The present participle form of English verbs ends in
-ing. Its most basic use is to describe an action
in progress, whether as part of a compound verb, an adjective, or
in a participal phrase.
• She was humming and smiling at the
sun when he walked up to the bench.
• We saw the running boy trip and fall,
mere seconds before the bell rang.
• The ship sailing past us tooted its
horn in welcome.
Gerunds are participles (-ing words)
that are used as nouns.
• Eating cherries gives Alicia indigestion.
• One of Lila’s duties is scrubbing the
tiles.
Don’t let your participle phrases dangle.
If you’re beginning a sentence with an -ing phrase,
make sure that the phrase refers to whatever comes after it.
DANGLING: Racing
for the phone, the martini glass shattered when Tina tripped.
The martini glass isn’t racing; Tina is.
• Racing for the phone, Tina tripped
and shattered the martini glass.
