Verbals

A verbal is a form of a verb that functions as a different part of speech in a sentence, such as a noun, adjective, or adverb.

The three main types of verbals are participles, gerunds, and infinitives.

A participle is a verbal that functions as an adjective, typically ending in -ing or -ed.

In the sentence 'The barking dog kept me awake,' 'barking' is a participle describing the dog.

An infinitive is a verbal that consists of the base form of a verb preceded by 'to,' and it can function as a noun, adjective, or adverb.

In the sentence 'She wants to learn,' 'to learn' is an infinitive functioning as the object of the verb 'wants'.

A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun.

In the sentence 'Swimming is fun,' 'swimming' is a gerund functioning as the subject of the sentence.

A participial phrase includes a participle and any modifiers or complements, functioning as an adjective.

In the sentence 'Running down the street, he tripped,' 'Running down the street' is a participial phrase describing 'he'.