participle
Americannoun
-
participles
plural
noun
Grammar
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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.”
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Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of participle
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French, variant of participe, from Latin participium, derivative of particeps “taking part,” from parti- (stem of pars “piece, portion”; see part) + -ceps “taking” (combining form of capere “to take”)
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How does participle compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A participle is a verb that acts like an adjective, like a running leap, scorned lover, or boiled egg. This is a technical word that will come up when you're studying grammar or linguistics. From a Greek root meaning “partaker,” a participle wants to partake of both the verb and adjective worlds. If you said, "I need a running start!" before a race, running is a participle. If you notice a trapped bear, trapped is the participle. This is a word that is a little confusing to understand, even though you use participles all the time.
Vocabulary lists containing participle
TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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That’s So Meta: Words About Words
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The AP English Exam: Writing, Grammar, and Word Choice
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Rather, it is a participle, derived from the verb “to draw” to describe an ongoing practice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Ontos is the Greek participle from the verb “to be” and means “being.”
From Textbooks ● Jun. 15, 2022
Lately I’ve been doing a deep dive into the origins of English grammar, specifically the difference between past participle and present perfect.
From New York Times ● Apr. 23, 2020
From that innocent present participle “encouraging” a mighty fountain sprang.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 2, 2019
It is the verb vacilar, present participle vacilando.
From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck
He once sent her a brief memo dedicated entirely to the misuse of present participles.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 22, 2021
Anne Carson says: “You can never know enough, never work enough, never use the infinitives and participles oddly enough, never impede the movement harshly enough, never leave the mind quickly enough.”
From Slate ● May 15, 2019
Every now and then we have to disregard the serial comma, or leave our participles dangling, even in the rudest way.
From The Guardian ● May 13, 2017
Dr. Hussein came over to rescue us from white space and dangling participles.
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2015
Us pupils hadn’t gotten to participles, whatever they might be.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.