A clause is a part of a sentence. Some sentences have two or more clauses:
* Jim hurt his arm (main clause) playing tennis.(~ing clause)
* Feeling tired,(~ing clause) I went to bed early.(main clause)
'Playing tennis' and 'feeling tired' are ~ing clauses.
If the ~ing clause is first (as in the second example), we write a comma (,) between the clauses.
When two things happen at the same time, you can use ~ing for one of the verbs. The main clause usually comes first:
* I've just seen Carol. She's in the bar having a drink. (= she is in the bar and she is having a drink)
* A man ran out of the house shouting. (= he ran out of the house and he was shouting)
* Do something! Don't just stand there doing nothing!
We also use ~ing when one action happens during another action. We use ~ing for the longer action. The longer action is the second part of the sentence:
* Jim hurt his arm playing tennis. (= while he was playing)
* Did you cut yourself shaving? (= while you were shaving)
You can also use ~ing after while or when:
* Jim hurt his arm while playing tennis.
* Be careful when crossing the road. (= when you are crossing)
When one action happens before another action, we use having (done) for the first action:
* Having found a hotel, we looked for somewhere to have dinner.
* Having finished her work, she went home.
You can also say after ~ing:
* After finishing her work, she went home.
If one short action follows another short action, you can use the simple ~ing form (doing instead of having done) for the first action:
* Taking a key out of his pocket, he opened the door.
These structures are used more in written English than in spoken English.
You can use an ~ing clause to explain something or to say why somebody does something. The~ing clause usually comes first:
* Feeling tired, I went to bed early. (= because I felt tired)
* Being unemployed, he hasn't got much money. (= because he is unemployed)
* Not having a car, she finds it difficult to get around. (= because she doesn't have a car)
* Having already seen the film twice, I didn't want to go to the cinema. (= because I had already seen it twice)
These structures are used more in written English than in spoken English.
EXERCISES
67.1 Join a sentence from Box A with one from Box B to make one sentence. Use an ~ing clause.
A
1. Carol was in the bar
2. Emma was sitting in an armchair.
3. Sue got home late.
4. Sarah went out.
5. Linda was in London for two years.
6. Mary walked round the town.
B
She was feeling very tired.
She looked at the sights and took
photographs.
She said she would be back in an hour.
She was reading a book.
She Was having a drink.
She worked as a tourist guide.
1. Carol was in the bar having a drink.
2. Emma was sitting ---
3. Sue ---
4 ---
5. ---
6. ---
67.2 Make one sentence from two using an ~ing clause.
1. Jim was playing tennis. He hurt his arm. _Jim hurt; his arm playing tennis._
2. I was watching television. I fell asleep. I ---
3. The man slipped. He was getting off a bus. The man ---
4. I was walking home in the rain. I got wet. I ---
5. Margaret was driving to work yesterday. She had an accident. ---
6. Two firemen were overcome by smoke. They were trying to put out the fire. ---
67.3 Make sentences beginning Having ...
1. She finished her work. Then she went home.
Having finished her work, she went home.
2. We bought our tickets. Then we went into the theatre.
3. They continued their Journey after they'd had dinner.
4. After Lucy had done all her shopping, she went for a cup of coffee.
67.4 Make sentences beginning ~ing or Not ~ing. Sometimes you need to begin with Having (done something).
1. I felt tired. So I went to bed early.
Feeling tired I went to bad early.
2. I thought they might be hungry. So I offered them something to eat.
3. She is a foreigner. So she needs a visa to stay in this country.
4. I didn't know his address. So I wasn't able to contact him.
5. Sarah has traveled a lot. So she knows a lot about other countries.
6. The man wasn't able to understand English. So he didn't know what I wanted.
7. We had spent nearly all our money. So we couldn't afford to stay in a hotel.
67.1
2 Emma was sitting in an armchair reading a book.
3 Sue got home late feeling very tired.
4 Sarah went out saying she would be back in an hour.
5 Linda was in London for two years working as a tourist guide.
6 Mary walked round the town looking at the sights and taking photographs.
67.2
2 I fell asleep watching television.
3 The man slipped getting off a bus.
4 I got wet walking home in the rain.
5 Margaret had an accident driving to work yesterday.
6 Two firemen were overcome by smoke trying to put out the fire.
67.3
2 Having bought our tickets, we went into the theatre.
3 Having had dinner, they continued their journey.
4 Having done all her shopping, Lucy went for a cup of coffee.
67.4
2 Thinking they might be hungry, I offered them something to eat.
3 Being a foreigner, she needs a visa to stay in this country.
4 Not knowing his address, I wasn't able to contact him.
5 Having travelled a lot, Sarah knows a lot about other countries.
6 Not being able to understand English, the man didn't know what I wanted.
7 Having spent nearly all our money, we couldn't afford to stay in a hotel.
