Adjectives ending in -ed and -ing
In English, there are pairs of adjectives that are easily confused. They are derived from the same verb but the first one ends in -ing while the second one ends in -ed.
For example
The webinar was so boring that I couldn't watch it.
I'm bored. Let's go out somewhere.
To choose the correct ending in each situation, we should follow this simple rule:
-ed — how we feel
-ing — how something makes us feel
The adjectives ending in -ed tell us how a person feels.
I am annoyed. = I feel annoyance
I am excited. = I feel excitement
The adjectives ending in -ing describe what emotion the object or the situation causes.
The clock ticking is annoying. = makes me feel annoyed
The news is exciting. = makes me feel excited
There are a lot of such word pairs and they all describe various emotions.
The list of adjectives in -ed and -ing
| -ed | -ing |
|---|---|
| alarmed | alarming |
| amused | amusing |
| annoyed | annoying |
| astonished | astonishing |
| bored | boring |
| charmed | charming |
| comforted | comforting |
| confused | confusing |
| convinced | convincing |
| depressed | depressing |
| disappointed | disappointing |
| disgusted | disgusting |
| disturbed | disturbing |
| embarrassed | embarrassing |
| encouraged | encouraging |
| excited | exciting |
| exhausted | exhausting |
| fascinated | fascinating |
| frightened | frightening |
| frustrated | frustrating |
| inspired | inspiring |
| insulted | insulting |
| interested | interesting |
| overwhelmed | overwhelming |
| pleased | pleasing |
| relaxed | relaxing |
| relieved | relieving |
| satisfied | satisfying |
| shocked | shocking |
| surprised | surprising |
| tempted | tempting |
| terrified | terrifying |
| thrilled | thrilling |
| tired | tiring |
| touched | touching |
| worried | worrying |