One describes how you feel, the other describes what causes that feeling.
Adjective. How you feel when something does not interest you or there is nothing to do.
I was so bored during the class.
Estaba tan aburrido durante la clase.
The kids are bored and want to play.
Los niños están aburridos y quieren jugar.
She gets bored easily.
Ella se aburre fácilmente.
Adjective. Describes the thing or person that causes boredom.
That lecture was really boring.
Esa conferencia fue muy aburrida.
He is the most boring speaker I have ever heard.
Él es el orador más aburrido que he escuchado.
I find horror movies boring, not scary.
Encuentro las películas de terror aburridas, no aterradoras.
Common mistake
Using 'boring' to describe how you feel. Wrong: "I am very boring." (correct: I am very bored — unless you literally mean you are a boring person).
Trick to remember it
The person who feels something uses '-ed' (bored, tired, interested, excited). The thing that causes the feeling uses '-ing' (boring, tiring, interesting, exciting). Person = -ed. Thing = -ing.
Quick rule
Describing how a person feels? Use '-ed' (bored). Describing the thing causing the feeling? Use '-ing' (boring).
Did you know?
This -ed/-ing pattern applies to dozens of emotional adjectives: interested/interesting, excited/exciting, tired/tiring, amazed/amazing, confused/confusing, surprised/surprising. Learn the pattern once and you unlock them all.
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
The documentary was so ____ that I fell asleep.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
I was really ____ at the party. Nobody talked to me.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Describing how a person feels? Use '-ed' (bored). Describing the thing causing the feeling? Use '-ing' (boring).
Using 'boring' to describe how you feel. Wrong: "I am very boring." (correct: I am very bored — unless you literally mean you are a boring person).
The person who feels something uses '-ed' (bored, tired, interested, excited). The thing that causes the feeling uses '-ing' (boring, tiring, interesting, exciting). Person = -ed. Thing = -ing.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy