participleadjectival

A participle adjective, also called a participial adjective, is an adjective formed from a participle of a verb. In English, these typically come in two main forms: present participles in -ing (the running hose, an interesting story) and past participles in -ed, -en, or related vowel changes (a broken vase, exhausted workers). Some languages also use additional participial forms as adjectival material.

Participle adjectives can be used attributively (before a noun) or predicatively (after a linking verb such as be). Attributive use tends to emphasize a property of the noun, while predicative use expresses a state resulting from an action or a completed condition (the vase is broken; the story seems interesting). Present-participial adjectives often describe ongoing qualities or processes, whereas past-participial adjectives frequently indicate a finished result or a state created by a prior action (a tired traveler vs a surprising revelation).

Morphology and semantics vary by language. In English, -ing adjectives often describe characteristics or causes of interest or emotion, and may be gradable with very, more, most (a more interesting book). -ed and other past participles frequently denote states or conditions arising from events (a repaired chair; a frightened crowd). Some participial adjectives are nearly fixed in meaning and resist certain degree modifiers. Additionally, many participial adjectives can participate in comparative and superlative forms, though usage can differ between -ing and -ed types.

Cross-linguistically, participial adjectives are common and frequently align with verb-derived forms that agree with features like gender or number in the noun they modify. They play a central role in shaping descriptive and event-related meanings in noun phrases.