11. Gerunds and Gerund Phrases. English Grammar Lesson
Yossarian the Grammarian answers your questions about gerunds and gerund phrases.
Bookmark and Share:
RIL is dedicated to promoting budding authors, poets and writers.
Thanks.
Nicely explained. Covers all the basics in a clear and coherent manner!
@ stephenmccain ‘Walking’ acts like a noun because it is the subject of the sentence. Being a subject is something only a noun can do, so ‘walking’ FUNCTIONS AS a NOUN. But as the man said, it IS a form of the VERB, and verbs can be modified by adverbs. It is actually more of a verb than it is a noun: e.g. it can’t have an article, it can’t be pluralised, it has adverbs and it can have a direct object. On the other hand, it can have possessive and other pronouns, be subject/object,… A hybrid!
thank you!
^__^ thank you so much
That makes so much more sense. Thanks!
How is Quickly an adverb modifying Walking when Walking is acting as a noun (Gerund)?
Hello! There is nothing special about the verb “need” (compare “I like to go dancing” and “I like dancing”–the thing you have noticed happens often with lots of verbs). The rule about verbs being followed by verbs really doesn’t work. And infinitives aren’t verbs, and neither are gerunds. Gerunds, infinitives, and participles are called “verbals.” My video on what a verb is, along with my videos on gerunds, infinitives, and participles might help straighten this out. Good luck!
Hi mrthoth,
Im having some trouble with the verb “need”. I thought that when this verb is followed by another verb, that verb is always the “to infinitive” e.g. I need TO GO home now. But then I came across “Your car needs washing” which at first seemed fine. Perhaps it should be “Your car needs a wash” because Your friend needs drinking clearly isnt grammatical. What are your thoughts please?
.
Thanks for the video, It really helped! I’ve exam on this Tuesday for Gerund and Abstract Noun Phrases, Gerunds are better with me, but Abstract Noun Phrases
Didn’t understand them at all! Have you made any video for them… or can you recommend any?
An excellent question! Most of us are taught that adverbs can modify adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs. But a more complete definition would include verbals (infinitives, participles, and gerunds) in the list of things adverbs can modify, since adverbs can modify gerunds (“quickly walking” here), participles (“the slowly rolling stone”–although “rolling” here is an adjective, too, so it fits the standard definition), and infinitives (“to go boldly”).
All your videos are very short and sweet. also the pacing you use is excellent.
Have one question on the above sentence.
Quickly walking your dog helps your breathing.
Here ‘quickly’ is an adverb, but can it modify a ‘noun’. Adverbs do not modify nouns, but can they modify gerunds . is it because gerunds are a special verbal noun..?
I added you to my playlist…I’m a tutor, but I needed a quick cheat-sheet.
That’s where you come in….hehehe
Some “-ing” words are adjectives (“the laughing man”), some are nouns (“skiing is fun”), and some are verbs (“He is bothering me”). “Bothering” in the sentence you ask about is a verb. When the “-ing” word is an adjective or a verb it’s a participle, and when it’s a noun it’s a gerund.
Hey man thanks for posting your videos they help but i was just wondering in the sentence…. The laughing man is bothering me. Would bothering me be the gerund phrase?
thanks for ur vids… i got a test tomorow and i dont really understand phrases.
Just “walking.” Gerund phrases are a subset of nominal phrases (noun phrases). Noun phrases have “heads,” the nouns around which the phrases are built. If a complete subject is a nominal phrase, its head is the simple subject. Gerunds are the heads of gerund phrases, and so if a complete subject is a gerund phrase, the gerund is the simple subject. Thanks for your question!
Thank you so much for these valuable videos . Your explanation is very amusing ; I really enjoy it . In that sentence : Quickly walking your dog helps your breathing , the complete subject is ‘Quickly walking your dog , but what would be the simple subject ? only walking , or the whole gerund phrase . please answer . Thank you
subject, direct object,indirect object,object of a preposition,and
appostive…does tht answer your question?
Thank you very much for posting these.
You have no idea how much you helped me
Same here. This guy is amazing.
Thanks for your easy way of learning grammar…I have forgotten the rules of grammar being out of school so long (adult learner now at a University)…glad I ran across your videos.
Thank you soooooooooooooo much
but in which cases you can use a GERUND? thanks