participle
[ pahr-tuh-sip-uh l, -suh-puh l ]
/ ˈpɑr təˌsɪp əl, -sə pəl /
noun Grammar.
an adjective or complement to certain auxiliaries that is regularly derived from the verb in many languages and refers to participation in the action or state of the verb; a verbal form used as an adjective. It does not specify person or number in English, but may have a subject or object, show tense, etc., as burning, in a burning candle, or devoted in his devoted friend.
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Origin of participle
1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French, variant of participe < Latin participium, derivative of particeps taking part, equivalent to parti- (stem of pars) part + -cep- (combining form of capere to take) + -s nominative singular ending
Usage note
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for participle
British Dictionary definitions for participle
participle
/ (ˈpɑːtɪsɪpəl, pɑːˈtɪsɪpəl) /
noun
a nonfinite form of verbs, in English and other languages, used adjectivally and in the formation of certain compound tensesSee also present participle, past participle
Derived Forms
participial (ˌpɑːtɪˈsɪpɪəl), adjective, nounparticipially, adverbWord Origin for participle
C14: via Old French from Latin participium, from particeps partaker, from pars part + capere to take
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Culture definitions for participle
participle
[ (pahr-tuh-sip-uhl) ]
The verb form that combines with an auxiliary verb to indicate certain tenses.
The present participle is formed by adding -ing to the infinitive; it indicates present action: “The girl is swimming”; “I am thinking.” (Compare gerund.)
The past participle usually ends in -ed; it indicates completed or past action: “The gas station has closed”; “The mayor had spoken.”
Participles may also function as adjectives: “Your mother is a charming person”; “This is a talking parrot”; “Spoken words cannot be revoked.”
Note
A “dangling” participle is one that is not clearly connected to the word it modifies: “Standing at the corner, two children walked past me.” A better version of this example would be, “While I was standing at the corner, two children walked past me.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.