ESL Tips CHOICE BETWEEN PARTICIPLES The two participle forms convey different meanings, and choosing between them requires you to think about the difference between active and passive. Participles Explanations Examples Present participle (_____-ing) Embedded form of an active progressive verb. Describes an agent that causes something, or a thing in an ongoing process. The movie WAS BORING her. It was a boring movie. (The movie was causing her response.) This dog IS TEARING my skirt. I hate the sound of tearing cloth. (The cloth is in the process of the action.) Past participle (_____-ed or irregular ending) Embedded form of a passive verb. Describes a receiver of an effect or process. She WAS BORED by that movie. Bored and lonely, she left early. (She has received the effect of the movie.) My skirt IS BEING TORN by this dog. Look at the torn and dirty cloth. (The cloth had received the process of the dog's bite.) For some verbs, it can be difficult to choose between the active and passive participles. Practice using the following participles as modifiers in sentences of your own, and get a native English-speaking friend to check your sentences: amusing amused boring bored confusing confused embarrassing embarrassed exciting excited interesting interested knowing known surprising surprised understanding understood worrying worried

CONTENTS MAIN PAGE SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS Technical Requirements Navigating Sentence Sense Using Applications Using a Word Processor ESL TIPS CHARTS AND TABLES Auxiliary Verbs Common Verb Contractions Use of Modal Auxiliaries The Four Forms of Regular Verbs Common Irregular Verbs Some Common Prepositions Verbs, Gerunds and Infinitive Completers Summary of Comma Use Uses of Reported Speech Clause Connectors Summary of Solutions for Run-ons Agreement With to do, to have & to be Pronouns Spelling Chart Correction Tally OTHER INTERNET RESOURCES SEARCH ENGINE