Participle Adjectives
Participle adjectives are the same form as participles with the same characteristics with adjectives.
What Are Participle Adjectives?
Types of Participle
The two types of participles in English are:
- Present Participle (verb + -ing)
- Past Participle (verb + -ed/-en)
Present Participles
'Present participle adjectives' are formed by adding the suffix '-ing' to the base form of the verb. Pay attention to the examples:
The movie annoys me. → The movie is
The play amused us. →The play was
The bird that flew had blue feathers. → The
Past Participles
'Past participle adjectives' are usually formed by adding the suffix '-ed' or '-en' to verbs. However, sometimes the past participle form is irregular. These adjectives are usually used for living things because non-living objects cannot experience feelings or actions.
The
I was
I think I am a little
He is always
He was killed for an
Participle Adjectives: Functions
Participle adjectives can be used as:
- A pre-positive adjective
- A post-positive adjective
You can't fix a
I am left with nothing but a heart
Compound Participle Adjectives
Adding a noun, adverb, or adjective before a participle adjective forms a compound participle adjective that is still considered a participle adjective. Look at the following examples:
There is a
They create
Hyphen
When forming compound participle adjectives, don't forget to insert a hyphen between the participle adjective and the preceding word.
Review
'Participle adjectives' are present participles or past participles formed from a verb that ends in -ing or -ed.
They are usually used to express feelings, however, they can be used in different cases. So it is better to consider them descriptive adjectives.