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109
Participle II
§ 140. Participle II is a non-finite form of the verb with verbal and adjectival features. Participle II stands
apart from the other non-finites in that it does not possess their morphological categories. Nevertheless, being a
verb form, it possesses the potential verbal meaning of voice, aspect and correlation, which depend upon the
meaning of the verb it is formed from and which are realized in the context.
The main meanings of participle II are those of a state as a result of some action or an action itself. One of
the most essential characteristics of participle II is that when it is used as part of the sentence, participle II of a
transitive verb is passive in meaning, participle II of an intransitive verb is active.
Thus the participles invited, told, taken are semantically passive and correspond to the Russian passive
participles приглашенный, рассказанный, взятый. The participles arrived, gone, risen are semantically active
and correspond to the Russian active participles прибывший, ушедший, поднявшийся (взошедший).
§ 141. The adjectival nature of participle II manifests itself in its function in the sentence, which is usually
that of either attribute or predicative. It may combine with adverbs of degree typical of adjectives, such as very,
too, slightly, so, much, more, as in:
I am very pleased with you.
The children were too excited to notice the newcomer.
No man has ever had a more devoted sister than I.
Instead of the negation not, which we find with the other non-finites, participle II is often negated with the
prefix un-, as in unfinished, unanswered.
Participle II may turn into adjectives with qualitative meaning synonymous with other adjectives, as in
celebrated - famous, tired - weary.
Similar to adjectives and participle I, participle II may form adverbs with the help of the suffix -ly: fixedly,
unhurriedly, admittedly.
The adjectival nature of participle II is traced in adjectivized participles with a form different from the verbal
participle II. These forms occur as attributes in such phrases as on bended knees, a drunken man, a lighted
match (candle, torch), molten lava (lead, steel), roast meat, a rotten apple, a shaven head, a well-shaven man,
sodden clothes, sunken eyes, a swollen river. Some forms are used predicatively: to be well-stricken in years, to
be panic-stricken, poverty-stricken (but thunder-struck, theatre-struck).
§ 142. The verbal character of participle II is manifested in its combinability. Thus participle II of transitive
verbs easily combines with a by-object denoting the doer of the action as in Jane entered the room followed by
her brother.
Participles II of phrasal verbs retain their composite structure: a boy brought up in a teacher’s family.
Participles II of prepositional transitive verbs are followed by the appropriate prepositions: a book often
asked for, the article referred to, a man much spoken of.
Ditransitive verbs keep their second object as in: That was the main question asked her at the wedding.
Participle II may be accompanied by an adverbial modifier expressed by adverbs or phrases combining with
verbs: a house built two years before, man hidden in the bush, a play well acted, a story long forgotten.
One of the main verbal features of participle II is revealed in its functioning as part of the compound verb
forms of the passive voice and the perfect.
Voice peculiarities of participle II
§ 143. Participle II of transitive verbs, when it is not part of a perfect form, is always passive in
meaning. Depending on the verb and the context it may correspond to any passive participle in Russian: built -
построенный, строившийся, строящийся;
begun - начатый, начинаемый, начинающийся;
translated
-
переводящийся, переводившийся, переводимый, переведенный.
Having a passive meaning participle II of transitive verbs is opposed to participle I active: asking - asked,
loving - loved, seeing - seen, writing -written, teaching - taught, watching - watched, etc.
The doer of the action or state denoted by participle II is to be found in the subject or object of the sentence,