Mighty Morphin’ Participles

A grammar tip that will ENERGIZE your writing

When is a verb NOT a verb?

When it is used as an ADJECTIVE! Then it is called a participle.

A Participle is:

• a verb with an ed or ing ending

• that is USED as an Adjective

The same word can work as many different parts of speech depending upon HOW you use it. Words are just TOOLS to communicate.

GRAMMAR RULES are the instruction booklet that help you know WHICH TOOL to use to get the best written result.

Adding ING or ED to many verbs gives them SUPERPOWERS!

If you MOVE the verb with the ing or ed ending in FRONT of a noun, it MORPHS to describe the noun—

so it is working as an adjective. This change makes it a PARTICIPLE.

VERBS most often FOLLOW nouns to state what the noun (subject) is DOING.

The cat hissed at the dog.

The Royals fans were hissing at the Giants.

A Verb is JUST a verb • if it ends with ed or ing AND

expresses what the subject noun is DOING

The cat HISSED.

• if the ACTION word (hissing) is paired with a helping Form of Be (am, are, is, was, were)

The cat WAS HISSING.

The simplest way to make it a participle is —MOVE the verb with the ed or ing in FRONT of the noun so the participle describes the noun.

The hissing cat scratched the sleeping dog.

The screaming Royals fans drowned out

the stunned Giants fans.

VIOLÁ! The Verb has morphed!

Check YOUR vocab cards—the word hissing or tiered should come BEFORE a noun to work as an adjective (participle) .

FIX ERRORS!!!

IF it FOLLOWS the noun, or is paired with a form of be (were, is) it is STILL a verb and you need to revise.

WHY USE A Participle?• It ENERGIZES a sentence because it adds the ACTION of a verb to the description.• It packs more meaning into fewer words. BEFORE PARTICIPLES:The puppy was noisy and bothered the neighbors. The boy was curious. He found his birthday present. The tree was swaying in the storm and snapped in two.

AFTER ADDING PARTICIPLESThe yapping puppy bothered the neighbors.The snooping child found his birthday present.The swaying tree snapped in the storm.