COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES- I ENGLISH GRAMMAR 6. USE OF VERBALS: GERUNDS Having studied Verbs, Auxiliaries, Tag-on questions, Irregular verbs, Tenses, Infinitives and Participles we will now centre our attention on the third kind of Verbals, namely Gerunds.
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Objectives By the end of this lesson you will:
i. ii. iii. iv.
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Identify gerunds in written and spoken language Distinguish between infinitives, participles and gerunds Identify gerunds that are emphasized (Gerunds with a Force) Use appropriate gerunds in written and spoken language
Introduction A verb can have several forms. It can function as a noun, adjective or an adverb. In the last lesson you learnt about two verbals, namely Infinitive and Participle. In this lesson, you will learn about the use of the gerund - the third kind of verbal which functions as a noun. It is suggested that you should be conscious of the usage of the topics covered in this unit and try to apply them immediately. Encourage people who are comfortable with the language to interact with you in English. They will automatically help you correct yourself. Do not be afraid of speaking in English.
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Gerunds Having studied the first two verbals, we come to the third verbal which is known as the gerund. In earlier sections, we had learnt about a rule where we add ‘ing’ to a verb, for usage in continuous tenses. Now we will learn of yet another aspect of the verb. A verb in present tense form can be made into a noun by adding ‘ing’ to it. This kind of noun is called
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a Gerund. Since a verb basically denotes action, a gerund is defined as a noun of action. Let us now form some gerunds. Verb in present tense sing act feel smoke eat study pray watch
Gerund singing acting feeling smoking eating studying praying watching
A gerund, like a noun can be used in a sentence either before or after the verb. Let us use the examples of gerunds given above to form sentences. This would give a better understanding of the ‘noun’ character of gerunds. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
Watching wildlife is Amar’s favourite hobby. Studying continuously without a break can be bad for concentration. Smoking is injurious to health. I have a good feeling. Eating too much can make you obese. Her life’s passion has been singing. His talent lies in acting. Praying for at least a few minutes everyday gives me peace of mind. At this point, try to recollect what you had learnt about the other verbal i.e. Infinitive. You will find that in sentences where gerunds are used either as the subject or object, they can be replaced by infinitives. Let us attempt this with a few of the examples given above.
1. Watching wildlife is Amar’s favourite hobby. (gerund) To watch wildlife is Amar’s favourite hobby. (infinitive) 2. Studying continuously without a break can be bad for concentration. (gerund) To study continuously without a break can be bad for concentration. (infinitive) 3. Her life’s passion has been singing. (gerund) Her life’s passion has been to sing. (infinitive) 4. Praying for at least a few minutes everyday gives me peace of mind. (gerund) To pray for at least a few minutes everyday gives me peace of mind. (infinitive) Gerunds can also come in the middle of a sentence. Let us look at some examples.
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1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Continuous studying without a break can be bad for concentration. Wildlife watching is Amar’s favourite hobby. She must practice reading every day. Begin watching the news in English on television every day. The baby’s crying continued all night. I love receiving telephone calls. When a gerund comes in the middle of a sentence, it might look like a verb and thus may appear very confusing to us. It is therefore important to recognize a gerund. Since a gerund is not a verb and there are verbs (in continuous tense) also ending with ‘ing’ as we discussed in the introduction, we need to remember the rule that an auxiliary will always come before a verb in continuous tense.
Self-Check Questions Underline the gerunds in the following sentences: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Raj is forcing me to go to the theatre with him. You should be completing your homework today. Shanti loves eating South Indian food. My boss is wanting me to go to Africa. Suchit is playing in the field.
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Gerund with a Force In gerund usage it may sometimes become necessary to make the gerund forceful with the help of a word that comes just before it. This word helps us emphasise the gerund. Let us understand what we mean by looking at the following examples.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Father doesn’t like your smoking. My praying doesn’t disturb the household. The director liked her acting in the play. His watching wildlife as a hobby has inspired youngsters. Sita insisted on singing the prayer song. I feel very heavy after eating lunch at the wedding reception. You can concentrate better without studying continuously.
In the first four examples you will observe that a possessive pronoun has been used before the gerund. In the next four examples, a preposition has been used before the gerund. Please note: In the given examples, the gerund looks like a second verb. However it still remains a gerund because it retains the basic characteristic of a noun, which is, that it can be used as a subject or object. The rule therefore 3
is that to make a gerund forceful and, at the same time, let it remain a gerund, a possessive pronoun or a preposition (as applicable in the context of the sentence) should be used before the gerund.
Self-Check Questions Underline the Gerunds and identify whether they are ‘with a Force’ or not. 6. It is his whining that troubles me. 7. After playing you should wash your hands. 8. The boys have gone swimming. 9. Manoj loves eating ice-cream. 10. It goes without saying that Amit is the best photographer in this town.
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Other Aspects of a Gerund
1. Gerunds are also used after certain verbs, which appear first in a sentence. A few examples of such verbs are: dislike, deny, enjoy and remember. Let us create some sentences based on this. i. ii. iii. iv.
I dislike eating after 8:00 p.m. I enjoy watching movies in the theatre. I cannot deny eating chocolates after every meal. I remember meeting you at the party.
2. Only gerunds can be used with certain phrasal verbs e.g. look forward to, give up. Let us understand the use from the following examples. 1. 2. 3. 4.
I look forward to attending the wedding. We look forward to dining at the new restaurant. I have decided not to give up exercising regularly. I cannot give up my love for travelling.
Sample Conversation Look at the conversation (given below) between two colleagues in an office. Gerunds have been used as per the rules discussed.
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Arun:
Mona, have you noticed that our working with the new boss has really changed things in this office? Everyone is so much more enthusiastic about his/her job!
Mona:
I agree with you. Our achieving set targets seems so easy to accomplish now. No wonder we have more time for relaxing.
Arun:
The other day I had the opportunity of working with him on summarizing a rather complicated report and he gave us some really good ideas. Inspiring others comes naturally to him.
Mona:
This morning he talked with me and asked us to work on preparing a business strategy for increasing our market share in profits.
Arun:
That is indeed a wonderful way of solving the company’s financial situation. Our getting involved in this endeavour wholeheartedly is very important.
Mona:
Yes, for a start we need to work on analyzing our strengths and our weaknesses.
Arun:
Why don’t we get on with the job of assembling our team members so we can begin working?
Mona:
Let’s do that!
Self-Check Questions Replace the gerund with an infinitive or vice versa, as the case may be. 11. To be or not to be, that is the question. 12. He loves to bat. 13. Rajiv goes to the park for jogging. 14. My friends come home for troubling me. 15. The children have gone swimming.
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Summing Up In this lesson, you learnt about gerunds and how they are used. You will need to remember the following important points:
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A gerund is basically a verb that is in the present tense form which may be used as a noun in a sentence by adding an ing to it. Sometimes a gerund can be replaced by an infinitive. Gerunds can come in the beginning, middle or end of sentences. Some gerunds can sound forceful by emphasizing a specific point because of the words that precede the gerund. (gerund with a force) Gerunds usually follow specific verbs like dislike, deny, enjoy and remember. Only gerunds can be used with certain phrasal verbs e.g. look forward to, give up.
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Answers to Self-Check Questions
1. forcing 2. completing 3. eating 4. wanting 5. playing 6. whining, yes 7. playing, yes 8. swimming, no 9. eating, no 10. saying, yes 11. Being or not being, that is the question. 12. He loves batting. 13. Rajiv goes to the park to jog. 14. My friends come home to trouble me. 15. The children have gone to swim.
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References
1. Werner, Patricia K. and Mary Mitchell Church. Interactions II A Communicative Grammar. New York: Random House, Inc., 1985. 2. Hashemi, Louise and Thomas, Barbara. Grammar for First Certificate. Chennai: Cambridge University Press, 2004. 3. Gilani, Archana, and Kaul, Mridula. & Suganthan Beena. The Grammar Tree India: Oxford University Press 2004 4. Fowler, W.S. and Coe, Norman. Test and Practice your English. Chennai: Orient Longman Private Ltd, 2003. 5. Colonel (Retd) Jayakaran, I. Everyone’s Guide To English Grammar (A New Approach). Chennai: Apple Publishing International (P) Ltd, March 2003. 6. Wren and Martin. Revised by Prasada Rao,N.D.V. High School English Grammar & Composition. New Delhi: S.Chand & Company Ltd, 2005. 7. Azar, Betty Schrampfer and Azar, Donald A. Fundamentals of English Grammar U.S.A: Prentice Hall Regents, 1994. 8. Briggs, Sandra J. Grammar: Strategies and Practice. U.S.A: Scott Foresman and Company. 1994. 9. Fogiel, M. Handbook of English. U.S.A: Research and Education Association. 1994.
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Glossary Gerund: a kind of verbal; a verb form which functions as a noun Participle: a kind of verbal; a word formed from a verb (example: going, gone, been, being) used as an adjective or noun (as in “burnt toast” or “I have a burn on my finger.”)
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Infinitive: a kind of verbal; the base form of the verb preceded by to (e.g. I like to read.) Adverb: a word that describes another verb, adjective or adverb Verbal: a form of a verb - which functions as a noun, adjective and adverb
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