Adjectives ending in -ed or -ing

People often confuse adjectives that end in -ed, like bored or excited, with adjectives that end in -ing, for
example boring or exciting.
The difference is that:

• adjectives that end in -ed describe emotions - they tell us how people feel about something.
Did you see that video about spiders? Yes, I was terrified by it.

• adjectives that end in -ing describe the thing that produces the feeling.
I watched a terrifying video about spiders on YouTube.
Spelling changes when adding -ed and -ing -ed
If the base word ends in an 'e', just add 'd':
Surprise → surprised - Amuse → amused
-ing
If the base word ends in an 'e', remove the 'e' and add 'ing':
Surprise→ surprising - Amuse → amusing

1. Choose the correct adjective:

a. I was fascinated / fascinating by the presentation.

b. He was irritated/ irritating to meet Milly in town after they had had an argument.

c. She talks a lot about the time she worked in a circus. She’s so amused/ amusing.

d. You look exhausted / exhausting. Why don’t you lie down for a bit?

e. Feeling tired / tiring and depressed / depressing, she phoned her best friend for a chat.

f. I really can’t eat this! It smells disgusting / disgusted! What is that?

2. Use the word given in capitals at the end of the sentences to form a word with -ed or -ing that fits the
space.

A. We were quite_________________ by the unfriendly attitude of the other students. PUZZLE

B. It's very_______________ to be able to apply things we learn in the classroom to our free-time
activities. MOTIVATE
C. Anita looked quite________________ when she left the police station. WORRY
D. The film was not particularly____________________. AMUSE
E. We were absolutely ________________by the time we got to the top of the mountain. EXHAUST
F. Everyone watches Pietro at parties because he's an____________ dancer. ASTONISH
G. My exam results were very__________. I'd worked really hard, and I thought I had done better.
DISAPPOINT
H. All the boys loved that_______ car chase at the end of the film. THRILL
I. Tomas sounded really___________ on the phone. He's lost his place in the first team. DEPRESS