the verb 'tend' originates from the middle english 'tenden', a shortened form of 'attenden', meaning to direct one's mind or efforts to something. this, in turn, derives from the old french 'atendre', and ultimately from the latin 'attendere', composed of 'ad-' (to) and 'tendere' (to stretch, extend). the core notion is of stretching one's mind or efforts toward something, which evolved into the modern senses of caring for something or being inclined toward a particular state or action. the '-ing' suffix is a native english grammatical marker forming present participles and gerunds, indicating an ongoing action or state.

the word 'tending' is the present participle and gerund form of the verb 'tend'. it is not productively segmented into smaller, meaningful morphemes in modern english without altering the base form.