Participle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In linguistics, a participle is a non-finite verb form that can be used in compound tenses or voices, or it can be used as a modifier. Participles often share properties with other parts of speech, in particular adjectives and nouns.
Contents |
[edit] Participles in Modern English
In the English language, there are two participial forms:
- the present participle, also known as the imperfect participle, which for all verbs (other than modals) is formed by adding the suffix "-ing"; and
- the past participle, also known as the perfect participle, which for most regular verbs ends in "-ed" (identical to the past tense, or preterite, form).
Most irregular verbs have a past participle that is distinct from their past tense form. Examples:
- talk: talking and talked (regular)
- do: doing and done (irregular)
- say: saying and said (irregular)
- eat: eating and eaten (irregular)
The present participle in English is an active participle. It has the following uses:
- forming the progressive aspect: Jim was sleeping.
- modifying a noun: Let sleeping dogs lie.
- modifying a verb or sentence: Broadly speaking, the project was successful.
- functioning as a noun (see gerund): Your job description does not include sleeping past noon.
The term present participle is sometimes defined more narrowly to exclude gerunds. The same participial form, however, is involved in all cases.
The past participle has both active and passive uses:
- forming the perfect aspect: The chicken has eaten.
- forming the passive voice: The chicken was eaten.
- modifying a noun, active sense (certain intransitive verbs only): our fallen comrades
- modifying a noun, passive sense: the attached files
- modifying a verb or sentence, passive sense: Seen from this perspective, there is no easy solution.
As noun-modifiers, participles usually precede the noun (like adjectives), but in many cases they can or must follow it:
- Please bring all the documents required.
- The difficulties encountered were nearly insurmountable.
[edit] Participles in other languages
[edit] Latin
Compared with English, Latin has an additional future tense participle:
- present active participle: educāns "teaching"
- perfect passive participle: educatus "(having been) taught"
- future active participle: educātūrus "about to teach"
- future passive participle: educāndus "(necessary) to be taught"
Latin participles decline like adjectives.
[edit] Old English
- Old English ended present participles with -ind. In the East Midlands dialect, it merged with -ing, which originally only named actions.
- Past participles are marked with a ge- prefix, as is done today in Dutch and High German.
[edit] French
There are two basic participles:
- Present participle: formed with the verb root + ant. Eg, marchant "walking", étant "being"
- Past participle: formation varies according to verb group. Eg: marché "walked", été "been", vendu "sold". May require agreement.
Compound participles are possible:
- Present perfect participle: ayant appelé "having called", étant mort "having died"
- Passive perfect participle: étant vendu "being sold, having been sold"
[edit] Spanish
In Spanish, the present participle (el gerundio) of a verb is generally formed with one of the suffixes -ando, -iendo; the past participle (el participio) is generally formed with one of the suffixes -ado, -ido.
Traditionally, Spanish grammar has regarded the present participle not as an adjective, but as an adverb, and it does not change form to agree with any noun in gender or number. Nonetheless, it is used in much the same ways as the (adjective) present participle in English; for example, Spanish's equivalent of English's progressive aspect (e.g., to be doing) is formed with a combination of the verb estar (to be in a transient sense) and the present participle of the main verb (e.g., estar haciendo).
By contrast, the past participle is considered an adjective, and agrees with a noun in gender and number, except when used to express the perfect aspect (e.g., to have done, which in Spanish is haber hecho).
[edit] Esperanto
In Esperanto each transitive verb has two present participles (active and passive), two past participles, and two future participles. Some speakers have also analogously constructed two conditional participles, which are not in widespread use and are not officially sanctioned by the Akademio de Esperanto, but which are nonetheless readily understood. Intransitive verbs have all the same active participles, but of course cannot have passive participles. Participles in Esperanto may be adjectives ending in -a(j)(n) (depending on case and number), or adverbs ending in -e.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Participles from the American Heritage Book of English Usage (1996).
