-ing and -ed clauses

UNIT 89  -ing and -ed clauses ("the woman talking to Tom,'' "the man injured in the accident")

A.   A clause is a part of a sentence. Some clauses begin with -ing or -ed:

• Do you know the woman talking to Tom (-ing clause)

• The man injured in the accident was taken to the hospital. (-ed clause)

B.   We use -ing clauses to say what someone (or something) is doing or was doing at a particular time:

• Do you know the woman talking to Tom? (the woman is talking to Tom)

• The police officers investigating the robbery are looking for three men. (the police officers are investigating the robbery)

• I was awakened by a bell ringing. (the bell was ringing)

• Who was that man standing outside? (the man was standing outside)

• Can you hear someone singing? (someone is singing)

When you are talking about things (and sometimes people), you can use an -ing clause for permanent characteristics (what something does all the time, not just at a particular

• The road joining the two villages is very narrow. (the road joins the two villages)

• I live in a pleasant room overlooking the garden. (the room overlooks the garden)

C.   -ed clauses have a passive meaning:

• The man injured in the accident was taken to the hospital. (the man was injured in the accident)

• None of the people invited to the party can come. (the people have been invited to the party)

Injured and invited are past participles. Many verbs have irregular past participles that do not end in -ed. For example: stolen/made/bought/written,etc. :

• The money stolen in the robbery was never found. (the money was stolen in the robbery)

• Most of the goods made in this factory are exported. (the goods are made in this factor)

D.   We often use -ing and -ed clauses after there is/there was, etc.:

• Is there anybody waiting to see me?

• There were some children swimming in the river.

• When I arrived, there was a big red car parked outside the house.