| English Wikibook (edit) |
| General: Introduction - Grammar |
| Parts of speech: Nouns - Verbs - Adjectives - Adverbs - Pronouns - Conjunctions - Prepositions - Interjections |
| Parts of the sentence: Subjects - Predicates |
| Word functions: Subjects - Predicates - Direct Objects - Indirect Objects - Objects of the Preposition |
| Types of sentences: Simple Sentences - Complex Sentences |
| Types of Phrases: Adjective - Adverb - Noun |
| Types of Clauses: Adjective - Adverb - Noun |
| Other English topics: Gerunds - Idiomatic Phrases - Spelling - Vocabulary - Punctuation - Syntax - Appositives - Phonics - Pronunciation |
Gerunds are verbs which perform the function of a noun. In other words, they are verbal-nouns. That is, they act as verbs as well as nouns. They end in "-ing".
- For example: "Swimming is a good exercise."
- Here, "swimming" is the subject of the verb is.
- Swimming is a verb; the present participle of swim. Here, it is the subject of a sentence and it can be called a noun. So, swimming is a gerund.
- Examples:
- "Fishing was his favorite pastime."
- "The rustling of cloth made him turn."