TCB Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 (edited) I am doing MCT Grammar Town with dd11 this year. We have got to verbal phrases and are finding it confusing, really just participial phrases. Here is the sentence that is confusing: Eating the pizza, Roberto laughed at the dog. adj. adj. n. n. v. prp. adj. n.s partic. phrase I don't get why eating is classified as an adj. Also in the book he says that participial phrases are adjectives but my dh (an English teacher) says that in this case he would call it an adverbial participial phrase which is modifying 'laughed'. I would be very grateful for any explanations as it has really stumped us and my grammar loving dd is now not so loving it. Thanks, Trenna ETA - sorry about the labeling under the words -didn't format how it should. Edited October 13, 2011 by tcb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCB Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Anybody out there who can help?? I am a bit of a dunce at grammar so it may just be a stupid ? but if anyone could help me understand I'd really appreciate it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 (edited) I am doing MCT Grammar Town with dd11 this year. We have got to verbal phrases and are finding it confusing, really just participial phrases.Here is the sentence that is confusing: Eating the pizza, Roberto laughed at the dog. adj. adj. n. n. v. prp. adj. n.s partic. phrase I don't get why eating is classified as an adj. Also in the book he says that participial phrases are adjectives but my dh (an English teacher) says that in this case he would call it an adverbial participial phrase which is modifying 'laughed'. I would be very grateful for any explanations as it has really stumped us and my grammar loving dd is now not so loving it. Thanks, Trenna ETA - sorry about the labeling under the words -didn't format how it should. Participial phrases can be adjectives or adverbs, depending on what they're modifying. Is "eating the pizza" modifying "Richard" or "laughed"? I'd argue that it's telling us something about Richard, not about his laughter, so I'd say it's an adjectival phrase - the participle in the phrase is then labeled according to what the whole phrase is. Since the phrase is adjectival, the participle is labeled an adjective. Introductory participial phrases usually modify the subject of the sentence. A present participle (like eating) can also be used as a noun, but then it's called a gerund and the phrase would be a gerund phrase - as in the sentence "Eating pizza was Robert's favorite pastime." Then "eating" would be labeled a noun. Edited October 13, 2011 by matroyshka Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Participial phrases can be adjectives or adverbs, depending on what they're modifying. Is "eating the pizza" modifying "Richard" or "laughed"? I'd argue that it's telling us something about Richard, not about his laughter, so I'd say it's an adjectival phrase - the participle in the phrase is then labeled according to what the whole phrase is. Since the phrase is adjectival, the participle is labeled an adjective. Introductory participial phrases usually modify the subject of the sentence. I can see the pt of the OP b/c when I read the sentence I read it as telling when he laughed, not the pizza-eating boy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I can see the pt of the OP b/c when I read the sentence I read it as telling when he laughed, not the pizza-eating boy. I could see that interpretation - but I'd probably write it "While eating the pizza" if I wanted it to mean when he laughed. I did see it as pizza-eating boy. :) One could make a good argument for either interpretation, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCB Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Thanks for the explanations. It has helped to know that if the phrase is adjectival then the participal is labelled accordingly. So I think what you are both saying is that either way could be correct? If you choose to label it as an adverbial participial phrase then you would also label eating as an adverb, is that right? Thanks, Trenna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 T If you choose to label it as an adverbial participial phrase then you would also label eating as an adverb, is that right? Yes, the participle in an adverbial phrase is labeled as an adverb, and the participle in an adjectival phrase is labeled as an adjective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCB Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Yes, the participle in an adverbial phrase is labeled as an adverb, and the participle in an adjectival phrase is labeled as an adjective. Thanks for this. It makes sense to me now and I'll be able to tell dd that the phrase could be interpreted either as adjective or adverb. Hopefully this will get us back on track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I'm not buying it as an adverbial phrase. I would like to hear MCT's thoughts on the matter. I wonder if the OP would consider asking him the question on the Royal Fireworks MCTLA support forum? Mr Thompson is pretty good about responding. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 (edited) oops.....doubled Edited October 13, 2011 by 8FillTheHeart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I think that matroyshka's pt about it being at the beginning of the sentence and that participles normally modify the noun following it is the key to the explanation. Here is a site that has a good explanation for it being an adj: http://www.edmondschools.net/Portals/0/docs/ParticipialPhrases.pdf ETA: I went to look for an example of what I was thinking about in one of my grammar books, and apparently, I am completely confused. (a normal occurrence these days!!) The 3 that I looked in stated that participles always act as adjs. So, accept my apology for confusing you! (I'm not sure why I was thinking that they could act as adverbs.) Purdue Owl is one of my most trusted sources and here is the info from their website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/627/02/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I think that this is one of those areas where it is going to depend on who is teaching and how. I think that matroyshka's pt about it being at the beginning of the sentence and that participles normally modify the noun following it is the key to the explanation. (though I have seen in some grammar books where that is not taught. THere are times when more than one answer is the acceptable answer. ) Here is a site that has a good explanation for it being an adj: http://www.edmondschools.net/Portals/0/docs/ParticipialPhrases.pdf Your link, as you know, has support for the phrase functioning as an adjective. Do you (or anyone else) have evidence or support for teaching the phrase might also function as an adverb? Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 ETA: I went to look for an example of what I was thinking about in one of my grammar books, and apparently, I am completely confused. (a normal occurrence these days!!) The 3 that I looked in stated that participles always act as adjs. So, accept my apology for confusing you! (I'm not sure why I was thinking that they could act as adverbs.) Purdue Owl is one of my most trusted sources and here is the info from their website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/627/02/ Sorry we cross posted. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merry Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 At lunch, the kids were chatting. A dog came up to them and begged for food. Eating the pizza, the boy looked at the dog and laughed. Then he called the dog to his side. Eating the pizza identifies which boy is looking at the dog so that means it's an adj. phrase, right? The boy and the dog played together all morning. After a while they got hungry. The dog found a bone and gnawed on it. Eating the pizza, the boy looked at the dog and laughed. The phrase, eating the pizza, shows that the boy was laughing while he was eating. That sounds like an adverbial phrase to me in this case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leeannpal Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I am a middle school English teacher and can see no way that the phrase is adverbial. Eating the pizza is definitely telling about the boy which makes it an adjective phrase I would like to understand how it could be an adverb phrase? If you change the phrase to a one word participal that is slightly different, the fact that it is an adjective phrase might be more clear. "Smiling, the boy looked at the dog and laughed." It seems obvious to me that it is the boy who is described as smiling and not the laughter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCB Posted October 14, 2011 Author Share Posted October 14, 2011 Just got back and saw these answers. MCT, in Grammar Town, states that participial phrases are adjectives. I'll have to look at the links that 8fillstheheart posted, haven't done that yet. I'll have to see if I can ask the ? on the yahoo group. The thing that was particularly confusing me was labeling 'Eating' as an adjective in the 1st level but that seems to make sense if it's because it is an adjectival phrase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.