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Participles are verbal
adjectives. Two kinds of participles are tested: present participles and past
participles. The present participle always ends in -ing. The past participle
of regular verbs ends in -ed, but many verbs have irregular past participles.
Participles are tested in both types of
Structure problems.
SENTENCE COMPLETION
Sentence Completion items usually test
the use of participial phrases
(a participle and related words) after nouns. Participial phrases used this
way are actually reduced
(shortened) adjective clauses.
Present participles are used to reduce adjective clauses that contain active
verbs.
Minnesota, which joined the Union in 1858, became
the thirty-second state. (full adjective clause with active verb)
Minnesota, joining the Union in 1858, became the
thirty-second state. (participial phrase with a present participle)
Past participles are used to reduce
adjective clauses with passive verbs.
The College of
William and Mary, which was founded in
1693, is the second oldest college in the United States.
(full adjective
clause with a passive verb)
The College of
William and Mary, founded in 1693,
is the second oldest college in the United States.
(participial
phrase with a past participle)
Participial phrases can also come
before the subject of a sentence.
Joining the Union in 1858, Minnesota
became the thirty-second state.
Founded in 1693, the College of William and
Mary is the second oldest college in the United States.
Usually, the participle itself is
missing from this type of Structure item, but any part of a participial
phrase, as well as parts of a main clause, may be missing.
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Sample
Item
Natural
resources provide the raw materials ________ to produce finished goods.
(A) needed
(B) are needed
(C) which
need
(D) needing
The
correct answer is (A). Choice (B) is a passive verb; the sentence
cannot contain two main verbs (are
needed and provide) in the same clause. Choice (C) creates an adjective
clause, but the verb in the clause is active and a passive verb is needed.
However, a relative clause with a passive verb (which are needed) would be a correct answer. Choice (D) is a
present participle and has an active meaning; a past participle is needed.
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ERROR IDENTIFICATION
Error Identification items most often
test participles used before nouns as one-word adjectives. When used before a
noun, present participles have an active meaning; past participles have a
passive meaning.
It was an exhausting
10-kilometer race. (present participle)
The exhausted
runners were too tired to move after the race. (past participle)
In the first sentence, the race
exhausts the runners. The race “performs” the action. In the second sentence,
the runners are exhausted by the race. They receive the action. Error
Identification items may also test the use of participles in phrases after
nouns as reduced (shortened) relative clauses. Again, present participles
imply an active idea, past participles a passive one.
The man stealing
the money was arrested. (present participle; means “who stole”)
The money stolen
from the bank was recovered. (past participle; means “which was stolen”)
In Error Identification items, you may see
past participles used incorrectly for present participles or present
participles used incorrectly for past participles. You may also see a main
verb used when a participle is required.
EXERCISE 21.1
Focus: Identifying
errors and correct forms of participles
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Directions: Underline
the form that best completes each sentence.
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1
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The largest (knowing/known)
insects are found in tropical rain forests.
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2
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A hummingbird’s heart beats at
the (astonished/astonishing) rate of 615 beats per minute.
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3
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A bill of lading is a
(writing/written) receipt for goods that are sent by public transportation.
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4
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At the peak of his jump, a
pole vaulter performs a series of (twisting/twisted) body motions to clear
the bar.
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5
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Anyone (working/worked) under
conditions that cause a heavy loss of perspiration can suffer heat
exhaustion.
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6
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A mosquito (filled/is filled)
with blood is carrying twice its own body weight.
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7
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The state of Wisconsin has
seventy-two counties, many (naming/named) after Indian tribes.
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8
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Sun spots occur in cycles,
with the greatest number generally (appearing/are appearing) every eleven
years.
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EXERCISE 21.2
Focus: Structure
problems involving incomplete or missing participial phrases. (Note: One or
two items in this exercise do NOT focus on participial phrases; these items
are marked on the answer key with asterisks.)
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Directions: Choose the
one option—(A), (B), (C), or (D)—that correctly completes the sentence. For
Error Identification items, circle the underlined portion of the sentence
that would not be considered correct. Then mark the appropriate blank.
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1
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Aerodynamics is the study of
the forces _____________ on an object as it movesthrough the atmosphere.
(A) acting
(B) act
(C) are acting
(D) acted
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2
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Most candles are made of (A) paraffin wax mixing (B) with compounds
that have higher melting
(C) points to keep (D)
them from melting in hot weather.
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3
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_______________ for their
strong fiber include flax and hemp.
(A) Plants are grown
(B) Plants grown
(C) Plants that grow
(D) To grow plants
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4
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___________________________________,
methane can be used as a fuel.
(A) It’s produced by the
fermentation of organic matter
(B) Produced by the
fermentation of organic matter
(C) The production by
fermentation of organic matter
(D) The fermentation of
organic matter is produced
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5
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Ralph Blakelock specialized in (A) painting (B) wild, lonely
nighttime landscapes (C)
, usually with black trees were
silhouetted (D) against the Moon.
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6
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Elfreth’s Alley in
Philadelphia is the oldest residential street in the United States, with _____________________
from 1728.
(A) houses are dated
(B) the dates of the houses
(C) the dating of houses
(D) houses dating
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7
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The Farallon Islands are a
group of (A) uninhabited
(B) islands lying (C) about
40 mile (D) west of San
Francisco.
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8
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In 1821, the city of
Indianapolis, Indiana, was laid out in a design _____________ after that of
Washington, D.C.
(A) patterned
(B) was patterned
(C) a pattern
(D) that patterned
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9
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The crushing (A) leaves of yarrow plants can serve (B) as a traditional (C) medicine for
cleansing (D) wounds.
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10
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__________________ in front of
a camera lens changes the color of the light that reaches the film.
(A) Placed a filter
(B) A filter is placed
(C) A filter placed
(D) When a filter placed
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11
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The Massachusetts State House,
________ in 1798, was the most distinguished building in the United States
at that time.
(A) completing
(B) which was completed
(C) was completed
(D) to be completed
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12
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Checkerboard Mesa in Utah features (A) a strangely (B) cracking (C) expanse of stone (D).
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13
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Barbara McClintock __________
for her discovery of the mobility of genetic elements.
(A) known
(B) who knows
(C) knowing
(D) is known
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14
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Throughout the (A) long career, Pete
Seeger has been (B) a leading (C) figure in reviving (D) folk music.
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15
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The solitary scientist _____________________________
by himself has, in many instances, been replaced by a cooperative scientific
team.
(A) to make important
discoveries
(B) important discoveries were
made
(C) has made important
discoveries
(D) making important
discoveries
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16
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Geometry is the branch of
mathematics __________________ the properties of lines, curves, shapes, and
surfaces.
(A) that concerned with
(B) it is concerned with
(C) concerned with
(D) its concerns are
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