Sentence structure: Participle clauses: -ing, V3, having
A participle clause is a short clause that has lost its conjunction and its subject. In this part you will see which form to choose, what it means and how to fix the most common mistake.
Bring the pieces togetherIn this chapter
Shortening in three steps
Drop the conjunction (when, because, after), drop the subject that both halves share, and turn the verb into a participle. Because she felt tired, she went to bed early. → Feeling tired, she went to bed early. You can only do this when both halves have the same subject.
Which form?
At the same time or reason (active): -ing: Feeling tired, she went to bed early. · Finished earlier (active): Having + V3: Having read the instructions, we started building the model. · Passive: V3: Written in simple English, this book is perfect for beginners. · Finished earlier (passive): Having been + V3: Having been chosen as team captain, she gave a short speech. · With a conjunction: while / after / before + -ing: While waiting for the bus, we played a word game.
What does it show? Time, reason, result
Time: = When they heard the bell. Like Turkish -ınca.
Example: Hearing the bell, the students ran outside.
Example: Being the oldest child, Selin helps her little brothers with their homework.
Having + V3 and V3
Having + V3: the saving was finished first, then the buying happened. Use having when the order matters.
Example: Having saved enough money, Emre bought a new skateboard.
Example: Having been chosen as team captain, she gave a short speech.
With a conjunction: clearer meaning
while = during that time. Even with a conjunction, the subject must still be the same.
Example: While waiting for the bus, we played a word game.
Example: After finishing the race, the runners drank some water.
The golden rule: the same subject
Readers take the subject after the comma as the hidden subject of the participle. “Arriving at the museum, the doors were closed.” is wrong: it sounds as if the doors arrived. There are two ways to fix it: change the main subject, or go back to a full clause.
Two fixes
Fix 1: the main subject becomes the people who arrived (we).
Example: Arriving at the museum, we found the doors closed.
Example: When we arrived at the museum, the doors were closed.
Tip
Ask two questions before you choose. 1) Does the subject do the action, or is it done to the subject? If it does it: -ing / Having + V3; if it is done to it: V3 / Having been + V3. 2) Same time or earlier? If it finished earlier and the order matters: Having.
Position 4 of 6 chapters at C1.