The library needed money for new books. Repeat a key word Repeat a key word or phrase to emphasize the idea. Ted Munday perched like a giant grasshopper on the balcony, ^, ^. 1. This phrase, which is often found at the beginning of sentence, is made up of a noun (the phrase's "subject") followed, more often than not, by a participle. The absolute phrases are omitted at the caret mark (^) in the following sentences. More examples of absolute phrases are given below. Use proper spelling and grammar. The weather being fine, we went out for a picnic. Absolute phrases are always set off from the rest of the sentence by commas. Participial phrase Use a participial phrase (-ing, -ed) to begin or end a sentence. The visitors left. They made a noise. Using Absolute Phrases to Connect Ideas. Introductory Phrase or Clause Use an introductory phrase or clause for the less important ideas. 1. The phrase follows this pattern: Noun + Participle + Optional Modifier(s) and/or Object(s) Read these examples: Legs quivering. Legs = noun; quivering = participle. 2.The master was away on business. 4. The soccer players were exhausted from the game. SECTION VII: USING PARTICIPIAL PHRASES TO COMBINE SENTENCES Use participial phrases to combine each set of sentences into one sentence. They collapsed on the grass. The dead man’s face was coated with mud, ^, ^. Absolute phrases are used to combine two clauses that have different subjects. Sentence Combining Skill #3: Absolute Phrase IDENTIFYING THE ABSOLUTE PHRASE Here’s a list of sentences, all written by professional writers, but with some parts deleted. 4. The sun having risen, we set out on our journey. Use these tools to help you write a descriptive paragraph of three to five sentences for the following situation. About the bones, ants were ebbing away. While an absolute phrase often does contain a participial, it does not have to. Modifiers and/or objects may be present to complete the thought. 3. 2. 1. 7. The Grand Canyon is a spectacular sight. The boy watched. It is set off with a comma only, and it could be removed from the sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence. 5. ~George Orwell, “Shooting an Elephant” 2. Our side was weak. For each caret, add an absolute phrase, blending your content and style with the rest of the sentence. In this lesson, we have focused on using strong and interesting word choices, Combining short phrases to achieve complex sentences, and using subordinate conjunctions and Absolute phrases. Six boys came over the hill half an hour early that afternoon running har. She returned to her bench. Sentence Combining; For Instructors; Home › absolute phrases. Reading a book Sometimes a noun phrase (a noun and its … 3. The Absolute Phrase Recognize an absolute phrase when you find one. Students should then complete sentence-combining examples in pairs or groups, with the instructor circulating through the class to check for student understanding. Combine each set of simple sentences into simple sentences by using an absolute phrase. absolute phrases . Perhaps the most elegant — and most misunderstood — method of combining ideas is the absolute phrase. Here the phrase ‘God willing’ is an example of an absolute phrase. Search for: Semicolon Use a semicolon to combine two related sentences. The other side was strong. The Grand Canyon is located in Arizona. Sometimes when the participle of an absolute phrase is a form of the verb to be, the participle is left out and understood.. Embedded Exercises (download and print out this handout to accompany the exercises on the video) Absolute Phrases; Access any of the main modules by clicking on the title below.