Which underlined phrases are participial phrases? Select two options.
1. Succeeding at tennis requires getting a lot of practice on the court.
2. Tired from practice, the quarterback returned to the locker room.
3. To score a goal in the last minutes of a game is a thrilling experience.
4. The volleyball team won the match, moving on to the state tournament.
5. Spending too much time in preparation for a match can be counterproductive
Answer:
Tired from practice, the quarterback returned to the locker room.
The volleyball team won the match, moving on to the state tournament.
The two participial phrases are “tired from practice” and “moving on to the state tournament.” These phrases both contain participles that modify the noun or pronoun that follows them. In the first participial phrase, “tired” is the participle that modifies “the quarterback,” while in the second participial phrase, “moving” is the participle that modifies “the volleyball team.” The other phrases in the list do not contain participles, so they are not participial phrases.
Here, “succeeding” and “spending” are not participles. Participles are verb forms that can be used as adjectives to modify nouns or pronouns. In English, there are two types of participles: present participles, which are formed by adding “-ing” to the base form of a verb, and past participles, which are formed in various ways, often by adding “-ed” or “-en” to the base form of a verb.
However, “succeeding” and “spending” are both forms of verbs that end in “-ing.” However, just because a word ends in “-ing” does not necessarily mean that it is a participle. The “-ing” form of a verb can also be used as a gerund, which is a noun that is formed by adding “-ing” to a verb and functions as the subject or object of a verb. In the phrase “succeeding at tennis,” “succeeding” is a gerund, not a participle, because it is the subject of the verb “requires.” In the phrase “spending too much time,” “spending” is also a gerund, not a participle, because it is the object of the preposition “in.” So while “succeeding” and “spending” are both “-ing” forms of verbs, they are not participles.