GERUNDS / PRESENT
PARTICIPLES / INFINITIVE
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Objectives:
The students must be able to:
·
Recognize the difference between using a Gerund or
a Present Participle.
·
Apply the Gerunds, Infinitives and Present
Participles correctly.
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INTRODUCTION
The
'-ing' form of the verb may be a present participle or a gerund.
The form
is identical, the difference is in the function, or the job the word does in
the sentence.
The present participle:
This is
most commonly used:
- as part of the continuous
form of a verb,
he is painting; she has been waiting
- after verbs of
movement/position in the pattern:
verb + present participle,
She sat looking at the sea
- after verbs of perception in
the pattern:
verb + object + present participle,
We saw him swimming
- as an adjective, e.g. amazing,
worrying, exciting, boring
The gerund:
This
always has the same function as a noun (although it looks like a verb), so it
can be used:
- as the subject of the sentence:
Eating people is wrong.
- after prepositions:
Can you sneeze without opening your mouth?
She is good at painting
- after certain verbs,
e.g. like, hate, admit, imagine
- in compound nouns,
e.g. a driving lesson, a swimming pool, bird-watching, train-spotting
Gerunds and present
participles
In English, words ending in ”-ing” may be either gerunds
or present
participles.
- It is a gerund when it functions as a noun.
- It is a present participle when it
functions as a verb.
Gerund: Running
is my favorite activity. (Here running
is the subject of the sentence and is therefore a noun.)
Present participle: Running
around the corner, I ran into my English teacher. (Here running is a
verb telling what I was doing. I was running.)
A
gerund may serve any of the purposes
of a noun:
1.
Subject: Shopping
always made her happy.
2.
Direct object: He taught dancing.
3.
Predicate noun: Seeing
is believing.
4.
Object of a preposition: By running,
I was able to catch the bus.
A
gerund may also be used as an
adjective:
1.
He bought a fishing boat. (That is, a boat used for fishing, not a boat
that fishes.)
Keep in mind that these definitions are grammatical
ones in English, and that your Spanish teacher may refer to any word ending in –ando
or –iendo
as a gerund (rather than a present participle), even though that may not be
strictly correct. So don’t tell your
English teacher, “But Señor Koorn says
that any word ending in –ing is a
gerund.” Sr. Koorn is merely trying
to simplify this by using the same term for both gerunds and present
participles.
El
gerundio
1. In Spanish gerundios end in -ando (for -ar verbs), or -iendo
(for -er or -ir verbs):
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infinitivo
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gerundio
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hablar (to speak)
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hablando (speaking)
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jugar (to play)
|
jugando (playing)
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2. If the stem of an -er or -ir verb ends in a vowel instead of a consonant, add the ending -yendo instead of -iendo:
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infinitivo
(-er, -ir)
|
gerundio
(-yendo)
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oír (to hear)
|
oyendo (hearing)
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huír (to flee)
|
huyendo (fleeing)
|
|
leer (to read)
|
leyendo (reading)
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3.
If a verb is both (1) -ir, and (2) stem-changing, it will take a stem change in the gerund. e>i, and o>u.
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infinitivo
(-ir)
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stem-changing
gerundio
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pedir (to request, ask for)
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pidiendo
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|
servir (to serve)
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sirviendo
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decir (to say, tell)
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diciendo
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repetir (to repeat)
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repitiendo
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4. And, there is one exception (not an -ir verb):
poder (to be able, can) -> pudiendo
The Present Progressive Tense
The present progressive tense is formed by using the
verb estar plus a gerund. It is used to indicate an action in progress
at the present time.
- Mi mamá está preparando la
cena. (My mom is
preparing dinner.)
- Estamos leyendo un libro para inglés. (We’re reading a book for
English.)
Sometimes other verbs may introduce a gerund as
well, just like in English, but this is less common.
1. (ir) Los tiempos van cambiando.
(The times are changing.) Vamos bailando los viernes. (We go dancing on Fridays.)
2. (andar) Julia anda
diciendo mentiras. (Julia goes
around telling lies.)
3. (seguir) Julia sigue
diciendo mentiras. (Julia keeps
telling lies.) Sigue leyendo, por favor. (Continue reading, please.)
Summary:
GERUNDS and PRESENT
PARTICIPLES
A Gerund is a word
that functions as a noun. It is derived by adding ‘–ing’ to the end of a verb
(jog), e.g. “Jogging is a good way of exercising”.
A present participle is formed by adding ‘-ing’ to the verb, as in ‘reading’., e.g. “He may
be reading the newspaper now”.
A gerund is
used:
1.
as the subject of the sentence.
Example: Waiting for a bus can take a long time.
2.
as the object of a verb.
Example: “Will you stop crying?”
3.
as a verbal noun, i.e. as a verb doing the work of
a noun.
Example: Her scolding frightened her children.
4.
after a verb.
Example: The gate needs repainting.
5.
after “busy”.
Example: She is busy cooking for dinner.
6.
with a preposition.
Example: We are tired after walking for two hours.
7.
after a phrasal verb.
Example: If we carry on working, we can complete it
today.
A present
participle is used:
1.
immediately after a subject to which it refers.
Example: People driving in the rain have to drive
carefully.
2.
after a verb.
Example: He went fishing with his friends.
3.
after a noun. It tells us what a person or thing is
doing.
Example: She heard them talking about her.
Example: I saw a rock rolling down the hill.
4.
as an adjective.
Example: That twinkling star is much brighter than
the rest.
5.
to show that a person is doing two things at the
same time.
Example: He is sitting outside the house, watching
people pass by.
6.
to form the continuous tense.
Example: He is washing his car.
7.
when one action is followed by another.
Example: Walking on the beach, he threw a ball to
his friend.
EXERCISES:
State whether the –ing forms given in the following
sentences are participles or gerunds. 1. Hearing a loud noise, we ran to the window.
2. The motorcyclist was fatally injured in the accident and is now fighting for his life.
3. He ruined his sight by watching TV all day.
4. We saw a clown standing on his head.
5. Asking questions is a whole lot easier than answering them.
6. Waving their hands, the audience cheered the winner.
7. Plucking flowers is forbidden.
8. Jumping over the fence, the thief escaped.
9. I was surprised at John’s being absent.
10. We spent the whole day playing cards.
11. A miser hates spending his money.
12. John was angry at Alice trying to lie to her.
13. Praising all alike is praising none.
14. Are you afraid of speaking the truth?
15. Singing to herself is her chief delight.
GERUNDS OR INFINITIVES
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1.- A gerund is a noun made from a verb by adding
"-ing." The gerund form of the verb "read" is
"reading." You can use a gerund as the subject, the complement, or
the object of a sentence.
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Examples:
- Reading helps you learn English. subject
of sentence
- Her favorite hobby is reading.
complement of sentence
- I enjoy reading. object
of sentence
Gerunds
can be made negative by adding "not."
Examples:
- He enjoys not working.
- The best thing for your
health is not smoking.
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2. -Infinitives are the "to" form of
the verb. The infinitive form of "learn" is "to learn."
You can also use an infinitive as the subject, the complement, or the object
of a sentence.
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Examples:
- To learn is important. subject of
sentence
- The most important thing is to
learn. complement of sentence
- He wants to learn. object
of sentence
Infinitives
can be made negative by adding "not."
Examples:
- I decided not to go.
- The most important thing is not
to give up.
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3. Both gerunds and infinitives can be used as
the subject or the complement of a sentence. However, as subjects or
complements, gerunds usually sound more like normal, spoken English, whereas
infinitives sound more abstract. In the following sentences, gerunds sound more
natural and would be more common in everyday English. Infinitives emphasize
the possibility or potential for something and sound more philosophical. If
this sounds confusing, just remember that 90% of the time, you will use a
gerund as the subject or complement of a sentence.
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Examples:
- Learning is important. normal
subject
- To learn is important. abstract
subject - less common
- The most important thing is learning.
normal complement
- The most important thing is to
learn. abstract complement - less common
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4. As the object of a sentence, it is more
difficult to choose between a gerund or an infinitive. In such situations,
gerunds and infinitives are not normally interchangeable. Usually, the main
verb in the sentence determines whether you use a gerund or an infinitive.
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Examples:
- He enjoys swimming.
"Enjoy" requires a gerund.
- He wants to swim.
"Want" requires an infinitive.
5. Some
verbs are followed by gerunds as objects.
Examples:
- She suggested going
to a movie.
- Mary keeps talking
about her problems.
6. Some
verbs are followed by infinitives.
Examples:
- She wants to go
to a movie.
- Mary needs to talk
about her problems.
QUIZ
Choose
the correct alternative, applying the Gerund or the Infinitive correctly.
Q1 - I miss ____ in London.
live
living
to live
living
to live
Q2 - I enjoyed ____ them again.
see
seeing
to see
seeing
to see
Q3 - He avoided ____ them do it
because he wanted to get home early.
help
helping
to help
helping
to help
Q4 - I promised ____ it by Friday.
do
doing
to do
doing
to do
Q5 - She's expected ____ the job.
get
getting
to get
getting
to get
Q6 - Would you like ____?
come
coming
to come
coming
to come
Q7 - They don't tolerate any ____
about their decisions.
argue
arguing
to argue
arguing
to argue
Q8 - She taught me ____ it.
do
doing
to do
doing
to do
Q9 - I don't feel like ____ it.
do
doing
to do
doing
to do
Q10 - Do you mind ____ it with you?
take
taking
to take
taking
to take
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