Basic Grammar Step by Step Second Edition

Mary W. Ng

Chapter 59

Past Participles and Past Participial Phrases

Regular verbs form their past participle by adding d or ed to the base form.

Base FormPast Participle
livelived
countcounted

Irregular verbs form their past participle differently. See Section 20.4 on page 93 for the past participle of irregular verbs.

Base FormPast Participle
choosechosen
sitsat

59.1 Past Participles as Adjectives

When past participles are used to modify nouns, they do the work of adjectives. We normally place the past participle before the noun it modifies.

My uncle bought a used car.
Martha showed me her swollen arm.

Exercise Pick out the past participles that function as adjectives in the following sentences. Identify the nouns they modify.

Example:Did they find the hidden treasure?
Answer:hidden, treasure
  1. The frightened child ran to his mother.
  2. We had scrambled eggs for breakfast.
  3. That house has a broken window.
  4. Thaw the frozen meat in the refrigerator.
  5. The fallen trees delayed traffic for two hours.
  6. They eat a lot of processed food.
  7. The police found the stolen money.
  8. I like baked potatoes with sour cream.
  9. Would you like some smoked salmon?
  10. She used dried flowers to make greeting cards.
  11. The doctor examined his sprained ankle.
  12. The waxed floor looks shiny.

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