1. The moon orbits the earth.

2. It is about one quarter the size of earth.

3. Humans first landed on the moon in 1969.
4. The astronauts left footprints in the fine dust.
5. Meteors crushed rocks into dust.
6. The moon has no atmosphere.
7. Impressions from meteors and footprints last for a long time.
8. Many of the moon’s features are visible to the eye.
9. One side of the moon never faces earth.
10. Sometimes, the moon blocks the light of the sun from the earth.
11. Thomas is leading the overall competition.
12. The radio station has played that song three times today.
13. Those rules may be out of date.
14. Have you heard the weather forecast?
15. This scarecrow should protect the garden.
16. The kitten has been growing very quickly.
17. Today’s classes have not been cancelled.
18. Would that piece have completed the puzzle?
19. A chipmunk has been making tunnels under this field.
20. When will Sarah be visiting her cousins?

1. Karen sent an e-mail to her brother.

2. Have you found the receipt?
3. Mr. Sullivan will be teaching Spanish next year.
4. How long have you known about this book?
5. David forgave me at once.
6. A picture of an animal had been drawn on the wall of the cave.
7. The Wildcats lost the game last night.
8. Can you read this handwriting?
9. Answer the third question, please.
10. I barely remember my third birthday.
11. That might be your longest jump yet!
12. This yogurt tastes wonderful.
13. Suddenly, the sky became cloudy.
14. Were you the one in the red hat?
15. Cats can be sneaky.
16. In the yard, the leaves are in a pile.
17. The choir sounds beautiful tonight.
18. Mary had been treasurer for the past two years.
19. How does water become snow?
20. Michelle felt sad about the end of the school year.

1. In the 1700s, the British expelled thousands of Acadians from Canada.

2. Many of these Acadians moved to Louisiana.
3. In Louisiana the name “Acadian” evolved into “Cajun.”
4. Cajun settlements spread across the southern part of Louisiana.
5. The paintings of Cajun artist George Rodriguez capture the flavour of Cajun life.

6. The people of New Orleans assembled along the streets for the Mardi Gras parade.
The Cajun chef assembled the ingredients for gumbo on the counter.
7. The cars in the Louisiana Sugarcane Festival parade moved slowly down the street.
The workers quickly moved the shrimp off the boat to the waiting trucks.
8. Marc Savoy, a Cajun musician, plays the accordion.
The Cajun band plays every Saturday morning.
9. The tourists met that chef, the host of a popular Cajun cooking show.
The two families met for a fishing trip on the bayou.
10. My favourite author has written a new novel.
Karen has written in her journal every day for three years.

EXERCISE A Underline the verb in each of the following sentences. Then, identify the object or objects of
that verb. When you are underlining verbs, remember to underline any helping verbs. Hint: Some verbs
do not have objects.

1. Did you remember the mustard and catsup?

2. Wow! That trash can smell awful!
3. Zack saw snow for the first time that night.
4. Alone cello sounded sad and mysterious in the darkness.
5. Nick hardened the special clay in the oven.
6. At the sound of the electric can opener, three cats ran into the kitchen.
EXERCISE A Underline the participle in each of the following sentences.

1. Oh, no. I smell burnt toast again.

2. Add two beaten eggs to the mixture.
3. They need two signed copies of the contract.
4. Have you found the lost remote control yet?
5. What is a “running foot” anyway?
6. One excited little girl could hardly stand still.
7. Exhausted, she stumbled across the finish line.
8. A folding chair sat beside the door.
9. Ten dripping shirts hung from the line.
10. Carved stones lined the garden bed.

EXERCISE B Underline the participial phrase in each of the following sentences.

11. Streaming into the starry sky, fireworks exploded over the bay.
12. “Seventy-six Trombones” blared from a band performing onstage.
13. Blankets laid out over the grass held small family groups.
14. Picnic tables were covered with food and ice chests holding cold drinks.
15. Some dogs chased a ball decorated with red and white stripes.
16. Later, a group of American Indians dancing in full costume entertained the crowd.
17. Earlier, a dozen Thai girls had performed an elegant dance handed down for generations.
18. Unpacking their instruments, a Dixieland jazz band got ready for their turn.
19. A group of folk dancers, specially flown in from San Antonio, swirled in a rainbow of skirts.
20. Sleepily nodding in car seats, children and babies were driven home.

EXERCISE Underline the infinitive phrase in each of the following sentences.

1. To eat nutritious meals and snacks is important to good health.

2. You’re too smart to fall for that old joke!
3. They had planned to practice all weekend.
4. Right now, your major goal is to do well in school.
5. Actually, the equation is simple to solve without a calculator.
6. Try to use more colours and shapes.
7. We need some community service projects to put in our portfolios.
8. The solution was to exit the program and reboot.
9. I’m so sorry to be late for our appointment.
10. Do you really need to play basketball at six o’clock in the morning, Toby?

EXERCISE In the following sentences, underline the gerund. Then, tell whether the gerund is a subject, a
Subject complement, a direct object, an indirect object, or an object of a preposition.

____________________1. Swimming, another aquatic sport, demands physical endurance.

____________________ 2. Amore leisurely form of exercise is walking.
____________________ 3. Although it may seem leisurely, sailing also requires strength.
____________________ 4. Petra prefers water-skiing and is quite good at it.
____________________ 5. For me, nothing beats the thrill of cycling!
____________________ 6. Was Olympian Babe Zaharias best known for her running?
____________________ 7. Wasn’t her forte golfing?
____________________ 8. Which contestants won medals in tumbling?
____________________ 9. Figure skating is certainly a graceful sport!
____________________10. Every person should find a way of exercising for health and for pleasure.
____________________11. Some kinds of exercise require planning and expense.
____________________12. Sports, however, are not the only means of staying fit.
____________________13. Even bird-watching can offer opportunities for exercise.
____________________14. Avid bird-watchers often do a lot of hiking.
____________________15. On weekends, give gardening a try.
____________________16. Hoeing gives a person’s arms and shoulders a real workout.
____________________17. In the fall, fallen leaves need raking.
____________________18. My least favourite kind of yardwork is mowing.
____________________19. For some people, of course, working provides exercise.
__________________20. Vacuuming and other household chores also require effort and energy.

EXERCISE Underline the gerund phrase in each of the following sentences. Then, identify its function in
the sentence by writing S for subject, SC for subject complement , DO for direct object, or OP for
object of a preposition.

1. Jumping out of airplanes sounds scary to me.

2. Our reason for calling you is to invite you to our graduation.
3. I don’t mind shoveling snow once in a while.
4. Skidding on wet pavement causes many accidents.
5. You will enjoy meeting Hatim.
6. Sweating over a hot stove in August is not fun.
7. My favorite weekend activity is singing with a local band.
8. Achieving a perfect score gave Molly a sense of pride.
9. Instead of subtracting the service charge, Chad added it.
10. Daydreaming about problems can be a source of creative solutions.
11. After dining at a nice restaurant, they went to a movie.
12. His idea of a pleasant Saturday is fishing from the bridge.
13. One service club’s holiday project is carolling at the hospital.
14. Nicole’s sisters enjoy skating in the park.
15. By shopping early in the morning, we will get the freshest produce.
16. My hobbies include reading mysteries and biographies.
17. His arms were sore after kneading the dough for ten pizzas.
18. Choosing a college to attend can be overwhelming.
19. Mike doesn’t like waiting for the bus at night.
20. Her part-time job is packing computer components at the factory.

EXERCISE A In the following sentences, underline the gerund or gerund phrase. Then, identify its function
in the sentence by writing S for subject, SC for subject complement, DO for direct object, or OP for object of a
preposition.

1. Buying a good telescope is a good way to get started.

2. Also, many colleges have a practice of opening their observatories to the public.
3. One other helpful activity is studying star charts to learn the layout of the sky.
4. Some amateur astronomers also invest time in photographing the stars.
5. Discovering a comet is the dream of a few persistent skywatchers.
6. The tradition of naming comets after the first person or people to sight them brings a kind of fame to these skywatchers.
7. For most stargazers, however, a night of lying out under the stars is pleasure enough.
8. Several times a year, people can enjoy viewing meteor showers.
9. Sometimes you can see up to forty meteors an hour, simply by being outside at the right time!
10. The sky is filled with the streaking of meteors among the stars.

EXERCISE B Compose five sentences of your own, using a gerund or gerund phrase in each. Use the verb in
parentheses to form the gerund. Underline the gerund or gerund phrase in each sentence.

Example 1. (breathe) Breathing deeply and slowly can help a nervous person relax.

11. (plant) __________________________________________________________________________

12. (debate) __________________________________________________________________________
13. (snooze) ____________________________________________________________________________
14. (subscribe) __________________________________________________________________________
15. (taste) __________________________________________________________________________
EXERCISE Decide if the underlined word group in each sentence is a gerund phrase or a participial phrase.

1. Eating out in Tokyo is fun.

2. The problem is choosing among so many different restaurants.
3. Pointing at the puppy, Jim said he really wanted to get one.
4. In botany class, we became quite good at identifying types of flowers.
5. After dinner, feeling happy and full, we thanked our hosts.
6. Going to the beach this summer will be a lot of fun.
7. Searching for an answer, I looked in a current dictionary.
8. Smiling proudly, the little boy pointed to his new toys.
9. I have always enjoyed eating sushi.
10. It’s too bad that preparing sushi is Mom’s least favorite thing to do!
11. Buying a used car requires research.
12. The little boy stomped into his room, slamming the door behind him.
13. The team has a slim chance of finishing in the top four.
14. The dog, wagging its tail wildly, bounded out to meet us.
15. Quickly paying for the groceries, she ran out of the store.
16. Decorating this birthday cake will take at least an hour.
17. My cousin actually enjoys taking tests.
18. Sorting through the old photographs, we found a portrait of our grandfather.
19. The alligator, gliding silently through the dark water, approached its prey.
20. My least favorite part of this job is scraping the paint off the woodwork.