The present participle of most verbs has the form base+ing.
It is used in many different ways.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE AS PART OF THE CONTINUOUS FORM OF A
VERB
EXAMPLES
- I am
working.
- He was
singing.
- They have
been walking.
- We will
be staying.
- She would
have been expecting me.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE AFTER VERBS OF MOVEMENT &
POSITION
This construction is particularly useful with the verb to
go.
EXAMPLES
- She went
shopping.
- I go
running every morning.
- He lay
looking up at the clouds.
- She came
running towards me.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE AFTER VERBS OF PERCEPTION
The pattern for this usage is verb + object +
present participle. There is a difference in meaning when such a sentence
contains a zero infinitive rather than a participle. The infinitive refers to a
complete action while the present participle refers to an ongoing action.
EXAMPLES
- I heard
someone singing.
- He saw
his friend walking along the road.
- I can
smell something burning!
- I
watched the birds flying away.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE AS AN ADJECTIVE
EXAMPLES
- It was
an amazing film.
- Dark billowing clouds
often precede a storm.
- He was
trapped inside the burning house.
- Many
of his paintings show the setting sun.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE WITH THE VERBS SPEND AND WASTE
The pattern with these verbs is verb + time/money
expression + present participle.
EXAMPLES
- My
boss spends two hours a day travelling to work.
- Don't waste
time playing computer games!
- They've spent
the whole day shopping.
- I wasted
money buying this game.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE WITH THE VERBS CATCH AND FIND
The pattern with these verbs is verb + object +
present participle. With catch, the participle always refers to
an action which causes annoyance or anger. This is not the case with find,
which is unemotional.
EXAMPLES
- If
I catch you stealing my apples again, there'll be
trouble!
- Don't
let him catch you reading his letters.
- I caught
him going through my bag.
- We found
some money lying on the ground.
- They found
their mother sitting in the garden.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE FOR TWO ACTIONS AT THE SAME TIME
When two actions occur at the same time, and are done by the
same person or thing, we can use a present participle to describe one of them.
When one action follows very quickly after another done by the same person or
thing, we can express the first action with a present participle.
EXAMPLES
- Whistling to
himself, he walked down the road. = He whistled to himself as he walked
down the road.
- They
went laughing out into the snow. = They laughed as they
went out into the snow.
- Dropping the
gun, she put her hands in the air. = She dropped the gun and put her hands
in the air.
- Putting on
his coat, he left the house. = He put on his coat and left the house.
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE TO EXPLAIN A REASON
The present participle can be used instead of a phrase
starting with as, since, or because. In this usage the
participial phrase explains the cause or reason for an action.
EXAMPLES
- Feeling hungry,
he went into the kitchen and opened the fridge.
- Being poor,
he didn't spend much on clothes.
- Knowing that
his mother was coming, he cleaned the flat.
- He
whispered, thinking his brother was still asleep.
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