Could you correct my sentence?

Question

"What's the point of my going to the kitchen eating all the leftovers?"

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

"What's the point of my going to the kitchen and eating all the leftovers?"

Anonymous · Answer

What about this?

We have been putting our lives on the line doing these runs into the city.

What does "doing" modify?

Anonymous · Answer

Could you answer this please?

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousWhat about this?We have been putting our lives on the line doing these runs into the city.What does "doing" modify?

Most participle clauses (doing these runs into the city) don't really modify anything, in the strict sense of "modify". They are more like a second predication (like a second but incomplete sentence) that states something more, often about the subject of the main clause. In this case, WE have been putting our lives on the line, and WE have been doing these runs into the city.

But there's more to it than that. It's not just "and". Putting information in a participle clause gives it the special meaning of saying how, or by what means the main clause comes about. So the full sentence gets a meaning like this:

By/In doing these runs into the city, we have been putting our lives on the line.
Or: We have been putting our lives on the line because we have been doing these runs into the city.
Or: Doing these runs into the city has the effect of putting our lives on the line.

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Putting a preposition in here sounds better to my ears. Can I use it that way?

"We have been putting our lives on the line by doing these runs into the city."

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousPutting a preposition in here sounds better to my ears. Can I use it that way?"We have been putting our lives on the line by doing these runs into the city."

Yes. That's also good.

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you. Sorry to bother you but could you give a few examplary sentences with participle clauses like the one I posted?

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousThank you. Sorry to bother you but could you give a few exemplary sentences with participle clauses like the one I posted?

I'm not sure how closely you want me to follow the model, but you can look at these for a start. These are only a few possibilities for present participles. After these, there are past participles and perfect participles to learn. This is really a very big topic, so don't try to learn everything at once or you will just get confused.

The engineer turned the valve, increasing the water pressure.
The wedding attendant opened the box, releasing the white doves.
Looking through the telescope we saw the Andromeda galaxy.
Finishing the chapter, Tom closed the book.
Driving on the freeway, Jenny noticed some deer in the distance.

Here are some links where you can learn a lot more about different kinds of participle clauses and how to use them.

http://www.grammaring.com/participle-clauses
https://english.lingolia.com/en/grammar/sentences/participle-clauses
http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/participle-clauses.html
http://www.grammarbank.com/participle-clauses.html

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Well this sentence,I think, is a bit different from the other sentences you gave as an example.

We have been putting our lives on the line doing these runs into the city.

Would it make any difference If i put a comma here?

"We have been putting our lives on the line , doing these runs into the city."

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousWould it make any difference If i put a comma here?

That's always a big question with participle clauses. Writers tend to use their own judgment on this. In this sentence I would definitely not use a comma. It's more important to put a comma after an initial participle clause.

CJ

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