-Ed vs. -Ing Adjectives – English Grammar Exercises for B1
You are leaving a voicemail for your best friend. Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
1 “Hey, are you there? I’m calling because I am so ______ right now!”
(A) bored
(B) boring
(C) bore
(D) boredom
2 “This heavy rain is absolutely ______; I can’t even step outside the house.”
(A) depressed
(B) depressing
(C) depress
(D) depression
3 “Having to cancel my hiking trip this morning was really ______.”
(A) frustrated
(B) frustrating
(C) frustrate
(D) frustration
4 “I feel so ______ that my entire weekend is completely ruined.”
(A) disappointed
(B) disappointing
(C) disappoint
(D) disappointment
5 “I tried to watch that new movie you recommended, but it was incredibly ______.”
(A) bored
(B) boring
(C) bore
(D) boredom
6 “I wasn’t ______ in the plot at all, so I turned the TV off after twenty minutes.”
(A) interested
(B) interesting
(C) interest
(D) interestingly
7 “Now I’m just listening to the thunder. The constant noise is getting really ______.”
(A) annoyed
(B) annoying
(C) annoy
(D) annoyance
8 “My little brother is playing loud video games, and I am getting quite ______ with him.”
(A) irritated
(B) irritating
(C) irritate
(D) irritation
9 “To be honest, doing absolutely nothing all day is surprisingly ______.”
(A) exhausted
(B) exhausting
(C) exhaust
(D) exhaustion
10 “I feel completely ______ just from lying on the couch for six hours straight.”
(A) tired
(B) tiring
(C) tire
(D) tiredness
11 “It is so ______ when you have free time but you cannot go anywhere.”
(A) depressed
(B) depressing
(C) depress
(D) depressingly
12 “Are you doing anything ______ today, or are you stuck at home too?”
(A) excited
(B) exciting
(C) excite
(D) excitement
13 “I am completely ______ by this terrible weather.”
(A) frustrated
(B) frustrating
(C) frustrate
(D) frustration
14 “I tried taking a hot bath, hoping it would be ______, but I just got restless.”
(A) relaxed
(B) relaxing
(C) relax
(D) relaxation
15 “I looked out the window for a while, but the empty street wasn’t very ______ to look at.”
(A) fascinated
(B) fascinating
(C) fascinate
(D) fascination
16 “I am so ______ about why the weather forecast was so wrong. They said it would be sunny!”
(A) confused
(B) confusing
(C) confuse
(D) confusion
17 “It is ______ how quickly a great weekend plan can be ruined by a storm.”
(A) shocked
(B) shocking
(C) shock
(D) shockingly
18 “I am a bit ______ that it will rain tomorrow too, which means another day inside.”
(A) worried
(B) worrying
(C) worry
(D) worrier
19 “The lightning earlier was actually quite ______, the whole house shook!”
(A) frightened
(B) frightening
(C) frighten
(D) fright
20 “Anyway, please call me back! I really need to be ______ by someone right now.”
(A) entertained
(B) entertaining
(C) entertain
(D) entertainment
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (A) bored
- Why it is correct (The Key): You are describing your own feeling/emotion. Therefore, you use the -ED adjective (bored).
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Boring means you are a boring person who makes others sleep. (C) Base verb. (D) Noun.
2 (B) depressing
- Why it is correct (The Key): You are describing the nature or characteristic of the rain. The rain causes the feeling, so you use the -ING adjective (depressing).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) The rain does not have human feelings; it cannot feel depressed. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
3 (B) frustrating
- Why it is correct (The Key): The act of “having to cancel the trip” is a situation. Situations take the -ING adjective because they cause the emotion.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Adjective for feelings. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
4 (A) disappointed
- Why it is correct (The Key): The speaker says “I feel…”. This is a direct description of internal human emotion -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Disappointing describes things/events. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
5 (B) boring
- Why it is correct (The Key): Modifies “it” (the movie). The movie is the cause of the boredom. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) A movie cannot feel bored. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
6 (A) interested
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal feeling about the plot (“I wasn’t…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Interesting would describe the plot itself, not the speaker. (C) Noun/Verb. (D) Adverb.
7 (B) annoying
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes “the constant noise.” The noise is the source of the irritation. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Noise cannot feel annoyed. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
8 (A) irritated
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s feeling toward the little brother (“I am getting…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Irritating describes the brother or his actions. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
9 (B) exhausting
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the activity of “doing absolutely nothing”. The activity causes the tiredness. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Activities do not feel exhausted. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
10 (A) tired
- Why it is correct (The Key): The speaker says “I feel completely…”. Describes human emotion/physical state. -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Tiring describes an activity (e.g., running is tiring). (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
11 (B) depressing
- Why it is correct (The Key): “It is so…” introduces a situation (having free time but being stuck). The situation is described with an -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Describes a person’s feeling. (C) Verb. (D) Adverb.
12 (B) exciting
- Why it is correct (The Key): Modifies the pronoun “anything” (an activity or event). -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Used for human feelings (“Are you excited?”). (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
13 (A) frustrated
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s emotional state (“I am completely…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Used to describe the weather itself. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
14 (B) relaxing
- Why it is correct (The Key): Refers to “it” (the hot bath). The bath produces the relaxation. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) A bath cannot feel relaxed. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
15 (B) fascinating
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “empty street”. The street is the thing being looked at. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) A street does not have a brain to feel fascinated. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
16 (A) confused
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal state of mind (“I am so…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Describes the weather forecast itself. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
17 (B) shocking
- Why it is correct (The Key): “It is…” refers to the fact/situation of the weekend being ruined. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Used for human feelings (“I am shocked”). (C) Verb. (D) Adverb.
18 (A) worried
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal anxiety (“I am a bit…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Describes the situation (“The weather is worrying”). (C) Verb. (D) Noun (a person who worries).
19 (B) frightening
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes “the lightning” which caused the fear. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Lightning cannot feel frightened. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
20 (A) entertained
- Why it is correct (The Key): The speaker wants to receive the feeling of entertainment (“I need to be…”). -> -ED adjective (Passive voice/Adjective of state).
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Meaning trap: “I need to be entertaining” means you want to perform and make other people laugh, which contradicts the context. (C) Verb. (D) Noun.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 The Golden Rule of -ED vs. -ING Adjectives
Many adjectives in English are formed from verbs and end in either -ED or -ING. The difference between them is one of the most tested concepts at the B1 level.
- -ED Adjectives describe FEELINGS: They tell us how a person (or an animal) feels internally.
- Example: I am bored.
- -ING Adjectives describe the CAUSE: They describe the characteristic of a person, thing, or situation that causes the feeling.
- Example: This rainy day is boring.
2 The “Bored vs. Boring” Trap
It is crucial not to mix these up when talking about yourself!
- If you say: “I am boring,” you are telling your friend that your personality is terrible and you make other people fall asleep!
- You must say: “I am bored” (I have nothing to do).
3 Common Pairs to Memorize
- Tired / Tiring: I am tired because my job is tiring.
- Frustrated / Frustrating: I am frustrated because the traffic is frustrating.
- Excited / Exciting: I am excited because the game is exciting.
- Terrified / Terrifying: I am terrified because the thunder is terrifying.