Participle Phrase

Participle Phrase
What is a participle phrase?
A participle phrase is a phrase that either begins with a present participle (writing) or a past participle (written) and
has an object and/or its complement. Below are some examples.
1. The man standing by the door is my brother.
2. The book written by J.K. Rowling has sold millions of copies.
Participles (ed/ing) act as adjectives, so in both sentences, they modify the noun preceding the participles.
Therefore, participle phrases must be positioned beside the noun it is modifying.
Participle phrases are essentially shortened forms of relative clauses. Take a look at the following examples.
1. The man (who is) standing by the door is my brother.
2. The book (which is) written by J.K. Rowling has sold millions of copies.
In relative clauses where the relative pronoun (who/which) acts as the subject and the verb phrase is either the
progressive form (is standing) or the passive form (is written), the relative pronoun and the be-verb can be
removed to form participle phrases.

Exercise 1
Underline the participle phrases in each sentence below.
1. The children getting off the bus are from the local primary school.
2. The actor known for his rash offensive comments was booed off the stage.
3. Do you know that guy waving at us?
4. Sandwiches made with local cheese are more expensive.
5. They produced a video showing images of animal cruelty.
6. The mother took a photo of her little girl napping on the sofa.
7. Number of smartphones manufactured in China has decreased over the last few years.
8. The captain admired for his leadership skills finally decided to quit the role.

Exercise 2
Remove the relative pronouns and be-verbs to form participle phrases.
1. The pilot who was highly regarded by his peers retired after 30 years of service.
2. The painting which was deemed a masterpiece fetched over $10m at an auction.
3. The Emperor Penguins which are well-known for their huddling are the only animals to inhabit Antarctica.
4. The fans who were disappointed with the result travelled back very quietly.
5. The company which was rated the best for customer service did not disappoint.
6. The movie fans who were expecting to see a scary movie ended up watching a complete comedy.
7. The students met the lecturer who was renowned for winning the Nobel prize.
8. The visitors who were waiting by the gate were disappointed when the museum decided to close.
Exercise 3
Complete the participle phrases in the following sentences
1. The students wearing_______________________________________________ cheered for their school team

2. Fishermen were warned not to catch the fish deemed _____________________________________________.

3. Fashions shows displaying ____________________________________________ attracted the biggest crowd.

4. News reporters asking ___________________________________ were warned of their future conduct.

5. Stores selling ___________________________________ saw a huge increase in their sales figures.

6 Tourists enjoying ___________________________________ spent a lot of money in the souvenir store.

7 Movie stars visiting ___________________________________ were mobbed by thousands of fans.

8 English lessons taught ___________________________________ became extremely popular.

9 The Olympic record broken __________________________________ had stood for more than three decades.

10 The customers demanding _________________________________ had been protesting for over 10 hours.
 Answer Key
Exercise 1. Exercise 4
1. The children getting off the bus are from the Answers may vary.
local primary school.
2. The actor known for his rash offensive
comments was booed off the stage.
3. Do you know that guy waving at us?
4. Sandwiches made with local cheese are more
expensive.
5. They produced a video showing images of
animal cruelty.
6. The mother took a photo of her little girl
napping on the sofa.
7. Number of smartphones manufactured in China
has decreased over the last few years.
8. The captain admired for his leadership skills
finally decided to quit the role.
Exercise 2
1. The pilot who was highly regarded by his peers
retired after 30 years of service.
2. The painting which was deemed a masterpiece
fetched over $10m at an auction.
3. The Emperor Penguins which are well-known
for their huddling are the only animals to
inhabit Antarctica.
4. The fans who were disappointed with the result
travelled back very quietly.
5. The company which was rated the best for
customer service did not disappoint.
6. The movie fans who were expecting to see a
scary movie ended up watching a complete
comedy.
7. The students met the lecturer who was
renowned for winning the Nobel prize.
8. The visitors who were waiting by the gate were
disappointed when the museum decided to
close.