In the sentence 'Running quickly, Maria finished her race,' the phrase 'Running quickly' is best described as a

In the sentence 'Running quickly, Maria finished her race,' the phrase 'Running quickly' is best described as a

• A. Participle Phrase
• B. Gerund
• C. Gerund Phrase
• D. Appositive

Answer: (A)

The phrase is a participial phrase. It uses the present participle “Running” plus the adverb “quickly” to describe Maria, functioning as a modifier of the noun before it (the subject of the sentence). Because it provides descriptive detail about how Maria was running, not a noun phrase acting as a subject or object, it’s not a gerund. It’s also not renaming Maria, so it isn’t an appositive. The introductory participial phrase also sets the scene for the main clause, which follows after the comma.

The phrase is a participial phrase. It uses the present participle “Running” plus the adverb “quickly” to describe Maria, functioning as a modifier of the noun before it (the subject of the sentence). Because it provides descriptive detail about how Maria was running, not a noun phrase acting as a subject or object, it’s not a gerund. It’s also not renaming Maria, so it isn’t an appositive. The introductory participial phrase also sets the scene for the main clause, which follows after the comma.