Download + infinitive

Nonfinite Verbs in English
infinitives
-ing verbs and participles
-ed verbs and participles
infinitive
There are two types of infinitive: to-infinitive
and bare infinitive. The bare infinitive is just
the infinitive without to, which is identical in
form with the base of the verb.
（1） Grammatical forms
The infinitive has no tense distinctions, nor
person or number contrasts. But they can be
passive and take the simple, progressive,
perfective and perfective progressive forms, e.g.
I have a lot of work to do.
She had no need to be worrying.
He is said to have left Shanghai.
The president was reported to have been
flying across the Atlantic.
A negative infinitive is formed by adding
not or never immediately before the
infinitive sign to.
e.g.
We decided not to buy that house.
She wished never to see him again.
（2） To-infinitive and bare infinitive
Infinitives commonly occur with to, but in
some contexts it is necessary to use the
bare infinitive, and in some other cases the
infinitive sign is optional. The following is a
summing up of the situations in which the
bare infinitive is used.
（a） The bare infinitive is generally used to
follow the modals including need and dare.
e.g. You must do as you are told.
（b） The bare infinitive is used to follow
semi-auxiliaries,
e.g. You'd better have that bad tooth pulled
out.
I happened to be out when he called.
（c） The bare infinitive is used to combine with such
modal idioms as would rather, would sooner, would
(just) as soon, may/ might (just) as well, cannot but,
cannot help but, etc.
e.g. I would rather stay at home.
Since it's a fine day, we might as well walk.
He would rather listen to others than talk himself.
I 'd just as soon go by train as drive.
I really don't want to go there. I'd just as soon turn
round and go back.
（d） The bare infinitive is commonly used to
follow rather than and sooner than,
especially when rather than / sooner than
takes the initial position,
e.g.: Rather than cause trouble, he left.
Sooner than marry that man, she would
earn her living as a waitress.
But when rather than takes other positions
in the sentence, the following infinitive may
be with or without to,
e.g. He decided to go fishing rather than stay
in the dormitory.
The manager believes it is important to
invest in new machinery rather than to
increase wages.
（e） The bare infinitive can be
combined with a main verb to form
some fixed combinations such as
make believe
let slip
make do (with / on) let go (of)
let drop
leave go of
let fall
hear tell (of)
let fly (at)
(let ... ) go hang
For example:
He did all that just to make believe.
We hadn't time for luncheon, but we made do
with sandwiches.
Don't let go (of) the handle.
He let fall a hint of his intentions.
（f）The bare infinitive usually appears
after "causative verb +object“.
e.g. We can't let this go on.
Abbey made him stay to tea.
He won't have us criticize his work.
 But when the causative verb occurs in
the passive, the bare infinitive should
be turned into a to-infinitive.
e.g. Jim made her tell him everything.
（g） The bare infinitive usually occurs after
"sense verb + object". The sense
verbs include see, hear, observe,
notice, feel, watch, look at and listen to.
e.g.
I didn't hear you say that.
We felt the house shake.
He doesn't like listening to other people talk.
 But
when the sense verb occurs in the
passive, it should be followed by a toinfinitive.
e.g.
They saw him enter the building.
--He was seen to enter the building.
（h） The bare infinitive is used after "have
known + object“.
e.g. Have you ever known him tell a lie?
I have never known that man smile.
（i）The bare infinitive often appears after help
or “help + object”, but to-infinitive is also
possible, e.g.:
Can I help (to) lift that box?
I'll help you (to) solve the problem.
(j) The bare infinitive usually appears after the
preposition except / but when there is a form of the
main verb do before the preposition, which is
otherwise followed by a to-infinitive.
e.g. They did nothing but wait.
There's no choice but to wait.
 Likewise, in some SVC constructions, if the subject
contains a form of the main verb do, the infinitive in
the complement may be with or without to.
e.g. The only thing I can do now is (to) go on by myself.
(k) The bare infinitive also appears after "Why ...
/Why not ... ?“.
e.g. Why argue with him?
Why not give Mary some flowers?
The bare infinitive can also be used in the
following idiomatic expressions..
Go post a letter for me.
Come have a chat with me.
Try eat a little.
I'll try help him.
Some
few notes on the use of the
infinitive sign
To avoid repetition, the infinitive sign can
sometimes be used alone, that is to say, the
base in the to-infinitive can be omitted.
 sometimes together with its complementation.
This kind of omission is quite common in
informal style,
e.g. George says that he is going to leave
Shanghai, but I don't think he really wants
to.
You may go if you wish to.

 If
the base of the infinitive is the verb be or
have, it should be retained, even though its
complementation is omitted.
e.g. A: Aren't you the manager?
B.. No, I don't want to be.
A.. He hasn't finished yet.
B: Well, he ought to have.
In some contexts, both the to-infinitive and its
complementation can be omitted so that no
trace remains of the infinitive.
e.g.
You will make it if you try (to).
I'd like to do it now, but I haven't got the time
(to).

(2) Ellipsis of the infinitive sign
When two to-infinitives are coordinated by
and ,or the second to is usually omitted
unless there is a contrastive meaning.
e.g. I intend to call on him and discuss this
question again.
When there is a contrastive meaning, the
second to must be retained.
e.g. To be or not to be, that is the question.
The infinitive sign cannot be omitted if there is no
coordinator between the coordinate infinitives.
e.g. Please go to the seaside to swim, to get suntanned.

Nor can any infinitive sign be omitted if a sequence of
infinitives occur in a parallel construction,
e.g. The student must learn to read extensively,
to analyze what he reads and to summarize the
main points presented.

(3) Infinitive to or preposition to
The word to often presents a problem for Chinese
students. For instance, in "object to" and "be used to",
is the word to a preposition or an infinitive sign?
To solve this problem, we may try to put a noun
after it. If a noun or a noun equivalent is possible, it
proves to be a preposition; otherwise, it is an infinitive
sign.
The following is a summary of the collocations in
which the item to is a preposition, not an infinitive sign:
(a) Verb+ preposition to.
e.g.
add to
attest to
contribute to
agree to bow to
object to
adhere to cling to
get to
admit to come to
pertain to
allude to correspond to react to
amount to confess to
resort to
attend to consent to
revert to
refer to
relate to
submit to
stick to
take to
witness to
yield to, etc
For example:
When it comes to helping his wife with the housework,
John never grumbles.
(b) Verb + noun / pronoun + preposition to.
e.g. ascribe ... to
devote :.. to
apply ... to
dedicate ... to
attribute ... to
owe ... to
abbreviate ... to
prefer ... to
accustom ... to
reconcile ... to
confine ... to
reduce ... to
commit ... to
resign ... to, etc
For example:
He attributes his success to hard work.
The doctor devoted himself to finding a cure.
(c) Verb + -ed participle + preposition to, e.g.
be accustomed to
be reconciled to
be abbreviated to
be devoted to
be reduced to
be given to
be resigned to
be used to, etc.
 For example,
He is resigned to losing the competition.
He was reduced to begging for food.
(d) Verb + adverb particle + preposition to.
e.g.
get round to
look forward to
get down to
face up to
get near to
feel up to
 For example,
After a long delay, he got round to writing
the letter.
I'm so tired I don't feel up to going
shopping today.
(e) Adjective + preposition to.
e.g.
adjacent to
preferable to
averse to
similar to
deaf to
superior to
equal to
sensitive to
loyal to
tantamount to, etc
 For example,
That is tantamount to saying that you do not agree.
She is sensitive to criticism.
(f) Noun + preposition to, e.g.
obstacle to
indifference to
limit to
key to
aid to
answer to
objection to
hindrance to, etc
 For example,
Your lack of experience will prove hindrance to
your earning a livelihood.
The classroom is equipped with visual aids to
teaching English.
(g) Complex prepositions ending in to.
e.g. according to
prior to
as to
thanks to
owing to
in addition to
preliminary to
in relation to
preparatory to
with a view to
previous to
with an eye to
 For example:
He lit a cigar previous to leaving the house.
He bought the old house with an eye to making it a
hotel.
Infinitive ( II)
This lecture is concerned with
combinations of infinitives with adjectives,
nouns, and verbs.
1 Adjective + infinitive
 Here
"adjective + infinitive" refers to the
combination that acts as complement in
SVC patterns. These combinations are
superficially similar but semantically
different constructions, varying in
meaning, that is, in "deep structure", with
the different categories of adjectives.
Semantically,, these combinations fall
into three types, each of which contains
several sub-types.
(1) Type I
This type of SVC pattern is characterized
by the fact that the subject of the main
clause is also the logical subject of the
infinitive. The adjectives occurring in this
pattern are all dynamic adjectives, which
can be subdivided into the following
categories.
(a) Adjectives showing emotional feelings, e.g.
He is glad to help others.
He was very pleased to be given the job.
I'm sorry to be late.
I was surprised to see how angry he was.
(b) Adjectives showing good or bad luck, e.g.
He was lucky to be able to find a job.
He was fortunate to escape being injured in
the accident.
She was unlucky not to win the game.
(c) Adjectives showing mental state or
personal attitude, e.g.
He is anxious to see her.
I'm determined to finish the work tonight.
We are ready to make the attempt.
 If
the subject of the main clause is not the
logical subject of the infinitive, the logical
subject should be expressed with an
introductory for:
I'm quite willing for your brother to come
with me.
I'm afraid for her to go swimming alone.
(d) Adjectives showing character or behavioral
trait, e.g.
He is foolish to meet her again.
She was careless to break the cup.
You are ~kind to say so.
They were thoughtful to come home early.
 These sentences can be transformed into~ a
corresponding IT-pattern, e.g.
It is foolish of him to meet her again.
It was thoughtful of them to come home early.
(2) Type I
In this type of SVC pattern, the subject of
the main clause is the logical object of the
infinitive. Here, the adjectives are generally
static adjectives, e.g.
That question is difficult to answer.
This car is expensive to overhaul.
Dirty water is nasty to drink.
She is pleasant to talk to.


These sentences can be transformed into
an anticipatory IT-construction..
It is difficult to answer that question.
It is nasty to drink dirty water.
But there are constructions of the same
type that cannot be so transformed..
The coffee is bitter to taste.
They are attractive to look at.
(3) Type I
In this type, the subject of the main clause
may be the logical subject or logical object
of the infinitive.
e.g.
These books are easy to sell.
= It is easy to sell these books.
= These books sell easily.
But in most cases, the adjective can be
turned into a corresponding adverb in deep
structure.
e.g.
He is quick to take offence.
= He takes offence quickly.
He was hesitant to take action.
= He took action hesitantly.
2 Noun (phrase) + infinitive
Here, the infinitive is used as post modification
in noun phrases.
About "noun + infinitive", there are three points
worth mentioning.
(1) Semantic relations
Semantically, the noun (phrase) and the
infinitive that follows may form different
relations, for instance, a subject-verb
relation, that is, the noun (phrase) is the
logical subject of the infinitive.
e.g.
Jim was the last guest to arrive ( = who
arrived).
Sometimes, the noun (phrase) is the logical object of
the infinitive, that is, a verb-object relation, e.g.
He has a large family to support.
This is the best book to read.
 In the case of an intransitive infinitive, an appropriate
preposition should be added, e.g.
The boy needs a friend to play with.
There is nothing to talk about.

Sometimes the noun phrase is in apposition to
the infinitive that follows.
e.g.
The boy had an impulse to jump over the fence.
I have no wish to quarrel with you.
(2) Infinitives: active or passive
As post-modification, the infinitive may
appear in active or passive voice. In some
contexts, both active and passive forms are
possible.
e.g.
Give me a list of people to invite / to be
invited.
The man to consult ! to be consulted is Mr
Johnson.
But in other cases, an active form seems more
natural than the passive,
e.g.
I have got a lot of letters to write.
There is a lot of work to do.
 In still other cases, a passive form sounds
more appropriate,
e.g.
The cases to be investigated must not be made
public in press.
The question to be discussed at the next
meeting will be a hard nut to crack.

(3) "Noun + infinitive" vs.“ noun + preposition+
ing"
With some nouns such as attempt, chance,
effort, freedom, intention, necessity, opportunity,
reason, time, way, etc, the post-modifier may be
an infinitive or a "preposition +-ing" with no
difference in meaning,
e.g. There is no necessity to buy / of buying a new car.
The doctor made a bold attempt to save / of saving
the child's life.
With some other nouns, it is appropriate to use an
infinitive rather than a "preposition + -ing" as postmodifier.
e.g.
They have the ability to produce nuclear weapons.
He is under no obligation to do that.

 These
nouns include ability, agreement,
ambition, anxiety, curiosity, disposition, mind,
obligation, permission, refusal, reluctance ,
temptation, tendency, wish, etc.

There are still other nouns which do not
admit of an infinitive as post-modifier; a
"preposition + -ing" is normally used, e.g.
There is no hope of winning the game.

Other nouns in the same use include :
aptitude, delay, difficulty, excuse,
experience, interest, genius, habit, idea,
motive, objection, passion, plan, possibility,
skill, success, etc.
3 Verb + infinitive
Some verbs can be followed by an
infinitive to form a verb-object relation, that
is, the infinitive functions as the object of the
verb. These collocations fall into three types:
(1) verb + infinitive,
(2) verb+ object + infinitive,
(3) verb + (object) + infinitive.
(1) Verb + infinitive
There are verbs that can be directly
followed by an infinitive rather than an ing form as object,
e.g.
We must agree to differ.
I aim ( = hope) to finish it tomorrow.
He demanded to be told everything.
He claimed to be the owner of the car.

These verbs include agree, aim, apply,
arrange, choose, claim, decide, demand,
desire, determine, endeavor , expect,
hope, learn, manage, offer, pledge,
prepare, pretend, profess, promise,
refuse, resolve, seek, swear, threaten,
undertake, venture, volunteer, vow, etc.

Some of these verbs such as agree,
arrange, promise, resolve, claim, decide,
demand, determine, hope, pretend,
profess, swear, threaten, etc can also be
followed by a corresponding that-clause,
e.g.
We agreed to start early.
= We agreed that we would start early.
I hope to be able to come.
= I hope that I'll be able to come.
(2) Verb + object + infinitive
There are verbs that cannot be directly followed by
an infinitive unless the verb and the infinitive are
intervened by a noun or pronoun. These verbs include
five groups:
(a) Verbs of perception or sense verbs such as see,
hear, watch, feel, etc, e.g.
Did you see him enter the building?
(b) Causative verbs such as have, let, make, etc, e.g.
Don't forget to have your children come with you.
(c) Some phrasal verbs such as arrange for,
ask for, rely on, etc, e.g.
I'll arrange for you to meet the manager.
(d) Verbs showing mental state such as
consider, declare, find (= consider), prove,
think, believe, discover, feel (= think),
imagine, judge, suppose, understand, etc,
e.g.
I believe him to be reliable.
(e) Verbs having the force of "advice",
"permission", "forbiddance", etc
such as advise, allow, forbid, permit,
recommend, require, urge, etc,
e.g.
I advised him to give up smoking.
 There
are a few points to note about t~ae
use of these verbs:
 First,
the infinitive after verbs under "group
d" is invariably "to be",
e.g.
We know him to be reliable.
He declared himself to be innocent.
 Secondly,
after such verbs as consider,
declare, find, prove, think, the infinitive "to
be" can be omitted,
e.g.
He proved himself (to be) innocent.

If the infinitive "to be" is in the perfective
form, then it cannot be omitted:
We considered him to have been foolish.
Thirdly, in view of the fact that the noun or
pronoun in this context may be viewed as the
object of the finite verb that goes before or as the
logical subject of the infinitive that follows, an
alternative construction with a that-clause is
available for interpretation,
e.g.
They believed him to be insane.
=hey believed that he was insane.

Some of the verbs of "group e" such as
advise, allow, forbid, permit, recommend
can also be followed directly by an –ing form
as object.
Compare:
She advised us to give up smoking.
She advised giving up smoking.
And some may also be followed by a
that-clause:
They required us to get there before nine.
They required that we (should) get there
before nine.
(3) Verb + (object) + infinitive
With some verbs such as ask, can't bear,
hate, intend, like prefer, want, etc, the object is
optional, that is, these verbs can occur either in
the "verb + infinitive" construction or in the
"verb+ object + infinitive" pattern,
e.g.
Do you intend to make a long stay there?
We didn't intend them to act like that.
Do you like to play chess?
Most of these verbs can also be followed by a thatclause, e.g.
She asked to do more work.'
She asked them to give her more work to do.
She asked that she be given more work to do.
 Some may also be directly followed by an –ing form,
e.g.
I hate troubling you about trifles.
She preferred dressing formally to wearing sport
clothes.

-ing Verbs
In this book, the term "-ing participle" is
used to include both the traditional "present
participle" and the "gerund". The present
lecture is devoted to the collocation of -ing
participle with verbs. If need be, mention will
also be made of the contrast between –ing
participle and corresponding use of the
infinitive.
1 Collocation of –ing participle with verbs
This section is concerned with two
collocations:
"verb +-ing form" and
"verb + object + preposition + -ing form".
(1) Verb + -ing form
There are verbs that can only be followed by
an –ing form rather than an infinitive as object.
These verbs include :
admit, acknowledge, anticipate, advocate,
appreciate, avoid, can't help, can't resist, can't
stand, consider, contemplate, defer, delay, deny,
detest, dislike, don't mind, ensure, enjoy, escape,
excuse, evade, facilitate, fancy, favor, finish, give
up, imagine, include, keep (on), mind, miss,
pardon, postpone, practice, put off, resent, report,
risk, stop, suggest, etc.
About the logical subject of the –ing participle,
it need not be expressed if it is the subject of
the main clause
e.g.
She always detested seeing a bullfight.
They denied giving any information to help the
police.
He didn't contemplate coming with us on this
trip.
I can't resist bargaining.

If the –ing form has a logical subject of its
own, it must be expressed one way or
another, e.g.
Please pardon my disturbing you.
We appreciate your inviting us to your party.
 The logical subject of the –ing participle may be
a noun or a genitive noun;
it may also be realized by a pronoun in
objective case or by a possessive determiner.
But in colloquial speech, a common case noun
or an objective pronoun is frequently favored,
e.g.
I don't mind John moving to another house.
I don't mind John's moving to another house.
I don't mind him moving to another house.
I don't mind his moving to another house.
Some of the verbs listed above such as
acknowledge, admit, advocate, anticipate,
appreciate, deny, fancy, imagine, suggest,
mean, mention, propose, recall, recollect,
understand, etc, can also take a corresponding
that-clause as object.
e.g.
The watchman reported finding the door open.
= The watchman reported that he had found the
door open.
He anticipated getting much pleasure from the
reading of that book.
= He anticipated that he would get much pleasure
from the reading of that book.
(2) Verb + object + preposition + -ing form
There are verbs that cannot be directly
followed by an –ing form unless it is interrupted
by an object and a preposition. These verbs
include trick, mislead, shame, surprise, trap,
stop, prevent, restrain, hinder, save, etc, and
the prepositions commonly used in this
collocation are into and from.
e.g.
He tricked her into marrying him by
pretending that he was rich.
Her sudden question surprised him into
betraying himself.
In some of these collocations such as "prevent
/ stop somebody from doing something", the
preposition from can sometimes be omitted,
except that the finite verb occurs in the passive,
e.g.
We must prevent the trouble {from} spreading.
I shall stop you (from) destroying yourself.

 But
the preposition from cannot be left out if
it is a passive sentence:
It can't be stopped from happening here.
 Similar
collocations
such as "thank somebody for doing
something", "congratulate somebody on
doing something", and "accuse somebody of
doing something" can also be included in
these patterns.
2 Verbs followed either by infinitive or by –
ing participle
There are verbs that can be followed either
by an –ing form or by an infinitive.
With some of these verbs, the choice
between the two makes no difference in
meaning; with others, however, different
choices result in different interpretations.
Either infinitive or –ing participle without change of
meaning.
Verbs that can take either an infinitive or an –ing
form as object include attempt, begin, can't bear,
continue, deserve, dread, hate, intend, like, loathe,
love, need, neglect, omit, plan, prefer, require, start,
etc.
Following these verbs, an infinitive or an –ing
participle can alternate without change in basic
meaning. There are cases, however, where the
transforms are not in free variation.
(a) After process verbs such as begin, cease, continue,
start and emotive verbs such as can't bear, deserve,
dread, hate, intend, like, loathe, love, need, neglect,
omit, plan, prefer, require, the infinitive is commonly
used to refer to a specific act while the –ing participle
is used to refer to a general act.
e.g.
I can't bear living alone.
I can't bear to see the child so badly treated.
Phil prefers doing it that way.
He prefers to go by train this evening.
(b) After need, want, require, deserve, an active –
ing form can be used to denote a passive
meaning which can also be expressed by a
passive infinitive,
e.g.
This letter needs signing by the manager.
= This letter needs to be signed by the
manager.
The house wants rewiring.
= The house wants to be rewired.
(c) After begin and start, either infinitive or -ing form is
possible, but when the infinitive is a stative verb, it
normally goes with begin. e.g.
We began to see what he meant.
She began to believe his story.
When begin / start is in the progressive,
it is also an infinitive, not an –ing form that is normally
used.
e.g.
It's beginning to rain.
I'm starting to work on my essay next week.
(2) Either infinitive or –ing form with different
meanings
The verbs that admit of either an infinitive or
an –ing form with different meanings fall into
five sub-classes:
(a) After remember and forget, the infinitive
refers to a second act that follows the first, and
the –ing participle to a previous event,
e.g.
Can't you remember telling me the story last
night?
= You told me the story last night. Can't you
remember it?
You must remember to tell him all that.
= You must tell him all that. Don't forget it.
 The
use of regret also presents such a
contrast:
I regret telling you that John stole it.
= I regret that I told you ...
I regret to tell you that John stole it.
= I'm sorry to tell you ...

But "I regret telling you ... " can also be interpreted as:
I regret that I am telling you ...
(b) After stop, leave off, go on, the -ing participle
functions as object, while the infinitive as adverbial of
purpose. Compare:
They stopped watching TV at 9:30.
They stopped to watch TV at 9:30.
He left off writing the book.
He left off to write the book.
(c) After try, mean, can't help, the choice between an
infinitive and an –ing form depends on the meaning of
the preceding verb itself.
Compare:
Your plan would mean spending a lot of money.
I didn't mean to spend too much money on that
project.
If you want to improve the taste, try adding some
sugar.
He tried to improve the taste by adding some sugar.
(d) After agree, decide, there is a choice between the
infinitive and "preposition + -ing“.
e.g.
They agreed to share the remuneration.
They agreed on sharing the remuneration.
(e) After encourage, permit, allow, recommend, advise,
authorize, either the –ing participle or the infinitive
with an expressed logical subject can be used,
e.g. She doesn't allow smoking here.
She doesn't allow us to smoke here.
-ed Participle
This lecture is devoted to -ed participle
(traditionally known as "past participle")
used as pre-modifier and as subject / object
complement.
1
-ed participle as pre-modifier
As pre-modifier in a noun phrase, -ed
participles are mostly derived from
transitive verbs; only a few come from
intransitive verbs.
(1) -ed participle derived from transitive verbs
As premodifier, transitive -ed participles
usually denote a passive meaning or a sense of
completion.
This is distinguished from –ing participles
which may come from transitive and intransitive
verbs and which usually express an active
meaning or a sense of incompletion.
 Compare:
frozen food
a bored traveler
a lost cause
a conquered army
a finished article
the spoken language
a recorded talk
a closed shop
written language
a freezing wind
a boring journey
a losing battle
a conquering army
the last finishing touch
a speaking bird
a recording machine
the closing hour
writing paper
As pre-modifier, some -ed participles cannot be used
alone unless they are combined with a negative prefix
"un-" or when they are combined with an adverb to
form a compound,
e.g.
uninvited guests
a badly-built house
untold sufferings
far-fetched reasons
unheard-of stories
newly-born children
an undetermined boundary half-baked ideas
an unedited story
highly-developed industry
an unexpected happening a properly-started engine

(2) -ed participle derived from intransitive verbs
The use of intransitive -ed participles as pre-modifiers
tends to be limited only to a few verbs:
retired, escaped, faded, withered, fallen, expired,
risen , returned, vanished, grown.
These -ed participles have the sense of completion but
imply no passive meaning,
e.g.
a retired teacher
an escaped prisoner
a faded flower
a withered flower
fallen leaves
an expired lease
the risen sun
a returned student
the vanished treasure
a grown man
A few such -ed participles cannot be used as
pre-modifiers unless they are combined with an
adverb to form a compound. For instance,
instead of " ~ a behaved boy" or " " a travelled
businessman", we can say "a well-behaved
boy" or "a widely-travelled businessman".
2 -ed participle as complement
-ed participles that can be used as
complement mostly come from transitive
verbs. Adjectival -ed participles can
generally function either as complements or
as pre-modifiers, except for some relics of
Old English.
(1)
Old English -ed participles
In Modern English, there are a few relics of
Old English –ed participles that survive only
as adjectives and which are mostly different in
form from their Modern -ed participles. Some
of these take one form when used as premodifier and another form when used as
complement,
 For
example,
A bounden duty is a duty one is bound to do.
A drunken man is one who has got drunk.
A lighted candle is one that has been lit.
Wood that has rotted is rotten wood.
Molten steel is steel that has been melted.
Shrunken clothes are clothes that have shrunk in the
wash.
A clean-shaven man is one who has (been) shaved
clean.
A bent back means a back that is bent. But with
knees we should say bended knees.
Blessed are those who live their lives in blessed
calmness.
I'm blest if I know. ( -- I don't know at all. )
He is our beloved leader; he is the most beloved of
all the leading cadres.
(2) Verbs admitting of-ed participle as object
complement
Verbs that can take an -ed participle as object
complement fall into three groups. The first
group includes verbs of perception and verbs
denoting mental state such as see, hear, feel,
find, think, etc,
e.g.
I saw the students assembled in the hall.
Everybody thought the battle lost.

The second group includes causative verbs such as
make, get, have, keep, etc, e.g.
I have my hair cut every two weeks.
Please keep us informed of the latest developments.

Note that the verb have has three different meanings
in the following contexts:
We had the problem solved.
She had her arm broken in an accident.
I have not any money left.
 The
third group includes verbs denoting hope,
expectation, order, such as like, want, wish,
order, etc.
e.g.
I don't want any of you (to be) involved in the
scandal.
The viewers wish the serial film (to be)
continued.
3 Some few notes on "dangling participles"
Let us first of all take a look at the "attachment
rule" for identifying the subject.
(1) "Attachment rule" and "dangling participles“
When an –ing or -ed participle construction is
used as a relative or adverbial clause, its logical
subject is usually identifiable with the subject or
other element of the main clause.
It is through this relationship that the participle
construction is "attached" to the main clause.
This is known as the "attachment rule",
 For
example,
Sitting at the back as we were, we couldn't
hear a word.
Jolted by the collision, Harry suffered a
sprained back and a broken knee.
He was lying in the couch, enjoying his pipe.
The hunter saw a huge lion drinking at the
spring.
He was hurt by a stone dropped from the roof.
 Violation
of the "attachment rule" will result
in a "dangling participle":
* Opening the cupboard, a skeleton fell out.
* Grilled on charcoal, we liked the fish
much better.
(2) Problems about the acceptability of "dangling
participles"
Linguists are divided in opinion about the
acceptability of "dangling participles". Prescriptive
grammarians condemn all "dangling" constructions,
while descriptive linguists take a more liberal point of
view. "Dangling" constructions should not be regarded
as objectionable indiscriminately.
These constructions are frequently found in formal
scientific writing, in which it is general practice to avoid
using personal subjects. In informal style, so long as
they do not cause ambiguity or confusion in meaning,
"dangling participles" should also be viewed as normal
and acceptable.
Only those "dangling" constructions are
objectionable or unacceptable that cause ambiguity or
suggest absurd interpretations. From pedagogical
point of view, however, beginners in English should
not be encouraged to use "dangling" constructions
unless in scientific writing.
 Now
assess the following:
When installing a boiler, the floor space which is available
is very important.
Using the electric energy, it is necessary to change its form.
Having been deserted by his guide, there seemed little
hope that the explorer would find his way through the
jungle.
When driving carelessly, it is easy to have an accident.
Standing on the church tower, the whole village could be
seen.
Having eaten our lunch, the car pushed its way through the
tortuous canyon.