Adjectives -ed or -ing
I was bored during the lecture.
The lecture was so boring.
The lecture was so boring.
In English, many adjectives come from verbs. These adjectives often end in:
- -ed
- -ing
They look similar but they have different meanings!
🔹 What’s the difference?
- Adjectives ending in -ed describe how someone feels.
👉 They tell us about a person's emotion or reaction. - Adjectives ending in -ing describe the thing or situation that causes the feeling.
👉 They tell us about the cause of the emotion.
🔹 Examples
| verb | adjective -ed | adjective -ing |
|---|---|---|
| bore | bored (feeling) | boring (cause) |
| interest | interested (feeling) | interesting (cause) |
| surprise | surprised (feeling) | surprising (cause) |
| confuse | confused (feeling) | confusing (cause) |
| tire | tired (feeling) | tiring (cause) |
| excite | excited (feeling) | exciting (cause) |
| frighten | frightened (feeling) | frightening (cause) |
🔹 Example sentences
✳️ -ed adjectives (feelings):
- I was bored during the lecture.
- She is interested in history.
- They felt tired after the long journey.
- He looked confused by the instructions.
- We were surprised by the ending of the film.
✳️ -ing adjectives (cause of the feeling):
- The lecture was boring.
- That book is very interesting.
- The journey was tiring.
- The instructions were confusing.
- The film had a surprising ending.
🔹 A good way to remember:
-ed = how you feel
-ing = what causes the feeling
✅ I am bored because the film is boring.07/2025
✅ She is excited because the news is exciting.
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