What is participle definition?

A participle is a type of verb that is commonly used in English grammar. It can serve as an adjective or adverb, and it is created by adding -ing, -ed, or -en to a verb.

For example, in the sentence "The running water sounded like a river," "running" is a participle functioning as an adjective modifying "water." In the sentence "He had finished his homework before dinner," "finished" is a participle functioning as part of the verb phrase "had finished."

There are two types of participles: present participles (-ing) and past participles (-ed or -en). Present participles are used to describe ongoing actions or conditions, while past participles are used to describe completed actions or conditions.

Participles can also form participial phrases, which are often used to add extra information to a sentence. For example, in the sentence "Shouting with excitement, they ran to the carnival," "shouting with excitement" is a participial phrase that provides additional information about how they ran.

Overall, participles are a versatile part of English grammar that can be used to add depth and description to a sentence.