4.3. Причастие / Participle

The participle is a non-finite form of the verb which has verbal and adjectival or adverbial features.

English verbs have two participles: the present participle (typing, writing) and the past participle (typed, written).

Participles have some qualities of verbs and are used in the formation of the continuous, perfect and perfect continuous tenses (he is typing; he has written a letter).

Participles have some qualities of adjectives and are used as attributes in a sentence (a smiling girl; surprised faces).

Participles are also used in the function of adverbial modifiers (he opened the door, smiling; surprised, he didn't know what to say).

A participle construction, that is, a participle together with the words closely connected with it, can function as an attribute (the girl sitting at the table) or as an adverbial modifier (standing by the window, she watched the birds). Participle constructions (participial constructions) are usually called "participial phrases" or "participial clauses" in English grammar materials.

Participle I

The present participle is formed by adding "ing" to the base form of the verb: flying, playing, running, sleeping, working.

Participle I has four forms:

	Active	Passive
Indefinite	doing	being done
Perfect	having done	having been done

The tense distinctions of Participle I are not absolute; they are relative. Indefinite forms of Participle I denote actions simultaneous with those expressed by the finite verbs or actions referring to no particular time.

Perfect forms of Participle I denote actions prior to those expressed by the finite verbs.

Participle I of transitive verbs has active and passive forms to denote the meaning of the active and the passive voice.

Participle II

Regular verbs form the past participle by adding "ed" to the base form of the verb: moved, played, stopped, typed.

Irregular verbs form the past participle mostly by changing the root of the word: broken, flown, read, sold, taken, written.

Participle II has only one form. It has no tense or voice distinctions. Only Participle II of transitive verbs and of verbs denoting passing into a new state can be used in an independent function in a sentence. Participle II of transitive verbs has a passive meaning.

The adjectival and adverbial features of the Participle are manifested in the syntactic functions typical of the Adjective and of the Adverb.

The verbal features of the Participle are manifested in the forms of Participle I having tense and voice distinctions. Besides, Participle I of transitive verbs can take a direct object and both Participles can be modified.

Syntactic functions of participle I

Participles and participial phrases can perform the following syntactic functions:

1. The function of an attribute.

As an attribute Participle I denotes a feature belonging to the object at the present time or simultaneous to the action denoted by the finite verb form or some permanent feature.

That's why Participle 1 Indefinite is used.

E.g. There's a dinner at the White House Friday night honouring the new Canadian Prime Minister. But the child in this picture clearly had trusted the man holding her.

Participle I Indefinite Passive is seldom used as an attribute as Participle II of transitive verbs has passive meaning.

The perfect forms of Participle I are not used in this function. An attributive subordinate clause is used to denote a feature which belonged to the object prior to the action of the finite verb.

E.g. ...she had absolutely no background - a father who drank himself to death when she was six, a mother content among the pots and pans...

Attributes expressed by Participle I can be both in pre -position and in post - position to a modified word. As a rule, a participle is in pre - position when it doesn't have accompanying words and it is in post - position when it has accompanying words such as an object or an adverbial modifier.

E.g. She was like a rising star.

There'll be reports waiting for us at home.

There are participles, which due to their lexical meaning can modify a limited number of nouns. They are participles denoting states or qualities which cannot be permanent. That's why it is preferable to say "a smiling face" than " a smiling person". However, these participles can be used as attributes denoting a quality limited in time.

E.g. She was looking at the smiling person in the picture, remembering the day when the picture was taken.

2. The function of an adverbial modifier: