What if my answers are correct?
If you find that all your answers match these, then your knowledge of participle phrases and your ability to use them are satisfactory.  Congratulations!

What if my answers to the sentence building exercises are incorrect?
If you find that some of your answers don't match these exactly, do not worry.  There are many ways to do these sentence combining exercises, some better than others.  Re-read the six qualities listed on p. 223: meaning, clarity, coherence, emphasis, conciseness, and rhythm.  If your sentences are different from the sentences below, check to see how your versions measure up to the qualities on p. 223.  As you look at your own answers, ask yourself the questions that you find with those six qualities.

Answers to Exercise on Forming Present and Past Participles, p. 251
A.   Present participles

1. Let sleeping dogs lies.
2. The ringing telephone kept Jim awake all night.
3. Bob coached the losing team.
4. Joy’s smart remark deserves a stinging reply.

1. Mrs. Barrows laughed at the frightened little man.
2. The injured quarterback was carried off the field
3. By mistake I purchased a stolen television set.
4. Professor Legree demanded a written apology.

1. PAST:  Joan’s House, built in 1837, is the oldest in the city.
2. PRESENT & PAST: Feeling like death warmed over, Merdine dragged herself to work.  (one participle phrase embedded inside another participle phrase—the whole phrase describes Merdine; the smaller phrase describes death)
3. PRESENT:  Last night I relaxed at home, sipping mint tea and watching TV.  (a compound participle phrase—two participle phrases coordinated with and)
4. PRESENT:  Humming along with the mechanical music, I pushed my cart down the supermarket aisles.
5. PAST:  Encouraged by the polite applause of the audience, Professor Legree repeated his favorite joke.
6. PAST:  Byron’s essay, written in just ten minutes, deserves to win this month’s freewriting award.
7. PRESENT:  Rod Stewart, wearing very tight, striped pants, looked like a bifurcated squash.
8. PRESENT:  Pushing my cart down the supermarket aisles, I hummed along with the mechanical music.

Answers to Exercise on Adding Participle Phrases, p. 253

1. The children gazed at the monkeys hanging by their tails from the branches.  (NOT  Hanging by their tails from the branches, the children gazed at the monkeys.)
2. Haunted by the memory of her first husband, Stella vowed that she would never marry again.  (OR  Stella, haunted by the memory of her first husband, vowed that she would never marry again.)
3. I watched the sun rise over the ridge, blazing over houses, farms, and fields.  (NOT  Blazing over houses, farms, and fields, I watched the sun rise over the ridge.)
4. Distracted by an ostrich in the dugout, the first baseman bobbled the line drive.  (OR  The first baseman, distracted by an ostrich in the dugout, bobbled the line drive.)
5. Hiding inside the clothes hamper, little Danny waited for the thunderstorm to pass.  (OR  Little Danny, hiding inside the clothes hamper, waited for the thunderstorm to pass.)

Answers to Sentence Building Exercise, pp. 254-55
Answers will vary.

1. Sitting on the ground in a shady corner with my back against the wall, I took small sips at the Coke.
2. Surrounded by barren tobacco fields, the gray, weather-worn house sat stately upon a hill.
3. The sun shot through the tree tops and bounced off the water, imprinting a beauty stain on the flowers lining the edge of the creek.
4. Sitting on the window ledge overlooking the narrow street, I watched the children frolicking in the first snow of the season.
5. Distracted by war, weakened by malnutrition, and exhausted by his struggle to earn a living, the medieval peasant was   an easy prey for the Black Death.
6. He eats slowly and steadily, sucking the rich sardine oil from his fingers with slow and complete relish.

Answers to Sentence Building Exercise, pp. 257-58
Answers will vary.

1. The engineers stared back at me, their faces blank.
2. Each in his own strange world, Ed and the little man climbed the stairs together.
3. I sat on the highest limb of a big, sturdy oak tree, its branches reaching to the clouds as if to claim a piece of the sky.
4. The raccoon goes down on all fours and strides slowly off, her slender front paws reaching ahead of her to the limit like the hands of an experienced swimmer.
5. The wolf trots away, his head and tail erect, his hips slightly to one side and out of line with his shoulders.
6. They were holding hands in the New York City subway train, their faces old and beautifully lined, their gray heads almost touching.