Adjectives that end ‘-ed’ (e.g. ‘annoyed’, ‘terrified’) and adjectives that end ‘-ing’ (e.g. ‘annoying’, ‘terrifying’) are often confused.

-ed adjectives
Adjectives that end ‘-ed’ describe emotions – they tell us how people feel about something.

• I was very bored in the maths lesson. I almost fell asleep.
• He was surprised to see Helen. She’d told him she was going to Australia.

-ing adjectives
Adjectives that end ‘-ing’ describe the thing that causes the emotion – a boring lesson makes you feel bored.

• Have you seen that film? It’s absolutely terrifying.
• I can’t eat this! It’s disgusting!

Remember that people can be boring but only if they make other people feel bored.

• My girlfriend is bored. - (My girlfriend feels bored)
• My girlfriend is boring. - (My girlfriend is a boring person)