ing and ed

Jan 10, 2011

Answer
by: Ola Zur

Hi Mehrdad,

The answer to this question is quite LONG.

So I can't really cover it fully with this one answer, but I can give you some reference points. I hope it will help :)

Here goes:

ING

1. ING is an ending typically used to make the progressive form of the verb. This is the form of the verb that shows the action is IN PROGRESS.

For example:
I eat apples. (= I generally eat apples)
I am eating an apple. (= The action of eating is in progress)
I was eating an apple. (= The action of eating was in progress)

2. The ING ending is also used to turn verbs into nouns.

For example:
"Paint" is a verb, but "painting" can be a noun, like in this sentence:
"The artist finished the painting."

ED

1. ED is an ending typically used to make the past form of the verb.

For example:
"Help" is in the present. (I help the poor.)
"Helped" is in the past. (He helped me last night.)

However, many verbs have irregular past forms, and they are formed in a different way.

For example:
"Take" is in the present.
"Took" is in the past (and not "taked").

2. The ED ending is also used to create the third form of the verb (the first form is the base form, and the second form is the past form).

For example:
First form of the verb (base form): work
Second form of the verb (past form): worked
Third form of the verb: worked

However, many verbs have irregular third forms.

For examples:
First form of the verb (base form): drink
Second form of the verb (past form): drank
Third form of the verb: drunk

How is the third form of the verb used?

A) To show that the action is COMPLETE or FINISHED.

For example:
I have prepared lunch. (= The action is finished)

B) To show that the action is PASSIVE.

For example:
Lunch was being prepared. (= Someone was preparing lunch)

Ok, so this was really brief, but hopefully it shed some light on the subject.

For more data you can visit my English verb tenses guide.

Ola Zur is the editor of www.really-learn-english.com, an illustrated guide to English.

ing and ed

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