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This video is about the song Africa.
Here are the words to the song.
You can download this from my website: http://www.thayray.com/Lessons/Easy/.
In this video, I am explaining the present participle.
We use present participles in English a lot.
But what is the present participle?
The present participle is base verb plus “–ing” (I-N-G).
Sometimes we say “verb-ing.”
So if the base verb is know, the present participle is knowing.
If the base verb is sing, the present participle is singing.
Okay? Simple.
We can use present participles to make the present continuous tense.
The present continuous uses: (to be) + verb-ing … (to be) + present participle
We can also use the present participle to make adjectives.
Adjectives describe nouns.
So if a girl is singing, she is a singing girl.
If a fan is turning, it is a turning fan.
If water is running, it is running water.
The verb turn means to go around, like this fan.
This fan is turning.
You see, this is present continuous tense.
‘Fan’ is the subject, and the verb is ‘is turning.’
(To be) plus verb-ing.
Turning is the present participle for turn.
(To be) plus the present participle makes present continuous tense:
“The fan is turning.”
But I can also use the present participle to make an adjective:
The turning fan.
So I will make a new sentence.
I want to say that the fan makes a loud sound.
“The turning fan makes a loud sound.”
I described the fan with the adjective ‘turning,’
which is present participle for turn.
Today, we will see present participles as adjectives,
and we will see present participles in the present continuous tense.
Now, let’s look at the song.