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8.2.1: Gerunds-Form and Usage

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    Gerunds

    I. Basic Ideas and Principles

    A gerund is the ing form of the verb (present participle) used as a noun. Therefore, it can occur in all the same places that a noun can occur in a sentence: subject, object, complement, object of a preposition and appositive. Please note: when a preposition is followed by a verb, that verb must always be in the form of a gerund

    II. Gerunds

    I. The following verbs take a gerund after them. The ones with an * next to them can also take an infinitive after them with no change in meaning.

    admit advise allow avoid * begin consider

    * continue can't help complete defer delay deny

    * deserve dislike enjoy finish forget * hate

    imagine * like * love miss permit postpone

    propose * prefer quit regret remember * start

    stop suggest * try take turns *take time resent

    acknowledge justify report facilitate anticipate mention

    Examples:

    I dislike working on Sundays.
    He missed seeing his father every day.
    She can't help being sick.
    I began going to school when I was six years old. / I began to go to school ....
    They loved eating pizza every Friday evening. / They loved to eat pizza ....

    III. Possessive Gerunds

    The following verbs can take a possessive noun or a possessive adjective after them and before a gerund. This is especially true in formal grammar. In informal grammar, native speakers tend to use regular nouns and objective pronouns.

    advise appreciate enjoy excuse defend finish

    forget forbid hate imagine like dislike

    love permit postpone prefer understand suggest

    regret remember consider facilitate mention regret

    The possessive adjectives are the following: my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their. They are always followed by a noun or a gerund.

    Examples:

    My books my carrying books
    Your music your playing music
    Their teacher their teaching me

    Possessive nouns end in an apostrophe s (’s) if the noun is singular or in an s apostrophe (s’) if the noun is plural.

    Examples: Singular Plural

    The boy’s father the boys’ father
    The teacher’s books the teachers’ books
    My sister’s dresses My sisters’ dresses

    Form: Subject Verb Possessive Form Gerund Remainder of the Sentence

    Examples:

    I appreciate your skipping lines when you do your homework.
    He defended the woman's killing her husband because he had beaten her for many years.
    I suggest your studying hard for the exam next week.
    We regretted their not being able to come to the party.
    She hated Bob's hanging around with those lazy boys.

    IV. Gerunds after Prepositions

    When a verb follows a proposition, the verb must always be in the ing form of the verb, in other words, the present participle form.

    Examples:

    I have always been interested in studying history all my life.

    Many students are worried about attending regular classes with native English speakers.

    Teachers disapprove of cheating on exams and quizzes.

    Because of cheating, many students fail exams and compositions.

    In spite of losing the game, the players were still happy about playing.


    This page titled 8.2.1: Gerunds-Form and Usage is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Don Bissonnette.

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