Participle Clauses Worksheets
26 worksheets · Advanced grammar
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Participle clauses worksheets
26 printable worksheets with answer keys; the 24 most used, easiest level first.
About Participle clauses
Participle clauses are reduced adverbial or relative clauses that make writing more concise. They use a present participle (Walking home, I met an old friend), a past participle with passive meaning (Built in 1890, the house needs repairs) or a perfect participle for a completed earlier action (Having finished the report, she went home).
They are typically taught at B2 and consolidated at C1–C2, especially for formal writing. The key rule is that the implied subject of the participle must normally be the same as the subject of the main clause, so Walking home, the rain started is a dangling participle. Learners also confuse active and passive forms (Writing in 1850 vs Written in 1850).
This page offers printable participle clauses worksheets with answer keys, ready to print as PDF or complete online via a class link, with sentence-combining and transformation practice at B2–C2.
Teaching tips: Participle clauses
- Start with two simple sentences and combine them: She opened the door. She saw a letter. → Opening the door, she saw a letter.
- Watch for dangling participles: always ask learners who is doing the action in the participle clause and check that it matches the main subject.
- Contrast active and passive participles with the same verb (Having painted / Painted by Monet) to clarify meaning.
- Use participle clauses as reduced relatives (The man sitting by the window is my uncle) to link them to earlier relative clause work.
Questions teachers ask
What is a dangling participle?
It is a participle clause whose implied subject does not match the main clause subject, which produces an unintended meaning: Driving to work, a deer ran into the road suggests the deer was driving.
When should I use 'having + past participle'?
Use it to show that the action in the participle clause was completed before the main action: Having read the instructions, he started the test.
Are participle clauses informal or formal?
They are more common in written and formal English, such as narratives, reports and essays, than in casual conversation.