Go, come, spend, waste, be busy A go and come

go and come can be followed by the participles of verbs of physical activity and the verb shop:

They are going riding/skiing/sailing.

Come dancing. I'm going shopping this afternoon. (For go and come followed by infinitives of purpose, see 335.)

В spend/waste + an expression of time or money + present participle: He spends two hours (a day) travelling. He doesn 't spend much time preparing his lessons. We wasted a whole afternoon trying to repair the car. He spent a lot of money modernizing the house.

С be busy + present participle: She is/was busy packing.

276 A present participle phrase replacing a main clause

The participle constructions in A and В below are chiefly used in written English.

A When two actions by the same subject occur simultaneously it is usually possible to express one of them by a present participle. The participle can be before or after the finite verb:

He rode away. He whistled as he went. = He rode away whistling. He holds the rope with one hand and stretches out the other to the boy in the water = Holding, the rope with one hand, he stretches etc.

В When one action is immediately followed by another by the same

subject the first action can often be expressed by a present participle. The participle must be placed first:

He opened the drawer and took out a revolver = Opening the drawer he took out a revolver. She raised the trapdoor and pointed to a flight of steps = Raising the trapdoor she pointed to a flight of steps. We take off our shoes and creep cautiously along the passage = Taking off our shoes we creep cautiously along the passage. It would seem more logical here to use the perfect participle and say Having opened, Having raised, Having taken off, but this is not necessary except when the use of the present participle might lead to ambiguity. Eating his dinner he rushed out of the house would give the impression that he left the house with his plate in his hand.

Here, therefore, it would be better to say Having eaten his dinner...

С When the second action forms part of the first, or is a result of it, we can express the second action by a present participle: She went out, slamming the door. He fired, wounding one of the bandits.

I fell, striking my head against the door and cutting it. (Here we have three actions, the last two expressed by participles.)

The participle need not necessarily have the same subject as the first verb:

The plane crashed, its bombs exploding as it hit the ground.

277 A present participle phrase replacing a subordinate clause These constructions are chiefly found in written English.

The present participle can replace as/since/because + subject + verb, i.e. it can help to explain the action which follows:

Knowing that he wouldn't be able to buy food on his journey he took large supplies with him = As he knew etc.

Fearing that the police would recognize him he never went out in daylight = As he feared etc.

Note that being at the beginning of a sentence will normally mean 'as he is/as he was':

Being a student he was naturally interested in museums =

Because/As he was a student etc. It could not mean 'while he was a student".

The subject of the participle need not be the same as the subject of the following verb:

The day being fine, we decided to go swimming.

In cases like this the participle must follow its noun/pronoun. Being fine the day, we decided ... is incorrect, but Being athletic, Tom found the climb quite easy is all right, as Tom is the subject of both the participle and the following verb. It is possible to use two or more participles, one after the other:

Realizing that he hadn 't enough money and not wanting to borrow from his father, he decided to pawn his watch.

Not knowing the language and having no friends in the town, he found it hard to get work.

278 The perfect participle (active)

A Form

having + past participle, e.g. having done, having seen.

В Use

The perfect participle can be used instead of the present participle in sentences of the type shown in 276 В (i.e. where one action is immediately followed by another with the same subject):

Tying one end of the rope to his bed, he threw the other end out of the window =

Having tied one end of the rope to his bed, he threw the other end out of the window.

The perfect participle emphasizes that the first action is complete before the second one starts, but is not normally necessary in combinations of this kind, except when the use of the present participle might lead to confusion. Reading the instructions, he snatched up the fire

extinguisher might give the impression that the two actions were simultaneous. Here, therefore, the perfect participle would be better:

Having read the instructions, he snatched up the fire extinguisher. The perfect participle is, however, necessary when there is an interval of time between the two actions:

Having failed twice, he didn't want to try again. It is also used when the first action covered a period of time:

Having been his own boss for such a long time, he found it hard to accept orders from another.

279 The past participle (passive) and the perfect participle (passive) A Form

The past participle of regular verbs is formed by adding ed or d to the infinitive, e.g. worked, loved.

For the past participle of irregular verbs, see chapter 39.

В Use

1 As an adjective:

stolen money a written report fallen trees broken glass tired drivers blocked roads.

2 To form the perfect tenses/infinitives and participles and the passive voice:

he has seen to have loved it was broken

3 The past participle can replace a subject + passive verb just as the present participle can replace subject + active verb:

She enters. She is accompanied by her mother. = She enters, accompanied by her mother.

He was aroused by the crash and leapt to his feet = Aroused by the crash, he leapt to his feet.

The bridge had been weakened by successive storms and was no longer safe =

Weakened by successive storms, the bridge was no longer safe or

Having been weakened etc. (see below).

As he was convinced that they were trying to poison him, he refused to eat anything =

Convinced that they were trying to poison him, he refused to eat anything.

С The perfect participle passive (having been + past participle) is used when it is necessary to emphasize that the action expressed by the participle happened before the action expressed by the next verb:

Having been warned about the bandits, he left his valuables at home. (He had been warned etc.)

Having been bitten twice, the postman refused to deliver our letters unless we chained our dog up. (He had been bitten etc.)

280 Misrelated participles

A participle is considered to belong to the noun/pronoun which precedes it:

Tom, horrified at what he had done, could at first say nothing. Romeo, believing that Juliet was dead, decided to kill himself.

A man carrying a large parcel got out of the bus. Note that the participle may be separated from its noun/pronoun by a main verb:

Jones and Smith came in, followed by their wives.

She rushed past the policeman, hoping he wouldn 't ask what she had in her suitcase.

If there is no noun/pronoun in this position the participle is considered to belong to the subject of the following main verb:

Stunned by the blow, Peter fell heavily. (Peter had been stunned.)

Believing that he is alone, the villain expresses his thoughts aloud. If this principle is disregarded confusion results. Waiting for a bus a brick fell on my head makes it appear that the brick was waiting for a bus, which is nonsense. A participle linked in this way to the wrong noun/pronoun is said to be 'misrelated'. The above sentence should be rewritten As I was waiting for a bus a brick fell on my head. Other examples of misrelated participles:

When using this machine it must be remembered... Correct form:

When using this machine you must remember...

Believing that I was the only person who knew about this beach, the sight of someone else on it annoyed me very much. Correct form:

As I believed I was the only person etc. or

Believing that I was the only person on the beach, I was annoyed by the sight of someone else.

27 Commands, requests, invitations, advice, suggestions

281 Commands expressed by the imperative A The second person imperative

1 This has the same form as the bare infinitive:

Hurry! Wait! Stop!

For the negative we put do not (don't) before the verb: Don't hurry!

2 The person addressed is very often not mentioned, but can be expressed by a noun placed at the end of the phrase:

Eat your dinner, boys. Be quiet, Tom. These nouns can be placed before the verb, but this is much less usual. The pronoun you is rarely used unless the speaker wishes to be rude, or wishes to make a distinction, as in: You go on; I'll wait.

3 do can be placed before the affirmative imperative:

Do hurry. Do be quiet. This do could be persuasive, but could also express irritation.

В The first person imperative Form let us (let's) + bare infinitive:

Let us stand together in this emergency. For the negative we normally put not before the infinitive: Let us not be alarmed by rumours. But it is possible in colloquial English to put don't before let's: Don't let's be alarmed by rumours.

By let us (let's) the speaker can urge his hearers to act in a certain way, or express a decision which they are expected to accept, or express a suggestion (see 289).

С The third person imperative Form let him/her/it/them + bare infinitive (see also 322):

Let them go by train.

This is not a very common construction in modern English. It would be more usual to say:

They are to go/must go by train.

The negative imperative, let him/her/them + negative infinitive, is not used in modern English. Instead, we would use must not or is/are not to:

They must not/are not to go by air..

282 Other ways of expressing commands

A Subject + shall for third person commands (in written English)

shall can be used in very formal written regulations which will normally remain in force for some time. These are very often in the passive (see also 234):

The Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer shall be elected annually.

(club regulations)

A record shall be kept of the number of students attending each class

(college regulations)

В Subject + will, mainly for third person commands:

When the alarm rings passengers and crew will assemble at their boat stations, (notice on board ship)

This is a formal, impersonal, peremptory type of command, implying that the person giving the order is quite certain that he will be obeyed. It is used chiefly in written instructions by people who have some authority, e.g. captains of ships, officers of the services, headmasters of schools, trainers of sports teams etc.:

The team will report to the gymnasium for weight-lifting training. Note that if we move the will and place it before the subject, we turn the command into a request. It is possible to use you will for spoken commands: You will not mention this meeting to anyone. But it is more usual and more polite to use must:

You must not mention this meeting to anyone.

С Commands are often expressed as obligations by must: You must not smoke in the petrol store. Passengers must cross the line by the footbridge. Dogs must be kept on leads in this area.

D Instructions or orders can be conveyed by the be + infinitive construction:

You are to report for duty immediately.

The switchboard is to be manned at all times.

E Prohibitions may be expressed in written instructions by may not: Candidates may not bring textbooks into the examination room.

283 Requests with can/could/may/might I/we

A can/could/may/might I/we + have + noun/pronoun can is the most informal:

(a) 'Can I have a sweet?' said the little boy.

can I/we, when used by adults, sounds more confident than could I/we.

could I/we is the most generally useful form:

(b) Could 1 have a cup of tea? Could I have two tickets, please?

may and might are more formal than could, but possible in both spoken and written English:

(c) May/Might I have a copy of the letter?

These requests are usually reported by ask (+ indirect object) + for + object:

The little boy asked (me) for a sweet.

He asked for a copy of the letter. But (c) above could also be reported:

He asked if he might have a copy of the letter.

B can/could/may/might I/we + verb

For the difference between them, see A above.

These could be requests for permission (see 131), but with certain verbs, e.g. see, speak (to), talk (to), they can be ordinary requests:

May/Could I see Mr Jones? = I would like to see Mr Jones. This type of request is reported by ask to see/to

speak to etc.:

/ asked to see Mr Jones.

Do not put a noun/pronoun after ask, as this would change the meaning (see 243 B).

In colloquial English ask for + name etc. would also be possible, especially when reporting a telephone conversation:

CALLER: Could I speak to the secretary, please? = She asked for the secretary/to speak to the secretary.

С could/might I/we requests can be preceded by do you think/

I wonder(ed)/was wondering if. These prefixes make the requests more diffident:

/ wonder/was wondering if I could have tomorrow off?

Do you think I could speak to the secretary? Note the change from interrogative to affirmative verb (see 104).

284 Requests with could/will/would you etc. For starred forms, see К below.

A could you* is a very useful request form:

Could you please show me the way?

possibly can be added to show that the speaker is asking for something extra:

Could you possibly lend me £500?

couldn't expresses the speaker's hopes for a more favourable answer than has just been indicated:

I can't wait. ~ Couldn't you wait five minutes? you couldn't... could you? can be used to express a not very hopeful request:

You couldn't wait five minutes, could you?

You couldn't give me a hand with this, could you? (The speaker doesn't really expect a favourable answer in either case.)

В will/would you* (please):

Will/Would you please count your change? would you (please) has the same meaning as could you.

will you is more authoritative and therefore less polite. will/would you can be placed at the end of the phrase:

Shut the door, will you?

But this form can only be used in very friendly relaxed situations. Used otherwise, it would sound very rude.

will/would can also be used for third person requests:

Would Mrs Jones, passenger to Leeds, please come to the Enquiry Desk?

Will anyone who saw the accident please phone this number...?

(police announcement)

С you'll... won't you? is a persuasive type of request used mainly among friends:

You'll write to me, won't you?

D would you mind* + gerund (see 263): Would you mind moving your car?

E perhaps you would implies confidence that the other person will perform this service. It would not be used at the beginning of a conversation or letter, but would be possible later on:

Perhaps you would let me know when your new stock arrives = Please let me know when your new stock arrives.

F if you would is a useful request form. It is used in spoken English for routine-type requests which the speaker is quite sure will be obeyed: If you'd fill up this form/take a seat/wait a few minutes, (in an office) If you 'd sign the register/follow the porter, (in a hotel) just can be added to show that the action required is very easy: If you 'd just put your address on the back of the cheque, (in a shop)

G would you like to...? is also a possible request form: Would you like to take a seat? = Please take a seat. H I should/would be very grateful if you would is a formal request form found chiefly in letters but possible in speech:

/ should be very grateful if you would let me know if you have any vacancies.

I Would you be good/kind enough to keep me informed? Would you be so kind as to keep me informed?

] I wish you would can be a request form. It sometimes implies that the other person should be helping or have offered to do it (see 301): / wish you 'd give me a hand.

К Starred would and could forms may be introduced by phrases such as do you think? I wonder(ed) if, I was wondering if (see 104): Do you think you could lend me £500?

285 Requests with might

A you might can express a very casual request:

You might post these for me. But it can only be used in friendly relaxed situations, otherwise it would sound rude. В With a certain intonation and a strong stress on the important word

might can express a reproachful request: You might \help me with stress on help might imply 'Why aren't you helping me?/You should be

helping me'. С might can also be used with other persons to express this sort of irritation: He might \pay us! with stress on pay could mean 'We are

annoyed that he doesn't pay/hasn't paid us'. D might + perfect infinitive can express irritation at or reproach for the

non-performance of an action in the past: You might have 4old us with stress on told could mean 'You should have told us'.

286 Invitations

A will you have/would you like + noun:

Will you have a drink? (sometimes shortened to Have a drink.) Would you like a coffee? Note that do you want is not an invitation. (For want and would like, see 296.) In indirect speech we use offer + indirect object (= person addressed)

+ noun:

She offered me a drink/a coffee.

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