Grammar exercises

What Are Gerunds?

Gerunds are nouns that are made up of a verb + '-ing'.

Functions

Gerunds can serve different functions in sentences. The list below presents some of their functions:

• Subject

• Object

• Object of a Preposition

• Subject Complement

Now, let us discuss some of them in more detail.

Gerunds as the Subject

Gerunds are commonly used as the subject of the verb. Study the following examples carefully:

Singing has always been my passion.

Crying is her greatest weakness.

Gerunds as the Object

Gerunds can also serve as the object of the verb. Take a look at the following examples:

Do you think she enjoys writing?

Anna hates exercising.

Gerunds as Objects of Prepositions

Gerunds can also appear after prepositions and function as objects of prepositions. Check out the following examples:

I'm not afraid of jumping.

She is really skilled at convincing my dad.