Choose the correct adjective:

1. My nephew was (amusing / amused) by the clown.

2. Its so (frustrating / frustrated)! No matter how much I study I cant seem
to remember this vocabulary.
3. This lesson is so (boring / bored)!
4. Im feeling (depressed / depressing), so Im going to go home, eat some
chocolate, and go to bed early with a good book.
5. I thought her new idea was absolutely (fascinated /fascinating).
6. This maths problem is so (confusing / confused). Can you help me?
7. The teacher was really (amusing / amused) so the lesson passed quickly.
8.The journey was (exhausting / exhausted)! Twelve hours by bus.
9. The plane began to move in a rather (alarming / alarmed) way.
10. He was (frightening / frightened) when he saw the spider.
11. I was really (embarrassing / embarrassed) when I fell over in the street.
12. That film was so (depressing / depressed)! There was no happy ending for
any of the characters.
13. Im sorry, I cant come tonight. Im completely (exhausting / exhausted).
14. We are going in a helicopter? How (exciting / excited)!
15. Dont show my baby photos to people, Mum! Its so (embarrassing /
embarrassed)!
16. Its okay, its only me. Dont be (alarming / alarmed).
17. My sister is so (exciting / excited) because she is going on holiday
tomorrow.
18. I hate long flights, Im always really (boring / bored).
19. She looked very (confusing / confused) when I told her we had to change
the plan.
20. John was (fascinated / fascinating) by Mandarin when he first started
learning languages. He decided to study more and now he can speak it
fluently.

Answers:
1. My nephew was amused by the clown.
2. Its so frustrating No matter how much I study I cant seem to remember
this vocabulary.
3. This lesson is so boring!
4. Im feeling depressed, so Im going to go home, eat some chocolate, and
go to bed early with a good book.
5. I thought her new idea was absolutely fascinating.
6. This maths problem is so confusing. Can you help me?
7. The teacher was really amusing so the lesson passed quickly.
8. The journey was exhausting! Twelve hours by bus.
9. The plane began to move in a rather alarming way.
10. He was frightened when he saw the spider.
11. I was really embarrassed when I fell over in the street.
12. That film was so depressing! There was no happy ending for any of the
characters.
13. Im sorry, I cant come tonight. Im completely exhausted.
14. We are going in a helicopter? How exciting!
15. Dont show my baby photos to people, Mum! Its so embarrassing!
16. Its okay, its only me. Dont be alarmed.
17. My sister is so excited because she is going on holiday tomorrow.
18.I hate long flights, Im always really bored.
19. She looked very confused when I told her we had to change the plan.
20. John was fascinated by Mandarin when he first started learning
languages. He decided to study more and now he can speak it fluently.

There are many adjectives that we have in English that end in -ED or
-ING.
Yes, that's correct, they are not only endings that we use for verbs!
An adjective that ends in -ING is used to describe: the characteristic of
a person or a thing.
An adjective that ends in -ED is used to describe: a feeling.
Compare the difference:
My girlfriend is bored. - (My girlfriend feels bored)
My girlfriend is boring. - (My girlfriend is a boring person)
You can use these adjectives to describe people or situations but be
careful that you are using the correct adjective. For example, there is a
big difference in meaning between:
I am confused. - (I don't understand something)
I am confusing. - (I will cause you to be confused)
Of course, you could also find both adjectives in the same sentence.
Then you really need to concentrate on the intent / context of the
sentence.
Examples:
I was shocked by how shocking the accident was last night.
They were frightened by the frightening roller-coaster ride!
I am annoyed by how annoying that person in front of us is.

 Sally was confused by the confusing street signs in the city.

Note that the sentences above are to highlight how both adjectives can
appear in the same sentence though it isn't common (because it sounds
repetitive).
List of Adjectives ending in -ED and -ING
There is quite a long list of adjectives ending in -ED and -ING in
English, and most of them are based on a verb that can be changed into
an adjective by adding either -ED or -ING.
Some of the more common ones include:
Alarmed - Alarming
Aggravated - Aggravating
Amused - Amusing
Annoyed - Annoying
Astonished - Astonishing
Astounded - Astounding
Bored - Boring
Captivated - Captivating
Challenged - Challenging
Charmed - Charming
Comforted - Comforting
Confused - Confusing

 Convinced - Convincing
Depressed - Depressing
Disappointed - Disappointing
Discouraged - Discouraging
Disgusted - Disgusting
Distressed - Distressing
Disturbed - Disturbing
Embarrassed - Embarrassing
Encouraged - Encouraging
Entertained - Entertaining
Excited - Exciting
Exhausted - Exhausting
Fascinated - Fascinating
Frightened - Frightening
Frustrated - Frustrating
Fulfilled - Fulfilling
Gratified - Gratifying
Inspired - Inspiring

 Insulted - Insulting
Interested - Interesting
Moved - Moving
Overwhelmed - Overwhelming
Perplexed - Perplexing
Pleased - Pleasing
Relaxed - Relaxing
Relieved - Relieving
Satisfied - Satisfying
Shocked - Shocking
Sickened - Sickening
Soothed - Soothing
Surprised - Surprising
Tempted - Tempting
Terrified - Terrifying
Threatened - Threatening
Thrilled - Thrilling
Tired - Tiring

 Touched - Touching
Troubled - Troubling
Unsettled - Unsettling
Worried Worrying

-ed / -ing adjectives

Many English adjectives of emotion/feeling are formed
from the -ed / -ing forms of verbs:
Positive
verb

-ed

-ing

noun

You ____
me!

I'm _____!

How _____!

What _____!

amaze

amazed

amazing

amazement

amuse

amused

amusing

amusement

astound

astounde
d

astounding

astonishment

bewitch

bewitched

bewitching

bewitchment

captivate

captivate
d

captivating

a captivation

challenge

challenge
d

challenging

a challenge

charm

charmed

charming

charm

comfort

comforted

comforting

comfort

concern

concerne
d

concerning

concern

convince

convinced

convincing

conviction

encourage

encourag
ed

encouraging

encourageme
nt

enchant

enchante
d

enchanting

enchantment

energize

energized

energizing

energy

entertain

entertaine
d

entertaining

entertainmen
t

enthrall

enthralled

enthralling

enthrallment

excite

excited

exciting

excitement

exhaust

exhauste
d

exhausting

exhaustion

fascinate

fascinated

fascinating

fascination

flatter

flattered

flattering

flattery

fulfill

fulfilled

fulfilling

fulfillment

gratify

gratified

gratifying

gratification

gratify

gratified

gratifying

gratification

humiliate

humiliate
d

humiliating

humiliation

interest

interested

interesting

interest

intrigue

intrigued

intriguing

intrigue

move

moved

moving

please

pleased

pleasing
(pleasant)

a pleasure

relax

relaxed

relaxing

relaxation

relieve

relieved

relieving

a relief

satisfy

satisfied

satisfying

satisfaction

soothe

soothed

soothing

surprise

surprised

surprising

a surprise

tempt

tempted

tempting

temptation

touch

touched

touching

thrill

thrilled

thrilling

a thrill

titilate

titilated

titilating

titilation

Negative
verb

-ed

-ing

noun

You ____
me!

I'm _____!

How _____!

What _____!

aggravated aggravating

aggravation

aggravate
alarm

alarmed

alarming

alarm

annoy

annoyed

annoying

annoyance

bewilder

bewildered

bewildering

bewilderment

bore

bored

boring

boredom

confound

confounded confounding

confuse

confused

confusing

confusion

depress

depressed

depressing

depression

devastate

devastated

disappoint

disappointe disappointin disappointment

d
g

discourage

discourage
d

disgust

disgusted

dishearten

devastating

devastation

discouragin discouragement
g
disgusting

disgust

disheartene disheartenin disheartenment

d
g

dismay

dismayed

dismaying

dismay

displease

displeased

displeasing

displeasure

distress

distressed

distressing

distress

disturb

disturbed

disturbing

disturbance

embarrass

embarrasse embarrassin embarrassment

d
g

exasperate

exasperate
d

exasperatin
g

exasperation

fatigue

fatigued

fatiguing

fatigue

frighten

frightened

frightening

fright

frustrate

frustrated

frustrating

frustration

horrify

horrified

horrifying

horror

insult

insulted

insulting

an insult

irritate

irritated

irritating

irritation

mortify

mortified

mortifying

mortification

mystify

mystified

mystifying

mystification

overwhelm

overwhelm
ed

overwhelmi
ng

overwhelmingn
ess

perplex

perplexed

perplexing

perplexity

perturb

perturbed

perturbing

perturbation

puzzle

puzzled

puzzling

puzzlement

shock

shocked

shocking

a shock

sicken

sickened

sickening

sickness

terrify

terrified

terrifying

terror

threaten

threatened

threatening

a threat

tire

tired

tiring

tiredness

trouble

troubled

troubling

trouble

unnerve

unnerved

unnerving

unsettle

unsettled

unsettling

upset

upset

upsetting

vex

vexed
(vext)

vexing

unsettledness

vexation