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I was wondering whether:

a. the two sentences mean the same, and

b. if sentences of the same construction can always convert the verb to a participle.

Here are the sentences:

  1. Though it hurts, Linda still listened to Jeff.
  2. Hurting, Linda still listened to Jeff.

I'm not sure how this is termed in grammar, but I have seen some examples of the same kind of construction, although not that frequently.

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Because "listened" is in the past tense, I'd say that the first sentence would be better as follows:

Though it hurt, Linda still listened to Jeff.

or

Though it hurt her, Linda still listened to Jeff.

No, the two sentences do not mean the same thing. "Though" suggests that Linda is enduring her pain, and that her pain is directly related to the act of listening to Jeff. That's because "though" is a subordinating conjunction, implying a cause-and-effect relationship between the two clauses. Sentence #1 contains a participial phrase "Hurting", which modifies the subject, Linda, but otherwise doesn't say anything about the rest of the sentence.

Consider that this sentence preceded yours:

Linda's team was losing, and her legs were burning.

Sentence #2 would still make sense. Linda is hurting because her legs are very tired. Perhaps Jeff is her coach shouting instructions from the sidelines.

Sentence #1 makes less sense. We know she is in pain from playing the game. But why does it hurt Linda to listen to Jeff?

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  • thank you for the clarification. Does that mean the sentences Knowing it, you understand it and When you know it, you understand it mean differently, too? Is there any case the usage of subordinating conjunctions would create the same meaning as using only a participle?
    – Mockingbird94
    Commented Jun 21, 2018 at 1:17

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