'ING' FORM
THE PRESENT PARTICIPLEThe present participle of most verbs has the form base+ing and is used in the following ways:
a. as part of the continuous form of a verbExample:
I am studying,b. after verbs of movement/position in the pattern: verb + present participle
he was reading,
they have been walking.
Example:
- She went shopping
- He lay looking up at the clouds
- She came walking towards me
This construction is particularly useful with the verb 'to go', as in these common expressions :
to go shopping
to go ski-ing
to go fishing
to go surfingto go walking
to go swimming
to go running
to go dancing
c. after verbs of perception in the pattern: verb + object + present participle
Example:
I heard someone singing.NOTE: 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, but the participle refers to an incomplete action, or part of an action.
He saw his friend walking along the road.
I can smell something burning!
Compare:
- I heard Joanna singing (= she had started before I heard her, and probably went on afterwards)
- I heard Joanna sing (= I heard her complete performance)
d. as an adjective
Examples:amazing, worrying, exciting, boring.
- It was an amazing film.
- It's a bit worrying when the police stop you
- Dark billowing clouds often precede a storm.
- Racing cars can go as fast as 400kph.
- He was trapped inside the burning house.
- Many of his paintings depict the setting sun.
verb + time/money expression + present participle
Example:
- My boss spends two hours a day travelling to work.
- Don't waste time playing computer games!
- They've spent the whole day shopping.
verb + object + present participle:
With catch, the participle always refers to an action which causes annoyance or anger:
- If I catch you stealing my apples again, there'll be trouble!
- Don't let him catch you reading his letters.
- We found some money lying on the ground.
- They found their mother sitting in the garden.
g. to replace a sentence or part of a sentence:
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:- They went out into the snow. They laughed as they went. They went laughing out into the snow.
- He whistled to himself. He walked down the road.=>Whistling to himself, he walked down the road.
- He put on his coat and left the house.width=> Putting on his coat, he left the house.
- She dropped the gun and put her hands in the air.=>Dropping the gun, she put her hands in the air.
- Feeling hungry, he went into the kitchen and opened the fridge.
(= because he felt hungry...) - Being poor, he didn't spend much on clothes.
- Knowing that his mother was coming, he cleaned the flat.
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