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What is a Gerund and Why Care?
Thanks to Mike P. for reminding me of this valuable grammar tip that has not been run since 2008. At the end of this tip, I’ll tell you more about the question that caused Mike to write in.
What is a gerund and why do you need to know? Maybe it would be better to answer the second part of the question first so that you have some motivation to identify gerunds. If you are able to pick the gerund(s) out in your sentence, you will avoid a grammar gaffe that often goes unnoticed even by seasoned editors. Is your curiosity at least somewhat piqued?
Gerunds, also called verbal nouns, are formed when verbs have -ing added to them and are used as nouns.
Examples:
Walking is great exercise.
Hiking up that steep mountain seems impossible.
Talking more about this will not change my mind.
Note that in each of the examples above, the -ing word–the gerund–acted as the subject of the sentence.
Gerunds, like other nouns, may also act as direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of the preposition.
Examples:
We like talking on the phone every night. (direct object)
I give him credit for talking. (object of the preposition for)
It is helpful to recognize gerunds because if a noun or pronoun precedes a gerund, you want to use the possessive form of that noun or pronoun.
Correct Example: My running ahead bothered him.
Incorrect Example: Me running ahead bothered him.
Correct Example: Their separating does not mean they won't continue to be good parents to their three children.
Incorrect Example: Them separating does not mean they won't continue to be good parents to their three children.
Examples:
Alex's skating was a joy to behold.
Ben's walking improved once his ankle healed.
The girl's dancing won her a trip to Hawaii.
Now, let’s return to Mike’s inquiry. Mike questioned the answer to quiz question 10 in the free bonus quiz on Effective Writing that appeared in the E-Newsletter of July 24. That question was:
Choose the correct sentence.
A. Reading, writing, and knowing arithmetic are helpful skills.
B. Reading, writing, and arithmetic are helpful skills.
The answer is B and the explanation is “Use similar grammatical form when offering several ideas. This is called parallel construction.”
If Reading and writing were used as verbs in the above sentences, choice A would have been correct. However, from today’s grammar tip, we know they are gerunds. Thus, Reading, writing, and arithmetic are all nouns and sentence B is the correct answer.
Due to the E-Newsletter's large readership, please submit your English usage questions through GrammarBook.com's "Grammar Blog." |
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Pop Quiz
Identify the gerund in each sentence. If there is a noun or pronoun preceding it, make the noun or pronoun possessive. The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.
- Working efficiently is required in the restaurant business.
- She won three gold medals for swimming.
- The devaluing of the dollar continued throughout the summer.
- Don't criticize me trying to get his attention.
- I'd like to know Alicia thinking about the issue.
Correction
Thank you to the very sharp-eyed Susan M. who is apparently a big fan, along with many others of us, of the old TV programs, The Andy Griffith Show and Mayberry R.F.D. Susan caught our reference to characters in the show in the example, "Andy and Opie loved Aunt Bea's apple pies." Susan correctly pointed out that the proper spelling is Bee.
Thank you also to readers Yvonne T., Fred B., Amy J., and Carol R. who caught my error in the sentence, "There's not one mother I know that would allow her child to cross that street alone." Of course, it should be "There's not one mother I know who would allow . . ." (Note that I did just thank the readers who caught my error, not that caught my error!)
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 Wordplay
I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me!
England has no kidney bank, but it does have a Liverpool.
I used to be a banker, but then I lost interest.
All the toilets in New York's police stations have been stolen. Police have nothing to go on.
Pop Quiz Answers
- Working efficiently is required in the restaurant business.
- She won three gold medals for swimming.
- The devaluing of the dollar continued throughout the summer.
- Don't criticize my trying to get his attention.
- I'd like to know Alicia's thinking about the issue.
Learn all about who and whom, affect and effect, subjects and verbs, adjectives and adverbs, commas, semicolons, quotation marks, and much more by just sitting back and enjoying these easy-to-follow lessons. Tell your colleagues (and boss), children, teachers, and friends. Click here to watch. |
