-Ed vs. -Ing Adjectives – English Grammar Exercises for B1
You are talking to your coworker in the breakroom. Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
1 “I have to admit, my current workload is incredibly ______ right now.”
(A) stress
(B) stressed
(C) stressful
(D) stressfully
2 “I am feeling so ______ because I have three major deadlines to meet by this Friday.”
(A) stress
(B) stressed
(C) stressful
(D) stressfully
3 “Dealing with angry clients on the phone all morning is really ______.”
(A) exhaust
(B) exhausted
(C) exhausting
(D) exhaustion
4 “By the time I log off at 6 PM, my brain is completely ______.”
(A) exhaust
(B) exhausted
(C) exhausting
(D) exhaustion
5 “The number of unread emails in my inbox is totally ______.”
(A) overwhelm
(B) overwhelmed
(C) overwhelming
(D) overwhelmingly
6 “I always feel ______ when the boss asks for last-minute changes to a report.”
(A) overwhelm
(B) overwhelmed
(C) overwhelming
(D) overwhelmingly
7 “It is highly ______ when the office Wi-Fi stops working right before a presentation.”
(A) frustrate
(B) frustrated
(C) frustrating
(D) frustration
8 “I am so ______ with the constant software updates we have to learn every month.”
(A) frustrate
(B) frustrated
(C) frustrating
(D) frustration
9 “The new management policies are quite ______ for the staff to understand.”
(A) confuse
(B) confused
(C) confusing
(D) confusion
10 “I am still quite ______ about how to use the new expense reporting system.”
(A) confuse
(B) confused
(C) confusing
(D) confusion
11 “Sitting in that three-hour training session was incredibly ______.”
(A) tire
(B) tired
(C) tiring
(D) tiredness
12 “I am just so ______ of having to stay late at the office every single week.”
(A) tire
(B) tired
(C) tiring
(D) tiredness
13 “Sometimes, the lack of clear communication from the directors is very ______.”
(A) disappoint
(B) disappointed
(C) disappointing
(D) disappointment
14 “I am really ______ that I didn’t get the promotion after working so hard.”
(A) disappoint
(B) disappointed
(C) disappointing
(D) disappointment
15 “Have you seen the new sales targets? The numbers are absolutely ______!”
(A) shock
(B) shocked
(C) shocking
(D) shockingly
16 “I was ______ when I saw how much money they cut from our department’s budget.”
(A) shock
(B) shocked
(C) shocking
(D) shockingly
17 “The rumor about the company laying off staff next month is very ______.”
(A) worry
(B) worried
(C) worrying
(D) worrier
18 “To be honest, I am quite ______ about my job security right now.”
(A) worry
(B) worried
(C) worrying
(D) worrier
19 “We definitely need a long, ______ vacation after this project finally ends.”
(A) relax
(B) relaxed
(C) relaxing
(D) relaxation
20 “I just want to lie on a beach somewhere and feel completely ______ for a week.”
(A) relax
(B) relaxed
(C) relaxing
(D) relaxation
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (C) stressful
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “workload”. The workload is the cause of the pressure. -> -FUL / -ING adjective. (Note: For the word stress, we use stressful instead of stressing).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Noun/Verb. (B) A workload cannot feel stressed. (D) Adverb.
2 (B) stressed
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal psychological state (“I am feeling…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb/Noun. (C) “I am stressful” means “I cause stress to other people” (a very common B1 mistake!). (D) Adverb.
3 (C) exhausting
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the activity (“Dealing with angry clients”). The activity causes the fatigue. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) An activity cannot feel exhausted. (D) Noun.
4 (B) exhausted
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the state of the speaker’s brain (“my brain is…”). The brain receives the fatigue. -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Describes the job, not the brain. (D) Noun.
5 (C) overwhelming
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “number of unread emails” (the source of the heavy feeling). -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) Emails cannot feel overwhelmed. (D) Adverb.
6 (B) overwhelmed
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s emotional state (“I always feel…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Describes the situation, not the person. (D) Adverb.
7 (C) frustrating
- Why it is correct (The Key): “It is highly…” refers to the situation (the Wi-Fi breaking). The situation causes frustration. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) A situation cannot feel frustrated. (D) Noun.
8 (B) frustrated
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal feeling of annoyance. -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Means the speaker is frustrating other people. (D) Noun.
9 (C) confusing
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “management policies” (the source of the confusion). -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) Policies cannot feel confused. (D) Noun.
10 (B) confused
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s mental state (“I am still quite…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Means the speaker is confusing others. (D) Noun.
11 (C) tiring
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “training session”. The session causes tiredness. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) A session cannot feel tired. (D) Noun.
12 (B) tired
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal state (“I am just so…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Describes the job/session. (D) Noun.
13 (C) disappointing
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “lack of clear communication”. This situation causes disappointment. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) A lack of communication cannot feel disappointed. (D) Noun.
14 (B) disappointed
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s emotional reaction to not getting the promotion. -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Describes the event. (D) Noun.
15 (C) shocking
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “numbers” (sales targets). The numbers cause shock. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb/Noun. (B) Numbers cannot feel shocked. (D) Adverb.
16 (B) shocked
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal reaction (“I was…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb/Noun. (C) Describes the budget. (D) Adverb.
17 (C) worrying
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the “rumor”. The rumor causes worry. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb/Noun. (B) A rumor cannot feel worried. (D) Noun (a person who worries).
18 (B) worried
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s internal anxiety (“I am quite…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb/Noun. (C) Describes the situation. (D) Noun.
19 (C) relaxing
- Why it is correct (The Key): Modifies “vacation”. The vacation provides the relaxation. -> -ING adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (B) A vacation cannot feel relaxed. (D) Noun.
20 (B) relaxed
- Why it is correct (The Key): Describes the speaker’s desired internal state (“feel completely…”). -> -ED adjective.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Verb. (C) Describes the beach/vacation. (D) Noun.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 The “Cause vs. Effect” Rule in the Workplace
When venting about work, you must clearly distinguish between the job itself and how the job makes you feel.
- -ING Adjectives (The Cause): Describe the tasks, the meetings, the boss’s demands, or the commute. These things produce the emotion.
- Example: This meeting is exhausting.
- -ED Adjectives (The Effect/Receiver): Describe yourself or your coworkers. You receive the emotion.
- Example: I am exhausted.
2 The Ultimate B1 Trap: Stressed vs. Stressful
While most verbs use -ing for the cause (e.g., tiring, boring, annoying), the noun/verb stress uses the suffix -ful instead of -ing. The trap, however, is the same!
- Incorrect: “I am very stressful today.” (This means: “I am a toxic coworker who gives everyone else a headache!”)
- Correct: “My job is stressful, so I feel stressed.”
3 Expressing Empathy with Coworkers
To successfully navigate office small talk, memorize these accurate pairings to show empathy:
- Overwhelming / Overwhelmed: The project is overwhelming; you must be overwhelmed.
- Frustrating / Frustrated: The software is frustrating; I know you are frustrated.
- Worrying / Worried: The news is worrying; we are all worried.