Non modal auxiliaries used in -ing from

Question

hi: therethere are three non modal auxiliaries in english: be, do, have. Can they all appear in -ing form as auxiliaries? could you give me some simple examples? thank you very much. And have a nice day.

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

being and having can occur as auxiliaries in non-finite clauses.

She was embarrassed about being seen with her hair down.

Not having seen it myself, I can't really have an opinion about it.

doing cannot.

CJ

Guzhao67 · Answer

thank you for the kind reply. But in the first example, how should we categorize "being"? is it still a participle? what grammatical function does it serve? Noun, or what else? I'm a little puzzled. auxiliaries in ing form seem to be contradictory with the definition of gerund-participle category. The ing form function either as adj or noun, but, the terminology "auxiliary" itself exclude the possibilities. hope you understand my bad english.

thank you. you've helped me a lot.

CalifJim · Answer

how should we categorize "being"? is it still a participle? what grammatical function does it serve? Noun, or what else?

"Noun", "verb", "adjective", and similar terms are not grammatical functions. They are called "parts of speech" or "word categories". A typical function is "modifier". Nouns, adjectives, and adverbs can all be modifiers.

"Auxiliary" may be considered a function. In any case, it's not a word category. You asked for examples where being, having, or doingare auxiliaries; that's what I gave you.

The words 'participle' and 'gerund' are strange because they are not really word categories and they are not really functions. 'being' and 'having' can be participles or gerunds and be auxiliaries at the same time. Or, saying it differently, 'being' and 'having' can be used as auxiliaries within verb phrases that are participles or gerunds. Participle clauses act like adjectives or adverbs, but they are not adjectives or adverbs. Gerund clauses act like nouns, but they are not nouns.

1 She was embarrassed about being seen with her hair down.

2 Not having seen it myself, I can't really have an opinion about it.

1 'being seen' is a gerund. 'being seen with her hair down' is a gerund clause. It has some of the properties of a noun. Within the clause 'being' is an auxiliary.

2 'having seen' is a participle. 'not having seen it myself' is a participle clause. It has some of the properties of an adverb. Within the clause 'having' is an auxiliary.

CJ

Guzhao67 · Answer

thank you very very very ............... much. millions of thanks. CJ IS GREAT.<img class='emoticon' style='Width:19px;Height:19px;' data-delaysrc='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' src='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' alt='Emotion: smile'/>

Non modal auxiliaries used in -ing from

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