#sticky_and_tricky Punctuation with Participle Clauses and Par | The High Speech

#sticky_and_tricky
Punctuation with Participle Clauses and Participial Phrases

1. We separate both participle clauses and participial phrases from the rest of the sentence with a comma or commas whenever they do not follow the word they modify. In bold are the words modified.

Participle clauses
Schoolchildren were going home rather mutely, unwilling to discuss the day's events.
The jewel did not lose its charm, despite being left untouched in the ground for many years.
Having come home, Jerry called his mom.

Participial phrases
The student sat down on the couch, ruminating over the lecture he had just heard.
Looking at the clouded sky, the gentleman said that it was going to rain in a half-hour's time.
Having paid his debt, John gave a sigh of relief.

2. We do not separate a participle clause or participial phrase with a comma(-s) when they follow the word they modify.

Participle clauses
The speech nicknamed We Shall Fight on the Beaches pronounced by Churchill in the time of World War II produced a profound effect on the British nation.
Plants growing in the wilderness have far-reaching root systems
The toy car having crossed half the country in 3 days found its happy owner on his birthday.

Participial phrases
When he was going to school, he was looking at the trees coverd with snow.
The player having scored his first goal for his new team was jubilant.
The tracks laid in the ground by cars were leading to the riverside.

Note! In order to correctly punctuate a participle clause or a participial phrase, you must correctly identify the word that they modify.

P.S. The difference between participle clauses and participial phrases is quite subtle, so they are quite easy to confuse. For this reason, I might have confused the two somewhere. Please do not be to hard on me if I have.