About the participle construction
Hello everyone.
Below is a grammatical question for a university entrance examination held in the past. I have a couple of questions regarding it.
( ) that night, we could not observe the moon.
(A) Having rained (B) It was raining (C) It having rained (D) Raining
Q1 Which of the above four items would you choose?
Q2 Apparently, this question is about the participle construction, and the correct answer provided by the examiner is (C). What do you think of it?
Q3 Some people say that the correct answer to this question should be "It raining." What is your take on this idea?
Top answer
( ? ) that night, we could not observe the moon. (C) is the correct choice, though (A) is also possible.
- ( ?
- ) that night, we could not observe the moon.
- (C) is the correct choice, though (A) is also possible.
- The difference is that (C) contains a subject, "it", while (A) is subjectless and hence might be called a 'dangling participle', which normally should be avoided.
- They are, though, both participial constructions, more specifically gerund-participial clauses functioning as supplementary adjuncts.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
( ? ) that night, we could not observe the moon.
(C) is the correct choice, though (A) is also possible. The difference is that (C) contains a subject, "it", while (A) is subjectless and hence might be called a 'dangling participle', which normally should be avoided.
They are, though, both participial constructions, more specifically gerund-participial clauses functio
0
Related Questions