Participle Clauses

Participles may have the following forms:

present: showing
past: shown
perfect: having shown
passive: being shown
We can combine other words and participles to form participle clauses.
Participle clauses contain a participle instead of a subject + a full verb.

Present participles (-ing forms) replace verbs in the active:

e.g. The man sat there. He was staring at his empty coffee cup.
The man sat there, staring at his empty coffee cup.

Past participles replace verbs in the passive.

e.g. The film is set during the First World War. It tells the story of a young soldier.
Set during the First World War, the film tells the story of a young soldier.

They are often used to give more information about the idea expressed in a sentence, to avoid
repetition and make a point more economically:
e.g. thanks to participles we can express the same thought in one sentence instead of two sentences:
I felt ill. I decided not to do judo.(two sentences) I felt ill, so I decided not to do judo
Feeling ill, I decided not to do judo.

They are found more in written English than in spoken English; in more literary writing. They are
common in fiction, in book/film reviews.
Present participle clauses are much more common than past participle clauses.

Participle clauses can describe:

1. events happening at the same time (present participle; in Polish: imiesłów 'współczesny'):
He drank his coffee slowly and thought about the problem.
Drinking his coffee slowly, he thought about the problem.
2. events happening with a longer time gap (perfect participle; in Polish: imiesłów 'uprzedni')):
When he had retired, he found himself with time on his hands.
Having retired, he found himself with time on his hands.
3. other time relations when used with an appropriate conjunction:
Before we were shown round, we were welcomed by the principal.
Before being shown round,we were welcomed by the principal.
After he finished his speech, he took sip of water.
After finishing his speech, he took a sip of water.
4. cause or reason (past or present participle):
Because they had lived in Paris for 10 years they felt at home there.
Having lived in Paris for 10 years, they felt at home there.
Because he is a kind man, he agreed to help.
Being a kind man, he agreed to help.
5. condition (past participle)
If he were left to follow his own inclinations, he would do no work at all.
Left to follow his own inclinations, he would do no work at all.
6. to replace relative clauses (both defining and non-defining)
with an -ing form: A new road has been built, which bypasses the town.
A new road has been built, bypassing the town.
with an -ed form: The area which was designated for development was near the river.
The area designated for development was near the river.

The subject of the participle clause is the same as the subject of the main clause:
Feeling tired, he stopped for a cup of tea.
If the subject of the participle clause is different from that of the main clause, it must be stated:
The weather being perfect, we decided to go swimming.