Special Verbs before -ING
Stating observations, perceptions and opinion on experiences
Special Verbs
OBSERVATION |
PERCEPTION |
"HAVE" A (GOOD/BAD) EXPERIENCE |
SPENDING TIME |
see I saw her leaving / leave. |
feel I felt her sneezing / sneeze. |
have trouble I have trouble hearing. |
sit I sat watching the sheep |
watch I watched them falling / fall. |
hear I heard her coughing / cough. |
have difficulty I have difficulty spelling. |
stand I stood waiting for them. |
observe I saw her leaving. |
smell I smelled her passing / pass by. |
have fun I have fun dancing. |
lie around I lay around relaxing. |
notice I noticed her arriving. |
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have a great time I had a great time traveling. |
lie He lay complaining. |
catch I caught them relaxing. |
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have an easy time I had an easy time driving. |
waste time He wastes time shopping. |
find I found her sleeping. |
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have a ball I have a ball playing video games. |
spend time I spend time browsing. |
Participial Phrases
Stating observation and perception
Compare — Gerund Phrases vs Participial Phrases
| EXPRESSING ATTITUDE – GERUND PHRASE | EXPRESSING OBSERVATION – PARTICIPIAL PHRASE |
|---|---|
A gerund is a noun formed from a verb. It follows a verb expressing attitude or opinion about an activity. A gerund phrase includes a gerund and an object or prepositional phrase. |
A participial phrase is an adjective clause that modifies a noun. The clause is shortened according to the That + BE deletion rule. It commonly follows a verb expressing observation. |
We enjoy walking on the road. (Our attitude about about our activity) |
We saw sheep [who were] walking on the road. (Observation of sheep activity) |
We dislike making sounds at the table. (Our attitude about our activity) |
We heard sheep [who were] making "baaaa" sounds. (Observation of sheep activity) |
Related pages: Gerund Verbs |
Related pages: Reducing a Clause to a Modifying Phrase |
Observation & Perception Verbs
| EXPRESSING OBSERVATION – ING VERB FORM | EXPRESSING OBSERVATION – BASE VERB FORM |
|---|---|
A verb expressing observation or perception can be followed by a noun and a participial phrase (-ing). "That + BE" is deleted from the original clause. |
OR a verb expressing observation/ perception can be followed by a noun and a base verb form. "-ing" is deleted from the verb. There is no difference in meaning |
We smelled a skunk [that was] passing by. |
We smelled a skunk pass[ing] by. |
We saw an athlete [that was] running a marathon race. |
We saw an athlete run [ing] a marathon race. |
We heard cows [that were] mooing. (making cow sounds) |
We heard cows moo [ing] . (make cow sounds) |
We saw some birds [that were] flying away. |
We saw some birds fly [ing] away. |
We heard the neighbors [that were] leaving at 7:00 am. |
We heard the neighbors leave [ing] at 7:00 am. |
We watched our mother [that were] cooking dinner. |
We watched our mother cook [ing] dinner. |
We felt the temperature [that were] rising. |
We felt the temperature rise [ing] . |
We observed the doctor [that was] doing open-heart surgery. |
(no base form equivalent) |
We noticed [that he was ] him putting something in his pocket. |
(no base form equivalent) |
The police found [that they were] them hiding. (found = observed) |
(no base form equivalent) |
She caught her husband [that was] cheating. |
(no base form equivalent) |
The Placement Changes the Meaning!
| MODIFIES THE OBJECT | MODIFIES THE SUBJECT | |
|---|---|---|
A modifying phrase should be placed directly after the word it modifies. |
When a modifying (participial) phrase is placed at the beginning of a sentence and separated with a comma, the phrase modifies the closest noun (the subject.) |
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Participial Phrases
Having a particular experience
Compare — Possession vs. Have an Experience
| EXPRESSING POSSESSION | HAVING A PARTICULAR EXPERIENCE |
|---|---|
A verb expressing possession is commonly followed by a noun. (No gerund form is possible.) |
Have expressions indicate a particular experience when doing an activity. The expression is is followed by a gerund phrase. The speaker expresses a good or bad experience. |
We had a mobile phone. |
We had trouble finding a pay phone. (difficulty) |
We had a holiday |
We had a hard time finding a pay phone. (difficulty) |
We had a frisbee. |
They had no trouble driving to your house. (ease) |
We had a karioke machine. |
They had an easy time driving to your house. (ease) |
She had a baby. |
She had an awful time getting a visa. (unpleasant) |
We had breakfast / lunch / dinner. |
We had fun skiing. (pleasant) |
They are having a party. (hosting an event) |
We had a ball skiing. (a ball = fun) |
He is having a cigarette / a break. (take) |
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Have a bite / a drink / a seat. (take) |
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She is having a bath. (take) |
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Have a good day / holiday / Merry Christmas (enjoy) |
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Participial Phrases
Spending time
Compare — Two activites vs. Spending Time (doing something)
| TWO SEPARATE ACTIVITIES | SPENDING TIME | |
|---|---|---|
These verbs indicate two activities are occurring or have occurred. |
These verbs indicate "spending time" doing one activity. It's not so important whether the person is sitting, lying or standing, but that they remain stationary (in the same place). |
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He sat and ate his dinner. |
He sat eating his dinner. |
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He stood and argued with me. |
He stood arguing with me. |
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He lies around and reads the newspaper. (or lies down) |
He lies around reading the newspaper. |
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He wasted time and texted on his telephone. |
He wastes time texting on his telephone. |
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She spends hours and does her homework. |
She spends hours doing her homework. |
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Practice
Detective Report: Making Observations
Verbs can be followed by three kinds of verb phrases:
- infinitive(to+verb) verbs followed by infinitives
- gerund (verb-ing)
- base form (verb) verbs followed by infinitives without to
- Select the word from each menu that best completes the sentence.
- Compare your response to the answer by clicking the "check" button to the right.