Question

erbal Function Match-Up
￿ Puzzle 1: Identify the Verbal
Draw a line connecting the underlined verbal in each sentence to its correct type. Remember:
● Gerunds end in -ing and act as nouns.
● Participles end in -ing or -ed and act as adjectives.
● Infinitives start with "to" and act as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.
Verbal Types: Gerund, Participle, Infinitive
Definition Word
1. The crying baby finally fell asleep.
2. Swimming is my favorite summer
activity.
3. She wants to visit Paris next year.
4. The broken vase lay on the floor.
5. They enjoy hiking in the mountains.
6. He studied hard to pass the exam.
￿ Puzzle 2: Match the Function
Read the sentences below. Decide how the bolded verbal is functioning in the sentence. Write
the letter of the correct function in the box.
Sentence Fun
ctio
n
Typ
e
To win requires dedication. A Infi
Function Bank
A. Subject (Doing the action)
B. Direct Object (Receiving the action)
C. Modifier (Acting as an adjective
describing a noun)
niti
ve
The barking dog woke the
neighbors.
Par
tici
ple
I really enjoy reading mystery
novels.
Ger
und
Running keeps him healthy. Ger
und
She bought a book to read on the
plane.
Infi
niti
ve
￿ Hint: If you can replace
the verbal with "IT" and the
sentence still makes
grammatical sense, it's
acting as a Noun (Subject
or Object)!
￿ Puzzle 3: The Tricky Participle vs. Gerund
Both present participles and gerunds end in -ing. Can you tell them apart? Sort the phrases
below into the correct column.
Phrase Bank:
● Dancing is fun
● The dancing bear
● I love cooking
● The cooking show
● Falling leaves
● Afraid of falling
Gerunds (Nouns) Participles (Adjectives)
￿ Puzzle 4: Verbal Master Quiz ￿
Now that you've sorted and matched your verbals, it's time to put your skills to the final test!
Choose the best answer for each question to prove you're a verbal expert.
1. In the sentence 'His greatest joy is
gardening,' what is the function of
a) Subject
b) Direct Object
the gerund gardening? c) Predicate Nominative
d) Adjective
2. Which sentence uses an infinitive as
an adverb to explain why an action
was performed?
a) To study requires a lot of focus.
b) I have many chores to do today.
c) He practiced every day to improve his
skill.
d) To be honest is always the best policy.
3. Identify the past participle
functioning as a modifier in this
sentence: 'The frozen lake sparkled
under the winter sun.'
a) sparkled
b) frozen
c) winter
d) under
4. What is the difference between the
verbal in 'I love singing' and 'The
singing bird'?
a) The first is a gerund; the second is a
participle.
b) The first is a participle; the second is a
gerund.
c) Both are gerunds acting as nouns.
d) Both are participles acting as adjectives.

Answer 1

Here are the answers and brief explanations.

Puzzle 1: Identify the Verbal
1. crying — Participle (adjective modifying baby)
2. Swimming — Gerund (noun; subject)
3. to visit — Infinitive (to + verb)
4. broken — Participle (past participle adjective modifying vase)
5. hiking — Gerund (noun; object of enjoy)
6. to pass — Infinitive (adverbial purpose: to pass the exam)

Puzzle 2: Match the Function
- To win requires dedication. (To win) — A (Subject)
- The barking dog woke the neighbors. (barking) — C (Modifier; adjective describing dog)
- I really enjoy reading mystery novels. (reading) — B (Direct Object)
- Running keeps him healthy. (Running) — A (Subject)
- She bought a book to read on the plane. (to read) — C (Modifier; adjective modifying book)

Puzzle 3: Gerund vs. Participle
Gerunds (Nouns)
- Dancing is fun
- I love cooking
- Afraid of falling

Participles (Adjectives)
- The dancing bear
- The cooking show
- Falling leaves

(Note: “falling” in “afraid of falling” is a gerund after the preposition of; in “falling leaves” it’s a participle describing the leaves.)

Puzzle 4: Verbal Master Quiz — Correct choices
1. c) Predicate Nominative
2. c) He practiced every day to improve his skill.
3. b) frozen
4. a) The first is a gerund; the second is a participle.

If you want, I can show how to test each verbal (IT-replacement, try converting to a clause, etc.) or give more practice sentences.