Lesson 240 - Parts of the Sentence - Verbals

A verbal is a verb form used as some other part of speech. There are three kinds of verbals: gerunds, participles and infinitives.

A gerund always ends in ing and is used as a noun. Eating is fun.

A participle is used as an adjective and ends in various ways. A present participle always ends with ing as does the gerund, but remember that it is an adjective. A past participle ends with ed, n, or irregularly. Examples: played, broken, brought, sung, seeing, having seen, being seen, seen, having been seen.

An infinitive is to plus a verb form. It can be a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. Examples: to be, to see, to be seen, to be eaten.

Instructions: Find the gerunds, gerund phrases, participles, participial phrases, infinitives or infinitive phrases in these sentences, tell what kind of verbal they are, and how they are used.

1. You are difficult to understand.

2. Jack hopes to join the Army next month.

3. The Senate favors increasing taxes.

4. The broken lamp lay on the floor.

5. I saw him trying to open the trunk.

--For answers scroll down.

Answers:

1. to understand is an adverb infinitive modifying the predicate adjective difficult

2. to join the Army next month is a noun infinitive phrase used as the direct object

3. increasing taxes is a gerund phrase used as the direct object

4. broken is a participle modifying the subject lamp

5. trying to open the trunk is a participial phrase modifying the direct object him/to open the trunk is a noun infinitive phrase used as the direct object to the verbal trying

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