Do you know what a participial phrase is? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on participial phrases, including its definition, usage, example sentences, and more!

What is a participial phrase?

According to Your Dictionary, a participle is a verb that functions as a modifier, like an adjectival phrase or adverbial phrase. Participial phrases can use the past participle or present participle. The placement of these can be used at the beginning of a sentence, the middle of a sentence, or the end of a sentence in the past tense, present tense, or future tense. If the meaning of the sentence causes confusion without the participial phrase, it is considered essential. It is considered non-essential if the sentence can be a complete sentence without it. A present participle phrase and past participle phrase can be regular past participle/present participles or irregular past participles/present participles. A participial phrase functions as an adjective often on a specific noun such as the direct object of action. There should be a clear indication which earlier word or noun it is referring to. Use punctuation to clarify the verbal ending.

What are examples of participial phrases?

A participial phrase can be used in many different contexts in the English language. Trying to use a word or literary technique in a sentence is one of the best ways to memorize what it is, but you can also try making flashcards or quizzes that test your knowledge. Try using this term of the day in a sentence today! Below are many examples of participial phrases from Your Dictionary and Learn Grammar that can help get you started incorporating this tool into your everyday use. The first sentence, second sentence, third sentence, and all other sentences contain participial phrases.

Coming to the varsity, I came to know the fact.

Robin is interested to buy a bookshelf made of iron.

Jack loves to work sitting alone.

Going to the varsity, I will meet you.

The crying baby screaming continuously with her wet diaper, kept her parents up all night.

The man standing by the tree is suspicious.

Sitting in the rocking chair, the old woman yelled at the kids in her yard about the importance of exercise.

We were waiting for the local residents sitting in the canteen.

Wearing a hard hat and boots, Priscilla crossed the construction site.

The girl, sitting in the middle with the heavy pile of books, is my cousin.

Entering the website, I saw my articles.

The police worked to locate the wrecked car stolen from my neighbor’s driveway.

Jeff always uses tiffin boxes made of steel.

The boys sitting by the road were gossiping.

Jack watched the giant, sleeping soundly, as he crept by.

Jenny collected all the flowers cut by the gardener.

Confused by the homework assignment, I emailed my professor.

Entering the room, we met the chairman.

I gifted Suzan a bracelet made of gold that I gave her on the shoreline.

Having worked all day, Lila decided to stay home and relax.

Delores did the summary assignment sitting in the library.

Coming to the office, I finished the article.

Soaked from the rain, the dog shook himself dry.

I opened the mail, shaking with excitement.

Mr. Saunders understood a lot about the case, having spoken to the defendant a number of times.

Coming home, I will discuss the matter.

Turning the page of the book, I saw your name.

Ethan closed his eyes, feeling the wind sweep through his hair.

I was drinking coffee in a mug made of ceramic.

Richard bought a showpiece made of crystal.

Running at high speed, the dog crashed into the wall.

Having finished my dinner, I’m ready to try that chocolate cake.

My mom saw my point of view having met the neighbors for herself.

Arriving there, I saw Sam.

We are discussing the matter sitting around the roundtable.

What are other literary techniques and devices?

There are many different literary and grammatical techniques and devices that you might see when you are reading prose or poetry. It is important to recognize these terms because they are always used for some purpose. Knowing these devices can help readers understand the author’s deeper meaning and why they are using such a device. Take a look at the below list of grammatical devices from OED and see how many you know! Then try researching ones that are unfamiliar to you.

interjection

accusative

demonstrative

base form

auxiliary verb | auxiliary

direct object

gender

singular

declarative

cataphoric

parasynthetic

similative

absolute (absol.)

prepositional object

anticipatory

adjective

indirect speech

indefinite

relative

person

quasi-

interrogative

phrase (phr.)

locative

indirect object

ellipsis | elliptical

prepositional passive

article

bare infinitive

modify | modifier

special use

common noun

intensifier

perfect

personal pronoun

indicative

element

combination

verb (v.)

imperative (imper.)

mass noun

complementary

count noun

conditional

participial adjective

subjective

double object

definite article

apodosis and protasis

pronoun (pron.)

attributive

abstract

copular verb | copula

direct question

noun (n.)

optative

adverb (adv.)

dual

predicative

agent noun

positive

transitive

past participle

construction

object | direct object | indirect object

instrumental

passive

impersonal (impers.)

non-referential

present participle

comparative

subject

noun phrase

dative

adverbial | adverbially

collocation | collocate

indirect passive

plural

mood

appositive

possessive adjective

apposition

sentence adverb |sentence adverbial

conjunction (conj.)

masculine

cognate object

prefix

anaphoric

nominal relative | nominal relative clause

antecedent

filler

proper noun | proper name

stem

collective noun

zero

construed (const., constr.)

finite

nominative

infinitive

participle | past participle | present participle

gerund

simple

passive infinitive

verbal noun

possessive

combining form (comb. form)

second person

reflexive

agree | agreement

concrete

causative

subjunctive

that-clause

progressive

prepositional phrase

objective

head

to-infinitive

phrasal verb

feminine

possessive pronoun

intransitive

main clause

third-person

modal verb | modal auxiliary verb | modal auxiliary

genitive

subordinate clause

parenthetical | parenthetically

number

unmarked genitive

morpheme

non-finite

tense

neuter

indirect question

active

periphrasis | periphrastic

superlative

clause

part of speech

pro-form

pleonasm | pleonastic

postmodify | postmodifier

main verb

complement

dependent clause

preposition (prep.)

first person

protasis

inflection | inflected | inflectional

vocative

present tense

case

premodify | premodifier

determiner

past tense

suffix

compound | compounding

direct speech

Overall, a participial phrase is a verb that acts as a modifier.

Sources:

Participial Phrase: What It Is and How To Use It

Your writing, at its best

What is a participial phrase?

What are examples of participial phrases?

What are other literary techniques and devices?

Sources:

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