this post was submitted on 02 Nov 2023
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English usage and grammar

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Is it correct to use the present participle to describe what something does rather than only describing/modifying its current state? (lemm.ee)
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by Kalcifer@lemm.ee to c/english@lemmy.ca
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For example:

It is a thing that works producing stuff.

This feels wrong to me, but I can't quite put my finger on what exactly is wrong about it. It seems like it's trying to be a participle phrase, but it's not necessarily modifying the current state of "it", and is, instead, describing what "it" is.

If it is, indeed, a participle phrase, then it should be able to be written as

Producing stuff, it is a thing that works.

But, to me, this doesn't seem correct either, so it leads me to believe that the very structure of the sentence is incorrect.

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[–] CaptObvious@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I think both of these are actually correct. They feel fine to me, although I’d probably tighten the first one to “It is a thing that produces stuff.”

Maybe it’s a dialect thing?

[–] Kalcifer@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I’d probably tighten the first one to “It is a thing that produces stuff.”

That omits descriptive information though. The example includes the fact that the thing "works" which is how it "produces stuff".

Maybe it’s a dialect thing?

It is certainly a grammatical issue.

[–] confluence@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

How about an infinitive? "It is a thing that works to produce stuff."

[–] Kalcifer@lemm.ee 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Hm, while that does seem to fit, it feels as if its intent doesn't necessarily align. To me, that is more of a description of it's purpose rather than what it does.

[–] confluence@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Ok, how about doubling up on the present participles? "The thing is working, producing stuff."