A clause is a part of a sentence. Some clauses begin with ~ing or ~ed. For example:
Do you know the woman _talking to Tom?_(~ing clause)
The boy _injured in the accident_(~ed clause) was taken to hospital
We use ~ing clauses to say what somebody (or something) is doing (or was doing) at a particular time:
* Do you know the woman talking to Tom? (the woman is talking to Tom)
* Police investigating the crime are looking for three men. (police are investigating the crime)
* Who were those people waiting outside? (they were waiting)
* I was woken up by a bell ringing. (a bell was ringing)
When you are talking about things (and sometimes people), you can use an ~ing clause to say what something does all the time, not just at a particular time. For example:
* The road joining the two villages is very narrow. (the road joins the two villages)
* 1 live in a pleasant room overlooking the garden. (the room overlooks the garden)
* Can you think of the name of a flower beginning with 'T'? (the name begins with 'T')
~ed clauses have a passive meaning:
* The boy injured in the accident was taken to hospital. (the boy was injured in the accident)
* Some of the people invited to the party can't come. (the people have been invited to the party)
Injured and invited are past participles. Many verbs have past participles that do not end in ~ed (made, bought, stolen etc.):
* Most of the goods made in this factory are exported. (the goods are made.
* The police never found the money stolen in the robbery. (the money was stolen)
You can use left in this way, with the meaning 'not used, still there':
* We've spent nearly all our money. We've only got a little left. For irregular past participles,
We often use ~ing and ~ed clauses after there is/there was etc.:
* There were some children swimming in the river.
* Is there anybody waiting?
* There was a big red car parked outside the house.
EXERCISES
96.1 Make one sentence from two. Use the information in brackets to make an ~ing clause. Sometimes the ~ing clause goes in the middle of the new sentence; sometimes it goes at the end.
1. I was woken up by a bell. (The bell was ringing.)
I was woken up by a bell ringing._
2. 1 didn't talk much to the man. (The man was sitting next to me on the plane.)
3. The taxi broke down. (The taxi was taking us to the airport.)
The ---.
4. At the end of the street there is a path. (The path leads to the river.)
5. A new factory has just opened in the town. (The factory employs 500 people.)
6. The company sent me a brochure. (The brochure contained all the information I needed.)
96.2 Make one sentence from two, beginning as shown. Each time make an ~ed clause.
1. A boy was injured in the accident. He was taken to hospital.
The boy injured in the accident was taken to hospital._.
2. A window was broken in the storm last night. It has now been repaired.
The window --- repaired.
3. A number of suggestions were made at the meeting. Most of them were not very practical.
Most of the suggestions ---.
4. Some paintings were stolen from the museum. They haven't been found yet.
The ---.
5. A man was arrested by the police. What was his name?
What was the name ---.
96.3 Complete the sentences using one of the following verbs in the correct form: blow call invite live offer read ring sit study work
1. I was woken up by a bell _ringing._
2. A lot of the people _invited_ to the party cannot come.
3. Life must be very unpleasant for people --- near busy airports.
4. A few days after the interview, I received a letter --- me the job.
5. Somebody --- Jack phoned while you were out.
6. There was a tree --- down in the storm last night.
7. When I entered the waiting room it was empty except for a young man --- by the window a magazine.
8. Ian has got a brother --- in a bank in London and a sister --- economics at university in Manchester.
96.4 Use the words in brackets to make sentences using there is/there was etc.
1. That house is empty. (nobody/live/in it)
There's nobody living in it._
2. The accident wasn't serious. (nobody/injure)
There was nobody injured._
3. I can hear footsteps. (somebody/come)
There ---.
4. The train was full. (a lot of people/travel)
5. We were the only guests at the hotel. (nobody else/stay there)
6. The piece of paper was blank. (nothing/write/on it)
7. There are regular English courses at the college. (a course/begin/next Monday)
96.1
2 I didn't talk much to the man sitting next to me on the plane.
3 The taxi taking us to the airport broke down.
4 At the end of the street there is a path leading to the river.
5 A new factory employing 500 people has just opened in the town.
6 The company sent me a brochure containing all the information I needed.
96.2
2 The window broken in the storm last night has now been repaired.
3 Most of the suggestions made at the meeting were not very practical.
4 The paintings stolen from the museum haven't been found yet.
5 What was the name of the man arrested by the police?
96.3
3 living 4 offering
5 called 6 blown
7 sitting ... reading
8 working ... studying
96.4
3 There's somebody coming.
4 There were a lot of people travelling.
5 There was nobody else staying there.
6 There was nothing written on it.
7 There's a course beginning next Monday.
