Look at these examples to see how participle clauses are used.
Looked after carefully, these boots will last for many years.
Not wanting to hurt his feelings, I avoided the question.
Having lived through difficult times together, they were very close friends.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
Participle clauses enable us to say information in a more economical way. They are formed using present participles (going, reading, seeing, walking, etc.), past participles (gone, read, seen, walked, etc.) or perfect participles (having gone, having read, having seen, having walked, etc.).
We can use participle clauses when the participle and the verb in the main clause have the same subject. For example,
Waiting for Ellie, I made some tea. (While I was waiting for Ellie, I made some tea.)
Participle clauses do not have a specific tense. The tense is indicated by the verb in the main clause.
Participle clauses are mainly used in written texts, particularly in a literary, academic or journalistic style.
Present participle clauses
Here are some common ways we use present participle clauses. Note that present participles have a similar meaning to active verbs.
- To give the result of an action
The bomb exploded, destroying the building. - To give the reason for an action
Knowing she loved reading, Richard bought her a book. - To talk about an action that happened at the same time as another action
Standing in the queue, I realised I didn't have any money. - To add information about the subject of the main clause
Starting in the new year, the new policy bans cars in the city centre.
Past participle clauses
Here are some common ways that we use past participle clauses. Note that past participles normally have a passive meaning.
- With a similar meaning to an if condition
Used in this way, participles can make your writing more concise. (If you use participles in this way, … ) - To give the reason for an action
Worried by the news, she called the hospital. - To add information about the subject of the main clause
Filled with pride, he walked towards the stage.
Perfect participle clauses
Perfect participle clauses show that the action they describe was finished before the action in the main clause. Perfect participles can be structured to make an active or passive meaning.
Having got dressed, he slowly went downstairs.
Having finished their training, they will be fully qualified doctors.
Having been made redundant, she started looking for a new job.
Participle clauses after conjunctions and prepositions
It is also common for participle clauses, especially with -ing, to follow conjunctions and prepositions such as before, after, instead of, on, since, when, while and in spite of.
Before cooking, you should wash your hands.
Instead of complaining about it, they should try doing something positive.
On arriving at the hotel, he went to get changed.
While packing her things, she thought about the last two years.
In spite of having read the instructions twice, I still couldn’t understand how to use it.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
He was invited, so he attended the party.
Can I transform them into simple sentence by using participle?
(He was invited)=REASON
(He attended the party)= RESULT
(Invitation) not his motivation rather than CAUSE.
So, can write this way---
BY USING ABSOLUTE PHRASE:------ (He having been invited, he attended the party)
BY USING PREPOSITION
---( In/By having been invited, he attended the party)
PLEASE DO REPLY!!!
He was motivated by the fact that hes was invited.So, it would be better to use present participle, following grammar rule rather than using gerund. Therefore, the simple form would be--- (being) invited, he attended the party.
Hello sir, Being angry, John hit his friend onto head with a glass bottle.
Here, John's intention was not to become angry nor was motivated by anger. So, It is clear that It is an impersonal cause.
So, correct form is (In being angry, John hit his friend onto head with a glass bottle)
Is my explanation correct??
Kindly Reply!!
Hello Gopal,
It's not completely clear to me what this sentence means. My best guess, based on looking at it with no other contextual clues, is that it means that John hit his friend because John was angry.
That's a personal cause in my book. It might be that John's anger was caused by something else, but that's not what this sentence seems to be about. It describes how John hit his friend and gives some idea as to why.
I understand that you're trying to learn to use these clauses, but please note that this sentence is quite unnatural. Except for this '-ing' clause at the beginning, it's quite informal, but such '-ing' clauses aren't really used in informal speaking. A far more natural sentence would be something like 'John was angry and his friend on the head with a glass bottle' or 'John was angry and so he hit his friend ...'
Hope this helps.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Can I write this in this way, by using ABSOLUTE PHRASE:-----He being angry, he hit his friend on head with a bottle glass.
Hello again Gopal Debnath,
I don't think that's a natural construction. We'd simply use a participle phrase and not repeat the pronoun:
> Being angry, he hit his friend...
> He, being angry, his his friend...
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
coming with a great speed, A ball hit me.
In this context, (coming with great speed) this is acting as an adjective phrase because it is adding information to 'the ball' and these two actions happened less immediately not at the moment. is this explanation correct??
Hello Gopal,
I'm afraid I'd rather not explain this sentence because it's really not very natural. I'd suggest something like 'A ball [that was] coming at a great speed hit me', though even that sounds rather strange to me -- it's a strange mix of informal and formal. But in this latter case, as you can see from the brackets, 'coming at a great speed' is a reduced relative clause and is indeed adjectival in function.
Hope this helps.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Sir, I would say that we can write in this way---A ball came at great speed and it hit me.Two actions happened very immidiately. can't I transform into simple sentence by using present participle??
Hi Gopal Debnath,
Grammatically, that would be fine, but I think it's important to remember that grammar is not the only aspect of language.
Your first message used the phrase "with a great speed", which is grammatically OK but less commonly used (i.e., less natural-sounding) than "at great speed", which you used in your last message.
Also, in my view, it would be better to put the subject first: "A ball hit me, coming at great speed". This way, it's clear to readers straight away what thing was "coming at great speed".
And another thing to consider is that the verb "coming" might be redundant. We could just say "A ball hit me at great speed", with the same meaning. Often, speakers prefer more economical and simpler phrasings.
So, overall, it's good to practise grammar but try to remember that not all grammatically correct sentences are actually or equally used in real life. You should also consider how natural the sentence sounds, as Kirk has suggested, including whether alternative ways of saying the same thing are better.
I hope that helps.
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team