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Guyper Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

-ed form Vs. -ing form

This is what I know so far,

If an action was done on a preceded noun, the following verb takes a past participle, -ed form,

"There was a criminal arrested by the cops a while ago"

But if the preceded noun is the doer, the following verb takes an -ing form

"The cops arresting the criminal a while ago"

I'm confused with the following phrase though

"The room is dark with old newspapers strewn everywhere"

The newspapers are the ones that are covering the floor in the room. So why does it take the past participle, strewn instead of the -ing form, strewing then?

Thank you
  

Top answer

Guyper The newspapers are the ones that are covering the floor in the room. So why does it take the past participle, strewn instead of the -ing form, strewing then? No, someone (or something) must have done the 'strewing'.

— Ozzourti

  • Guyper The newspapers are the ones that are covering the floor in the room.
  • So why does it take the past participle, strewn instead of the -ing form, strewing then?
  • No, someone (or something) must have done the 'strewing'.
  • Guyper "The cops arresting the criminal a while ago" That sounds weird.
  • Is it supposed to be a sentence?
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8 Answers
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GuyperThe newspapers are the ones that are covering the floor in the room. So why does it take the past participle, strewn instead of the -ing form, strewing then?
No, someone (or something) must have done the 'strewing'.
Guyper"The cops arresting the criminal a while ago"
That sounds weird. Is it supposed to be a sentence?
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ozzourti Guyper"The cops arresting the criminal a while ago"That sounds weird. Is it supposed to be a sentence?
Yes. I wasn't really sure how to phrase it properly.

Thanks though.
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Your first example is a reduced clause:

"There was a criminal (who was) arrested by the cops a while ago." (completed action, and a reduced relative clause)

That's why you need the -ed form.

"The cops arresting the criminal a while ago"

Again, a completed action is attempting to be expressed, so you need the -ed form.

"The room is dark wit
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What about if the verb is intransitive?

"The garden was beautiful with birds flying/flown above it?

Should it be past participle or gerund then?

Thank you
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GuyperYes. I wasn't really sure how to phrase it properly.
Then it would have to read: "The cops arrested the criminal a while ago" or "The cops were arresting the criminal a while ago". Or, using a structure similar to your first sentence, "There were cops arresting the criminal a while ago".
Guyper"The garden was
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GuyperWhat about if the verb is intransitive?"The garden was beautiful with birds flying/flown above it?Should it be past participle or gerund then?Thank you
You need to think about the difference between passive and active voice sentences and about reduced clauses.

Did anyone fly the birds, or did they fly willingly?

"The garden was b
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Anonymous"The garden was beautiful with birds (that were) flown above it by the birdkeepers." (Possible in a certain context. Passive voice.))
True, but I highly doubt that's what Guyper meant.
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ozzourti Anonymous"The garden was beautiful with birds (that were) flown above it by the birdkeepers." (Possible in a certain context. Passive voice.))True, but I highly doubt that's what Guyper meant.
As do I, but it is a useful part of my explanation.
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