''He was
busy rummaging in his cloak''. What is grammaticaly both 'busy' and ''rummaging', a compound adjective?
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''He was
busy rummaging in his cloak''. What is grammaticaly both 'busy' and ''rummaging', a compound adjective?
I'll have a go. I think that "busy" is an adjective, and "rummaging" is a gerund.
Well I wouldn't say it was adjectival; it simply says what he was doing. The word 'rummaging' explains what he was busy doing (so you're right to see the words as somehow working together). ;-)Quote:
Originally Posted by WilliamRota
b
I thought if they were separated, should be used a comma left to the word ''rummaging'', right?
No. Rummaging is what he was busy doing.
The comma might be justified in some contexts, if the 'busyness' is more significant than the thing being done. Example: I tried to catch her attention but she was busy, looking up something on her mobile phone I think.
b
PS You mean a comma 'to the left of'; but the normal way to say it would be "a comma after the word 'busy'". You normall talk of a comma after A rather than before B. Think of the space after the comma.