What is participle in grammar?

Categories: Basic English

What is participle in grammar?

A participle is a verb form that functions as an adjective or part of a verb phrase to form continuous or perfect tenses. The two main types are the present participle, ending in "-ing" (e.g., running), and the past participle, often ending in "-ed" or "-en" (e.g., walked, eaten). 

Types of Participles

• Present Participle
• Form: Formed by adding "-ing" to the base verb. 
• Function: Describes an ongoing action or describes a noun. 
• Examples:
• As an adjective: "The running child was exhausted". 
• In continuous tenses: "She is sleeping". 
• Past Participle
• Form: Ends in "-ed" for regular verbs or has an irregular form (e.g., -en, -d, -t). 
• Function: Used to form perfect tenses and the passive voice, or to describe a completed action as an adjective. 
• Examples:
• As an adjective: "The broken window needed to be fixed". 
• In perfect tenses: "They have eaten". 
• In passive voice: "The cake was eaten". 

Examples of Participles in Sentences

• Present participle as an adjective: "The whistling man". 
• Past participle as an adjective: "The torn dress". 
• Used with a helping verb: "They are singing" (present participle with "are"). 

Used in a participle phrase: "Having finished his homework, he went to the park" (perfect participle)