Grade 8 · Reading

8th grade Gerunds, participles and infinitives worksheet

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Gerunds, participles and infinitives

Grade 8 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.
On Saturday morning, the sleeping puppy twitched in its tiny basket. Ari marks sentences for the school newsletter. Which word is the verbal, a verb form that works as a noun or a describing word?
- tiny
- sleeping
- twitched
- morning
2.
Cooking the soup took all evening, so the hungry campers waited. Bo marks sentences for the school newsletter. Which word is the verbal, a verb form that works as a noun or a describing word?
- evening
- hungry
- Cooking
- took
3.
The club loves hiking in the early morning. Jun marks sentences for the school newsletter. Which word is the verbal, a verb form that works as a noun or a describing word?
- early
- morning
- hiking
- loves
4.
The [frozen] pond sparkled in the morning light. Luz marks one word in a sentence frame. What kind of word is the bracketed word?
- participle
- main verb
- infinitive
- gerund
5.
The scouts were glad [to see] the lake. Milo marks two words in a sentence frame. What kind of word is the bracketed pair?
- main verb
- participle
- infinitive
- gerund
6.
The band is [practicing] in the gym. Noah marks one word in a sentence frame. What kind of word is the bracketed word?
- participle
- gerund
- main verb
- infinitive
7.
The [melting] snowman slumped beside the fence. Pia draws an arrow from the bracketed describing verb form to the word it tells about. Which word gets the arrow?
- slumped
- fence
- beside
- snowman
8.
[Humming] softly, the baker iced the cake. Ren draws an arrow from the bracketed describing verb form to the word it tells about. Which word gets the arrow?
- baker
- iced
- softly
- cake
9.
The tent, [sagging] under the rain, still kept the campers dry. Tala draws an arrow from the bracketed describing verb form to the word it tells about. Which word gets the arrow?
- kept
- rain
- tent
- still
10.
[Soaked] by the sudden storm, the hikers ran for the shelter. Zee draws an arrow from the bracketed describing verb form to the word it tells about. Which word gets the arrow?
- storm
- hikers
- ran
- for

8th grade Gerunds, participles and infinitives worksheet – printable — Print: 1 2 3 4 5 6

About this worksheet

Gerunds, participles and infinitives. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

I can tell a verbal (a verb form that is not the main verb) from the main verb in a sentence.
I can name a gerund, a participle and an infinitive, and say what job each one does: noun, adjective or adverb.
I can see that one word, like painting, can be a gerund in one sentence and a participle or a main verb in another.

Words to know

verbal: A verb form that does not work as the main verb; it works as a noun, an adjective or an adverb.

gerund: An -ing verb form that works as a noun, like Hiking in "Hiking is fun."

participle: An -ing or -ed verb form that works as an adjective, like frozen in "the frozen pond".

infinitive: The word to plus a verb, like to read. It can work as a noun, an adjective or an adverb.

verbal phrase: A verbal with the words that go with it, like "Painting the old fence".

main verb: The verb that tells what the subject does or is.

Common mistakes

When looking for a verbal, your child picked the main verb of the sentence. Ask whether the word shows the main action, or whether it is a verb form working as a noun or a describing word.

When looking for a verbal, your child picked a noun that ends like a verb form, such as morning or ceiling. Ask whether the word shows an action or only names a time or a thing.

When looking for a verbal, your child picked a plain describing word. Ask whether the word comes from an action, the way a verb form does.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with gerunds, participles and infinitives?

When looking for a verbal, your child picked the main verb of the sentence. Ask whether the word shows the main action, or whether it is a verb form working as a noun or a describing word.

Are these 8th grade reading worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.