Participial Phrases: Introductory, Nonessential, Essential
Definitions:
Participle - The first word in the participial phrase -- ends in -ing or -ed (some -ed verb forms are
irregular such as built, spoken, gone, etc.)
Examples: Waving, the children left school for the summer.
Broken, the window gave a deserted look to the house.
Participial Phrase - The participle and its modifiers (modifiers are the words that refer to, or go with, the
participle). Participle phrases always function as adjectives, adding more description to the sentence.
Examples: Following her brother's directions, Katie arrived at the Medieval Fair.
Located in a large field, the fair had many different attractions.
Introductory Participial Phrase - Comes at the first of the sentence; must have a comma after it; modifies
a noun or pronoun that comes immediately after it
Roaring through the night, the tornado ripped through the wheat fields.
Essential Participial Phrase - Comes in the middle or at the end of the sentence; doesn't need comma(s)
because information in it is essential (necessary) to the meaning of the sentence and, thus, must not be
separated by comma(s) subject –
The woman wearing the long, red, silk dress won Best New Artist of the Year.
(Get it? You have to have this phrase in this sentence! It's essential. Without it you'd be asking, "The
woman? Which woman?")
This is one of the first artifacts found at the Jamestown colony archeological dig.
(Yes! Without this essential participial phrase, all you have is "This is one of the first artifacts." That
doesn't tell you anything!) (Did you notice found is an irregular "-ed"?)
Nonessential Participial Phrase - Comes in the middle or at the end of the sentence; needs comma(s)
because information in it is not essential (necessary) to the meaning of the sentence and, thus, must be
separated from the rest of the sentence by comma(s).
Cassie Allen, wearing a beautiful red dress, won Best New Artist of the Year.
(This is about Cassie Allen and her Best Artist award. The red dress is not essential. Put commas around it
to seal it off from the rest of the sentence!)
The Sahara, covered by miles and miles of sand, is the largest desert in the world.
(Main part of sentence: Sahara is largest desert. Other information: nonessential)
Participial Phrases: Punctuation Guide
Introductory Participle phrases:
Participle phrase
, Main Clause
Glazed with barbecue sauce, the rack of ribs lay nestled next to a pile of coleslaw.
When a participle phrases concludes a main clause and is describing the word right in front of it,
you need NO punctuation to connect the two sentence parts.
Main Clause
Participle phrase
Mariah risked petting the pit bull wagging its tail.
But when a participle phrase concludes a main clause and modified a word farther up in the
sentence, you’ll need a comma.
Main Clause
,
Participle phrase
Cooper enjoyed dinner at Audrey’s house, agreeing to a large slice of cherry pie even though he
was full to the point of bursting.
****BE CAREFUL of misplaced participle phrases
DON’T  Draped neatly on a hanger, William borrowed Grandpa’s old suit to wear to the
interview.
(The word the participle phrases is modifying is too far away from the participle. Is William draped over
the hanger? NO! It’s the suit)
DON’T  Straightening his tie and smoothing his hair, the appointment time for the interview
had finally arrived.
(We assume William is about to interview but where is he in the sentence. We NEED a noun for the
participle to modify)
Better  Straightening his tie and smoothing his hair, William was relieved that the appointment
time for the interview had finally arrived.
Name: ______________________________
Period:____
Directions: For credit, you will complete the following exercises on participial phrases. You will also add
at least 2 participial phrases to your final visual analysis essay.
Part 1: IDENTIFYING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES
In each sentence, find and underline the participial phrase that modifies the boldfaced noun or pronoun.
1. Writing quickly, the students took the exam
2. The travelers saw a huge stone castle perched on the rocky cliff.
3. The boy performing a solo on the trumpet is my brother.
4. Swimming with his friend, Frances made it to the float.
5. Ed’s sailboat, damaged near the stern, was unusable
.
Part 2: USING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES TO COMBINE SENTENCES
Use participial phrases to combine each set of sentences into one sentence. Use correct punctuation.
6. The soccer players were exhausted from the game. They collapsed on the grass.
7. The Grand Canyon is located in Arizona. The Grand Canyon is a spectacular sight.
8. The library needed money for new books. The library sponsored a craft fair.
9. The hurricane swept up the coast. It destroyed everything in its path.
Part 3: COLLECTING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES
From your reading, find three real life examples of participial phrases. Record each sentence below, where
you got it and the page number it is on.
1.
2.
3.
Part 4: FIXING MISPLACED / DANGLING PARTICIPLES
Rewrite the following sentences to eliminate the misplaced participle.
Example:
1. Having endured rain all week, the miserable weather on Saturday didn’t surprise us.
Corrected: Having endured rain all week, we weren’t surprised by the miserable weather on Saturday.
2. Known for her conservative views on taxes and the role of government, we were not at all
surprised when the Republican mayor announced her candidacy for president.
Corrected:
3. Exhausted by the head and humidity, it was wonderful to do nothing but lie in the shade and rink
ice tea.
Corrected:
4. Arriving unexpectedly on a weekend when I had two papers to finish, I didn’t feel exactly
overjoyed at seeing my parents.
Corrected:
HOMEWORK; Write your introduction paragraph and first body paragraph. Also, complete the outline in
preparation to finish your paper.
Name:______________________________
Period:____
Part 1: IDENTIFYING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES
In each sentence, find and underline the participial phrase that modifies the boldfaced noun or pronoun.
1. Writing quickly, the students took the exam
2. The travelers saw a huge stone castle perched on the rocky cliff.
3. The boy performing a solo on the trumpet is my brother.
4. Swimming with his friend, Frances made it to the float.
5. Ed’s sailboat, damaged near the stern, was unusable
Part 4: FIXING MISPLACED / DANGLING PARTICIPLES
Rewrite the following sentences to eliminate the misplaced participle.
Example:
1. Having endured rain all week, the miserable weather on Saturday didn’t surprise us.
Corrected: Having endured rain all week, we weren’t surprised by the miserable weather on Saturday.
2. Known for her conservative views on taxes and the role of government, we were not at all
surprised when the Republican mayor announced her candidacy for president.
Corrected:
3. Exhausted by the head and humidity, it was wonderful to do nothing but lie in the shade and rink
ice tea.
Corrected:
4. Arriving unexpectedly on a weekend when I had two papers to finish, I didn’t feel exactly
overjoyed at seeing my parents.
Corrected: