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Participles
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What Are Participles? (with Examples)
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(3) to create the passive voice.
A participle is a verb form that can be used (1) as an adjective, (2) to create verb tense, or
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There are two types of participles:
Present participle (ending -ing)
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Past participle (usually ending -ed, -d, -t, -en, or -n).
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verbs
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(Function 1) Participles as Adjectives
Examples of Participles Being Used as Adjectives
Here are some present and past participles being used as adjectives:
The Verb
The Present Participle
The Past Participle
To rise
the rising sun
the risen sun
To boil
the boiling water
the boiled water
To break
the breaking news
the broken news
To cook
the cooking ham
the cooked ham
More Examples of Present Participles as
Adjectives
Remember that present participles end in -ing. Here are some more examples:
boiling water
caring nature
deserving recipient
Here are some real-life examples of present participles (shaded) being used as adjectives:
A laughing man is stronger than a suffering man. (Gustave Flaubert, 1821-1880)
If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is
the principal difference between a dog and a man. (Mark Twain, 1835-1910)
The only thing that comes to a sleeping man is dreams. (Tupac Shakur)
More Examples of Past Participles as Adjectives
Remember that past participles have various endings, usually -ed, -d, -t, -en, or -n. Here
are some more examples:
broken window
painted frame
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Here are some real-life examples of past participles (shaded) being used as adjectives:
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A swollen eye is God's way of telling you to improve your interpersonal skills.
Do not waste time staring at a closed door.
I like children...if they're properly cooked. (W.C. Fields)
(Don't forget that an adjective can also appear after the noun it is modifying. See
predicate adjectives.)
Participle Phrases
It is really common to see participles in participle phrases. A participle phrase also acts
like an adjective. In the examples below, the participle phrases are shaded and the
participles are in bold:
The man carrying the bricks is my father.
(The participle phrase carrying the bricks describes the the man.)
She showed us a plate of scones crammed with cream.
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(The participle phrase crammed with cream describes the scones.)
Whistling the same tune as always, Ted touched the front of his cap with his
forefinger as she dismounted.
(The participle phrase Whistling the same tune as always describes Ted.)
Stunned by the blow, Mike quickly gathered his senses and searched frantically
for the pepper spray.
(The participle phrase Stunned by the blow describes Mike.)
Read more about participle phrases.
(Function 2) Participles to Form Verb Tense
Participles are not just used as adjectives. They are also used to form verb tenses.
Present Participles in Verb Tenses
Here are the verb tenses that are formed using present participles (shaded):
The 4 Past Tenses
Example
simple past tense
I went
past continuous tense
I was going
past perfect tense
I had gone
past perfect progressive tense
I had been going
The 4 Present Tenses
Example
simple present tense
I go
present progressive tense
I am going
present perfect tense
I have gone
present perfect progressive tense
I have been going
The 4 Future Tenses
Example
simple future tense
I will go
future progressive tense
I will be going
future perfect tense
I will have gone
future perfect progressive tense
I will have been going
Read more about present participles.
Past Participles in Verb Tenses
Here are the verb tenses that are formed using past 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 progressive tense
I had been going
The 4 Present Tenses
Example
simple present tense
I go
present progressive tense
I am going
present perfect tense
I have gone
present perfect progressive tense
I have been going
The 4 Future Tenses
Example
simple future tense
I will go
future progressive tense
I will be going
future perfect tense
I will have gone
future perfect progressive tense
I will have been going
Read more about past participles.
(Function 3) Past Participles to Form the Passive
Voice
Past participles are also used to form the passive voice. A verb is said to be in the
"passive voice" when its subject does not perform the action of the verb but has the action
of the verb performed on it. For example:
The painting was taken to the auction.
(This is an example of a verb ("was taken") in the passive voice. The action was
done to the subject ("the painting").)
Conversely, when the subject of the sentence is acting out the verb, the verb is said to be
in active voice. For example:
Toby took the painting to the auction.
(This is an example of a verb ("took") in the active voice. The subject ("Toby") did
the action.)
Read more about the passive voice.
Forming the Passive Voice
The passive voice is form as follows:
[verb "to be"] + [past participle]
In these examples, the verb "to be" is bolded and the past participles are shaded:
The convict was captured after just two hours on the run.
The goats are milked twice a day.
My VIPs will be flown to the stadium by helicopter.
Here, for references purposes, is a list of all the forms of the passive voice. Note that past
participles feature in every version.
(NB: Don't be alarmed by the complexity of the structures in this table. Some of these
tenses are rarely accounted in the passive voice.)
The 4 Past Tenses
Simple Past Tense (Passive
Example
The cake was eaten this morning.
Voice)
Past Progressive Tense
The cake was being eaten during the
(Passive Voice)
morning.
Past Perfect Tense (Passive
The cake had been eaten before breakfast.
Voice)
Past Perfect Progressive
The cake had been being eaten years before
Tense (Passive Voice)
the invention of pasteurization.
The 4 Present Tenses
Simple Present Tense
Example
The cake is eaten for breakfast
(Passive Voice)
Present Progressive Tense
The cake is being eaten across the town.
(Passive Voice)
Present Perfect Tense
The cake has been eaten since at least 1914.
(Passive Voice)
Present Perfect Progressive
The cake has been being eaten since before
Tense (Passive Voice)
pasteurization.
The 4 Future Tenses
Simple Future Tense (Passive
Example
The cake will be eaten by the staff.
Voice)
Future Progressive Tense
The cake will be being eaten during the
(Passive Voice)
speeches.
Future Perfect Tense
The cake will have been eaten before the
(Passive Voice)
dancing starts.
Future Perfect Progressive
The cake will have been being eaten for over
Tense (Passive Voice)
two centuries by then.
Perfect Participles
Before we end this lesson on participles, there is another term we should cover quickly:
"perfect participles."
Perfect participles are formed like this:
"Having" + [past participle]
Examples:
Having taken
Having eaten
Having played
Some more examples of perfect 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.
Don't think of the perfect participle as a third type of participle. It is just a commonly used
structure that features a present participle ("having") and a past participle (e.g., "taken,"
"eaten," "played").
Why Should I Care about Participles?
If you're learning or teaching English, then understanding participles is essential because
adjectives, verb tense, and the passive voice are language essentials.
If you're a native English speaker, then you almost certainly use present and past
participles without giving the grammar a second thought. And, as a rule, participles are not
responsible for many writing errors among native speakers.
What's more interesting is that participles can provide some worthwhile benefits. With that
in mind, here are two good reason to think about participles a little more than you might
have done previously.
(Reason 1) Participles allow a sentence structure
that lets you say two or more things tidily.
Participles can be used to create a sentence structure that allows you to say two or more
things about your subject efficiently. For example:
Imbued with common sense and technical know-how, Jack is adept at identifying
cost-effective solutions to business problems.
(This example features a past participle (bold) in a participle phrase (shaded).)
Demonstrating level headedness in all business dealings, Jill listens actively and
engages appropriately when in disagreement.
(This example features a present participle (bold) in a participle phrase (shaded).)
This participle-phrase upfront structure is particularly useful when writing personal
appraisals. It allows you to shoehorn in an extra observation about your subject in a single
sentence.
Read more about the benefits of using participles on the non-finite verbs page.
(Reason 2) Passive sentences have some great
benefits.
As past participles are used to create passive sentences, it is worth mentioning here that
passive sentences have some great benefits. More specifically, passive sentences are
useful to:
(1) Avoid blame.
(2) Show a neutral or objective tone.
(3) Show the doer is unimportant, unknown, or obvious.
(4) Emphasize the subject.
(5) Use the same subject twice.
Read more about these benefits of passive sentences.
Key Points
Present and past participles are key building blocks in any language.
Using a participle phrase upfront allows you to cram more information into a
sentence.
Learn how to form passive sentences because there are some great benefits to
be had.
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See Also
What are participle phrases?
What are dangling modifiers?
What are verbs?
What are adjectives?
What are present participles?
What are past participles?
What is verb tense?
Glossary of grammatical terms
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