What Are Participles?

A participle is a word formed from

a verb which can be used as
an adjective. The two types of
participles are the present
participle (ending ing) and
the past participle (usually
ending -ed, -d, -t, -en, or -n).
Here are some participles being
used as adjectives:
The
The The Past
Present
Verb Participle
Participle
To the risen the rising
rise sun sun
To the boiled the boiling
boil water water
the
To the broken
breaking
break news
news
To the cooked the cooking
cook ham ham
 Present Participles
Present participles end
in -ing.
Examples:
 boiling water
 caring nature
 deserving recipient
 Some more examples of
present participles (shaded):

 A laughing man is
stronger than
a suffering man.
 If you pick up a starving dog
and make him prosperous, he
will not bite you.

 The only thing that comes to

a sleeping man is dreams.
Present participles are not
just used as adjectives.
They are also used to
form verb tenses.
Here are the verb tenses
(present participles
shaded):
 The 4 Past Tenses Example
simple past tense I went
past progressive tense I was going
past perfect tense I had gone
past perfect I had
progressive tense been going
The 4 Present Tenses Example
simple present tense I go
present progressive
I am going
tense
present perfect tense I have gone
present perfect I have
progressive tense been going
The 4 Future Tenses Example
simple future tense I will go
future progressive
I will be going
tense
future perfect tense I will have gone
 future perfect I will have
progressive tense been going
Past Participles
Past participles have various
endings, usually -ed, -d, -t, -en, or -
n. Examples:
 broken window
 painted frame
 destroyed bridge
 Perfect Participles
Perfect participles are formed like
this:

"Having" + [past participle]

Examples:
 Having taken
 Having eaten
 Having played
Some more examples of present
participles (shaded):
 Having heard the news, he quickly
sold his brother's record collection.
 Having been promised a steak
dinner, she looked less than
impressed with her Happy Meal.