(This posting includes a handout which you are welcome to use with your students.)*

One of the most common grammar questions I’ve been asked by students or tutors whom I’ve trained or new teachers whom I’ve mentored concerns sentences like:

“While eating our dinner, we enjoyed the sunset.” [Subordinator (While) + Verb-ing (eating).]

Question: Grammatically speaking, what is “eating”?

It’s called a reduced form.  The writer is reducing an adverb clause to a phrase.
Original sentence: While we were eating our dinner, we enjoyed the sunset.
      Reduced form: While eating our dinner, we enjoyed the sunset.

We can use these with subordinators like before, after, while and since.

This phrase can come at the beginning of a sentence as in the example above and in the title of this post or in the middle of a sentence:
     She bumped into a chair while she was looking at her smartphone.
      She bumped into a chair while looking at her smartphone.

Two points that students need to know

First, the reduced form is always verb-ing no matter what the clause is.

(original) After he got the job promotion, he became very busy.
(mistake) After got the job promotion, he became very busy.
(correct) After getting the job promotion, he became very busy.

Second, we cannot reduce the clause if the subject in the dependent and independent clause is different.
(original) While her mother was driving the car, the baby fell asleep.

(mistake) While driving the car, the baby fell asleep.  (It sounds like the baby was driving the car.)

Good style for students to use to avoid repetition and for variety

Good writers, when possible, will try to avoid repeating the same word.  They can do this by using reduced forms.

(repeated word) Before I go to sleep, I always check under the bed for monsters. (“I” repeated.)
(avoided repeat) Before going to sleep, I always check under the bed for monsters

Inductive Exercises

Here is an inductive set of exercises that will lead to students to understand the concept and to be able to use it in their writing.  Feel free to try it out with your students. Reduced Adverb Clauses Exercises

For more posts about inductive exercises and handouts, see Inductive Approach and Exercises

For more inductive approach to writing courses, see Pro Lingua Learning–Writing Strategies Book 2, which is now available in digital and print version for students to rent or buy.

David Kehe

*About the free-download materials. During my 40 years of teaching ESL, I have had many colleagues who were very generous with their time, advice and materials. These downloads are my way of paying it forward.