-ed and -ing Adjectives Exercises
Do more with this exercise
How someone feels and what causes the feeling
Use an -ed adjective for the person who feels something. Use an -ing adjective for the person or thing that causes that feeling.
- The feeling: -ed:
- I am bored. She is interested. These words tell us how someone feels.
- The cause: -ing:
- The film is boring. The book is interesting. These words describe what causes the feeling.
- People can be -ing:
- A person can be interesting or boring when they make other people feel that way.
- Common pairs:
- Bored/boring, interested/interesting, excited/exciting, tired/tiring and surprised/surprising follow the same idea.
Examples
I am bored because this film is boring.
I feel bored; the film causes the feeling.
She is interested in the interesting book.
She feels interested; the book holds her attention.
The children are excited about the exciting game.
The children feel excited; the game causes it.
We are tired after the tiring walk.
We feel tired; the walk caused it.
I was surprised by the surprising news.
I felt surprised; the news caused it.
Audio uses a synthetic voice.
Practice exercises
Choose the adjective
Choose the adjective that fits the meaning.
1.I have nothing to do. I am ___.
2.This film makes everyone feel bored. It is ___.
3.I want to learn more about this book. I am ___.
4.This book makes me want to read more. It is ___.
5.The children can't wait for the game. They are ___.
6.The game makes the children feel excited. It is ___.
7.We walked all day. Now we feel ___.
8.The long walk makes us feel tired. It is ___.
9.I did not expect the news. I was ___.
10.Nobody expected the news. The news was ___.
Complete the sentences
Type the correct form of the adjective in brackets.
Put the words in order
Click the parts in the correct order.
21. Build the sentence:
22. Build the sentence:
23. Build the sentence:
24. Build the sentence:
True or false?
Decide if each statement is true.
25.A boring film can make you feel bored.
26.An interested person wants to know more.
27.If a trip makes you feel excited, the trip is excited.
28.A person can be interesting when other people want to listen to them.
Choosing -ed or -ing adjectives
Many adjectives come in pairs such as bored and boring. Use the -ed form to say how someone feels: I am bored. Use the -ing form for what causes that feeling: This film is boring. The subject of the sentence helps you choose.
The same pattern works with interested and interesting, excited and exciting, tired and tiring, and surprised and surprising. She is interested in the book because the book is interesting. The children are excited because the game is exciting.
People can also cause feelings. A teacher can be interesting when students want to listen. That does not mean the teacher feels interested. Ask who has the feeling and what causes it before you choose the ending.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between bored and boring?
Bored describes how someone feels. Boring describes what makes someone feel bored.
Can a person be interesting?
Yes. An interesting person makes other people interested.
Do all -ed adjectives describe people?
In the pairs on this page, -ed describes the one who feels something. This is a useful pattern, not a rule for every English adjective.
Answer key
1. I have nothing to do. I am ___.
Answer: bored
Bored tells us how I feel.
2. This film makes everyone feel bored. It is ___.
Answer: boring
Boring describes the film that causes the feeling.
3. I want to learn more about this book. I am ___.
Answer: interested
Interested describes how I feel.
4. This book makes me want to read more. It is ___.
Answer: interesting
Interesting describes the book that holds my attention.
5. The children can't wait for the game. They are ___.
Answer: excited
Excited tells us how the children feel.
6. The game makes the children feel excited. It is ___.
Answer: exciting
Exciting describes the game that causes the feeling.
7. We walked all day. Now we feel ___.
Answer: tired
Tired tells us how we feel after the walk.
8. The long walk makes us feel tired. It is ___.
Answer: tiring
Tiring describes the walk that causes tiredness.
9. I did not expect the news. I was ___.
Answer: surprised
Surprised tells us how I felt.
10. Nobody expected the news. The news was ___.
Answer: surprising
Surprising describes the news that caused surprise.
11. I have nothing to do. I am ___. (bore)
Answer: bored
Bored describes my feeling.
12. The film makes me feel bored. The film is ___. (bore)
Answer: boring
Boring describes what causes the feeling.
13. She wants to know more. She is ___. (interest)
Answer: interested
Interested describes her feeling.
14. The story makes us want to know more. It is ___. (interest)
Answer: interesting
Interesting describes the story.
15. We can't wait for the trip. We are ___. (excite)
Answer: excited
Excited describes our feeling.
16. The trip makes us feel excited. It is ___. (excite)
Answer: exciting
Exciting describes the trip.
17. The long walk made me feel ___. (tire)
Answer: tired
Tired describes how I felt.
18. The long walk made us tired. It was ___. (tire)
Answer: tiring
Tiring describes the walk.
19. I did not expect that answer. I was ___. (surprise)
Answer: surprised
Surprised describes how I felt.
20. Nobody expected that answer. It was ___. (surprise)
Answer: surprising
Surprising describes the answer that caused surprise.
21. is boring. / The film
Answer: The film is boring.
Boring describes the film.
22. interested / She is / in the book.
Answer: She is interested in the book.
Interested describes how she feels.
23. about the trip. / are excited / We
Answer: We are excited about the trip.
Excited describes how we feel.
24. was surprising. / The news
Answer: The news was surprising.
Surprising describes the news.
25. A boring film can make you feel bored.
Answer: True
Boring describes the cause; bored describes the feeling.
26. An interested person wants to know more.
Answer: True
Interested describes a person's feeling.
27. If a trip makes you feel excited, the trip is excited.
Answer: False
The trip is exciting; you are excited.
28. A person can be interesting when other people want to listen to them.
Answer: True
Interesting can describe a person who causes interest.