A reduced adjective clause begins with either a present participle or a past participle. It's simple to know which one to use: if the reduced clause is made from an active verb, start the adjective clause with the present participle, but if it's made from a passive verb, begin the adjective clause with a past participle. For example, the ordinary adjective clause in the first example:
Example 1
| Example | Adjective Clause | Verb in the adjective clause |
|---|---|---|
| I saw a man who was carrying an umbrella. | who was carrying an umbrella | “was carrying” is active |
reduces to:
| Example | Reduced Adjective Clause | Participle that starts the reduced clause |
|---|---|---|
| I saw a man carrying an umbrella. | carrying an umbrella | carrying |
We use “carrying” in the reduced clause because it comes from the active verb in the original clause.
Example 2
| Example | Adjective Clause | Verb in the adjective clause |
|---|---|---|
| The people who worked there got a raise last year. | who worked there | “worked” is active |
This reduces to:
| Example | Reduced Adjective Clause | Participle that starts the reduced clause |
|---|---|---|
| The people working there got a raise last year. | working there | working |
Example 3
| Example | Adjective Clause | Verb in the adjective clause |
|---|---|---|
| The books which were published that year are expensive. | which were published that year | “were published” is passive |
reduces to:
| Example | Reduced Adjective Clause | Participle that starts the reduced clause |
|---|---|---|
| The books published that year are expensive. | published that year | published |