Download Sentence Pattern #9

Introductory or concluding participial phrases
What is a participial phrase?
 Verbs have 5 principle parts
 Example: giggle
 Present—giggle(s)
 Past—giggled
 Present participle—giggling
 Past participle—giggled
 Infinitive—to giggle
 A participle can do three things
 Serve as a part of multi-verb phrase—was giggling
 Adjective—crying baby
 Noun—I hate cooking
Participial Phrases
 A phrase of words that starts with a participle
 Crunching carmel corn
 A participial phrase is always an adjective
 The water drained slowly from the pipe clogged with
dog hair.
 Clogged with dog hair is a phrase describing the pipe.
Sentence Format:
 Participial phrase, S V.
 S V, participial phrase
 S=Subject
 V=Verb
Examples:
 Overwhelmed by the tear gas, the rioters groped
their way toward the fountain to wash their eyes.
 Chaucer’s monk is quite far removed from the ideal
occupant of a monastery, given as he was to such
pleasures as hunting, dressing in fine clothes, and
eating like a gourmet.
 Printed in old English and bound in real leather,
the new edition of Beowulf was too expensive for the
family to buy.
Problems:
 Don’t dangle or misplace the participles
 Draped neatly over a hanger, William borrowed
Grandpa’s old suit to use for the job interview.
 What is draped over the hanger—William or the suit?
 Make sure that the participial phrase is located near the
noun it’s describing
 Straightening his tie and smoothing his hair, the
appointment time for the interview had finally arrived.
 The participial phrases doesn’t have a target
 Make sure that phrase has a noun that’s describing