Question

1. Recall that a participle is a verb form that is used as an adjective. A participial phrase is a participle with its modifiers and complements used as an adjective.

Read the following sentence.

The geese flying by are headed south for the winter

Identify the present participle in the sentence
A. by
B. are
C. flying
D. headed

2. Read the following sentence.

Clapping wildly, the audience shouted for the band to come back on stage for an encore.

Identify the participial phrase in the sentence.
A. for an encore
B. Clapping wildly,
C. shouted for the band
D. to come back on stage

3. Read the following sentence.

Hearing the footsteps of its owner, the cat jumped down from the kitchen countertop.

Which word does the participial phrase modify? (1 point)
A. cat
B. owner
C. footsteps
D. countertop

Answer 1

1. flying

As the directions state, a participle is a verb. Both flying and headed are verbs. However, headed is used as an action verb in the sentence. It is what the geese are doing. Flying is an adjective describing the geese as "flying by". You should be able to cross out the participial phrase and the sentence will still make sense as in "The geese are headed south for the winter."

2. B. Clapping wildly.

Clapping wildly is the participial phrase. It describes the audience. Option C contains the main verb of the sentence "shouted" so this is not a participial phrase. Option D has an infinitive "to come".

3. cat

The participial phrase in the sentence is "hearing the footsteps of its owner". The cat is what hears the footsteps.

Answer 2

1. The present participle in the sentence provided is C. "flying".

2. The participial phrase in the sentence provided is B. "Clapping wildly".

3. The word that the participial phrase modifies is "cat".

Explanation: A present participle is a non-finite verb form that ends in -ing. It is generally used to form progressive tenses; however, it can also function as an adjective. For example, in the sentence "The geese flying by are headed south for the winter", "flying" is describing the noun "geese"; therefore, "flying" is a present participle functioning as an adjective. Moreover, a participial phrase is made up of a past or present participle and modifiers/complements. Participial phrases are usually found at the beginning of a sentence. In that way, "Clapping wildly" is a participial phrase ("clapping" is a present participle and "wildly" is a modifier). Finally, the participial phrase in "Hearing the footsteps of its owner, the cat jumped down from the kitchen countertop" is "Hearing the footsteps of its owner" and it is describing the subject of the sentence, that is to say the noun "cat".