (lines) |
rotting (fruit) |
cutting (remark) |
turning (page) |
dripping (wax) |
winding (road) |
Other -ing forms (not to be confused)
noun (suffixes) |
the landing, ending, painting, blessing, marketing, reading |
verb (progressive) |
is landing, ending, painting, blessing, marketing, reading |
gerund (complements) |
enjoy landing, ending, painting, blessing, marketing, reading |
adjective (source) |
very amusing, exciting, frustrating, pleasing, surprising |
adjective (ongoing quality) |
a breaking, falling, rotting, loving noun |
adjective (function) |
a talking, sleeping, moving, hiking, marking noun |
compare: a frightening dog (source) , a growing dog (process) , a sheep-herding dog (function)
Participial Modifier
Category & Function
Verb or Adjective?
| PAST PARTICIPLE -ED |
|---|
Normally, we can determine whether a word form is an adjective by (1) placing very or too before it; and (2) by replacing the copula verb be with seem or become, appeared. This particular group of verbs is "problematic". |
| COMPLETED |
|
| VERB |
The chicken was roasted (by the chef). passive verb |
| ADJECTIVE |
The chicken was roasted. be The chicken appeared roasted. seem, become, or appear The chicken was very roasted. very or too
|
| PRESENT PARTICIPLE -ING |
|---|
With this group of verbs, both of the participle form s accept other be-like verbs, but do not accept the degree adverb very. As modifiers, these participle forms have properties of bothe both verbs and adjectives. |
| ONGOING |
|
| VERB |
The clown was entertaining the family. present progressive verb |
| ADJECTIVE |
The chicken was roasting. be The chicken appeared roasting. seem, become, or appear The chicken was very roasting. very or too
|
*yellow highlight indicates as example of incorrect usage
Tests for adjectives: (1) if you can put very (an adverb of degree) before the word, then the word form is an adjective or adverb but not a verb; (2) If you can replace the be verb with seem or become, then the participle form is an adjective and is not part of the verb. (CaGEL 533, 541)
adjectival passive (CaGEL 16 §10.1.3)
Participle Modifiers
State or Natural Quality
Completed vs. Natural Quality States
| -ED — COMPLETED STATES | -ED — NATURAL QUALITY OR STATE |
|---|---|
Past participle modifiers ending in -ed or -en may indicate the state of a process or activity completed by someone. (These are verb-like modifiers. Note that we cannot use very before these participle modifiers, which is true for adjectives.) |
Past participle modifiers may indicate the natural quality or state of the noun (color, pattern, condition, etc.) |
| COMPLETED STATE | NATURAL STATE |
The recently spotted owl was making a nest. (an owl seen or located by someone usually with binoculars) |
We saw a very spotted owl making a nest. (an owl with natural coloring including spots) |
The black-eyed boxer walked into the ring. (an eye that was harmed by another fighter) |
The black-eyed terrier walked into the ring. (a dog with naturally black eyes) |
We made the pie with pitted cherries. (pits that were removed by us) |
We made the sculpture from pitted wood. (wood with natural scars) |
The freshly-washed dog sat in the sun. (a dog that was washed by someone) |
The short-haired dog sat in the sun. (a dog with naturally short hair) |
Would you like some frozen yogurt. (yogurt that was frozen by someone) |
Would you like to visit the frozen tundra? (a Antarctic region that is permanently frozen) |
She wore a shirt with rolled-up sleeves. (sleeves that were rolled up by someone) |
She wore a long-sleeved shirt. (a shirt with long-sleeves) |
Participial Modifiers
Ongoing Process or Function
Ongoing Process vs. Function
| -ING – ONGOING PROCESS OR STATE | -ING – FUNCTION |
|---|---|
Present participle modifiers ending in -ing may indicate something still undergoing a process or activity. These are verb-like modifiers. Note that we cannot use very before these participle modifiers, which is true for adjectives.) |
Present participle modifiers ending in -ing may indicate the function of something. These modifiers are noun-like. [activity + noun] Also see Noun Modifiers. |
| ONGOING QUALITY OR STATE | FUNCTION |
Don't awaken the sleeping dogs. (dogs that are sleeping) |
The pups are in in their sleeping bag. (a bag for sleeping) |
We have a talking parrot (a parrot that talks.) |
We have a talking machine. (a device for talking, a text reader) |
Look! It's a shooting star. ( a star that is shooting across the sky) |
He practices his rifle skills at the shooting range. (an area for target practice) |
It's a slow-moving train. (a train that is moving slowly) |
It's a moving van. (a truck for transporting households) |
A hiking party was seen to the north of the volcano. (a group that is hiking) |
Mr. Hanson was wearing his hiking shoes (shoes that are for trekking.) |
The waiting parents were very worried. (parents that are waiting) |
The doctor's waiting room was brightly decorated. (a room for waiting) |
Commonly Confused
Confusion and Solution
Commonly Confused (by native speakers)
| CONFUSION | SOLUTION |
|---|---|
Are these pitted olives?
|
While olives could be described as 'pitted olives' – a natural quality or state of having pits – more often they are just called 'olives'. The modifier is unnecessary: Does a naturally grown olive without a pit exist? Because of the confusion, some speakers clarify the terms as 'olives with pits' or 'olives without pits'. |
Or are these pitted olives? |
Pitted olives are those which have had the pit removed by someone. |
Practice 1
Title
- Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your response to the answer by clicking the "check" button to the right.