Verbals

A verbal is a noun or adjective formed from a verb. Writers sometimes make mistakes by using a verbal in place of a verb, and in very formal writing, by confusing different types of verbals. This section covers three different verbals: the participle (which acts as an adjective), the gerund (which acts as a noun), and the infinitive (which also acts as a noun). The fundamental difference between verbals and other nouns and adjectives is that verbals can take their own objects, even though they are no longer verbs: Gerund Building a house is complicated. In this example, the noun phrase "a house" is the direct object of the verbal "building", even though "building" is a noun rather than a verb.

The Participle
A participle is an adjective formed from a verb. To make a present participle, you add "-ing" to the verb, sometimes doubling the final consonant: "think" becomes "thinking" "fall" becomes "falling" "run" becomes "running" The second type of participle, the past participle, is a little more complicated, since not all verbs form the past tense regularly. The following are all past participles: the sunken ship a ruined city a misspelled word Note that only transitive verbs can use their past participles as adjectives, and that unlike other verbals, past participles do not take objects (unless they are part of a compound verb).

The Gerund
A gerund is a noun formed from a verb. To make a gerund, you add "-ing" to the verb, just as with a present participle. The fundamental difference is that a gerund is a noun, while a participle is an adjective: gerund I enjoy running. ("Running" is a noun acting as the direct object of the verb "enjoy.") participle Stay away from running water. ("Running" is an adjective modifying the noun "water.")

Using Verbals
There are two common problems that come up when writers use verbals. The first is that since verbals look like verbs, they sometimes cause students to write fragmentary sentences: [WRONG] Oh, to find true love! [WRONG] Jimmy, swimming the most important race of his life. The second problem is a very fine point, which most editors and some teachers no longer enforce. Although they look the same, gerunds and present participles are different parts of speech, and need to be treated differently. For example, consider the following two sentences: I admire the woman finishing the report.

I admire the woman's finishing the report. In the first example, "finishing" is a participle modifying the noun "woman": in other words, the writer admires the woman, not what she is doing; in the second example, "finishing" is a gerund, modified by the possessive noun "woman's": in other words, the writer admires not the woman herself but the fact that she is finishing the report.

Participles A participle is a verb form used as an adjective to modify nouns and pronouns. The following sentence contains both a present and a past participle: The children, crying and exhausted, were guided out of the collapsed mine. Crying is a present participle, formed by adding -ing to the present form of the verb (cry).Exhausted is a past participle, formed by adding -ed to the present form of the verb (exhaust). Both participles modify the subject, children. All present participles end in -ing. The past participles of all regular verbs end in -ed. However, irregular verbs have various past participle endings (for instance, thrown. ridden, built, and gone). A participial phrase is made up of a participle and its modifiers. A participle may be followed by an object, an adverb, a prepositional phrase, an adverb clause, or any combination of these. In this sentence, for example, the participial phrase consists of a present participle (holding), an object (the torch), and an adverb (steadily): Holding the torch steadily, Merdine approached the monster. In the next sentence, the participial phrase consists of a present participle (making), an object (a great ring), and a prepositional phrase (of white light):

Merdine waved the torch over her head, making a great ring of white light. For more information about using participles and participial phrases, visit Creating and Arranging Participial Phrases. Gerunds A gerund is a verb form ending in -ing that functions in a sentence as a noun. Although both the present participle and the gerund are formed by adding -ing to a verb, note that the participle does the job of an adjective while the gerund does the job of a noun. Compare the verbals in these two sentences:

The children, crying and exhausted, were guided out of the collapsed mine. Crying will not get you anywhere. Whereas the participle crying modifies the subject in the first sentence, the gerund Crying is the subject of the second sentence. Infinitives An infinitive is a verb form--often preceded by the particle to--that can function as a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. Compare the verbals in these two sentences:

I don't like crying in public unless I'm getting paid for it. I don't like to cry in public unless I'm getting paid for it. In the first sentence, the gerund crying serves as the direct object. In the second sentence, the infinitive to cry performs the same function.

Gerunds in English
In English, the gerund is identical in form to the present participle (ending in -ing) and can behave as a verb within a clause (so that it may be modified by an adverb or have an object), but the clause as a whole (sometimes consisting of only one word, the gerund itself) acts as a noun within the larger sentence. For example: Eating this cake is easy. In "Eating this cake is easy," "eating this cake," although traditionally known as a phrase, is referred to as a non-finite clause in modern linguistics. "Eating" is the verb in the clause, while "this cake" is the object of the verb. "Eating this cake" acts as a noun phrase within the sentence as a whole, though; the subject of the sentence is "cake." Other examples of the gerund:   I like swimming. (direct object) Swimming is fun. (subject)
[1]

Not all nouns that are identical in form to the present participle are gerunds.

The formal distinction is

that a gerund is a verbal noun a noun derived from a verb that retains verb characteristics, that functions simultaneously as a noun and a verb, while other nouns in the form of the present participle (ending in -ing) are deverbal nouns, which function as common nouns, not as verbs at all. Compare:   I like fencing. (gerund, an activity, could be replaced with "to fence") The white fencing adds to the character of the neighborhood. (deverbal, could be replaced with an object such as "bench") [edit]Double

nature of the gerund

As the result of its origin and development the gerund has nominal and verbal properties. The nominal characteristics of the gerund are as follows: 1. The gerund can perform the function of subject, object and predicative:   Smoking endangers your health. (subject) I like making people happy. (object)

2. The gerund can be preceded by a preposition:  I'm tired of arguing.

3. Like a noun the gerund can be modified by a noun in the possessive case, a possessive adjective, or an adjective:    I wonder at John's keeping calm. Is there any objection to my seeing her? Brisk walking relieves stress.

The verbal characteristics of the gerund include the following: 1. The gerund of transitive verbs can take a direct object:  I've made good progress in speaking English.

2. The gerund can be modified by an adverb:  Breathing deeply helps you to calm down.

3. The gerund has the distinctions of aspect and voice.   [edit]Verb Having read the book once before makes me more prepared. Being deceived can make someone feel angry.

patterns with the gerund

Verbs that are often followed by a gerund include admit, adore, anticipate, appreciate, avoid, carry on, consider, contemplate, delay, deny, describe, detest, dislike, enjoy, escape, fancy, feel, finish, give, hear, imagine, include, justify, listen to, mention, mind, miss, notice, observe, perceive, postpone, practice, quit, recall, report, resent, resume, risk, see, sense, sleep, stop, suggest, tolerate and watch. Additionally, prepositions are often followed by a gerund. For example:        I will never quit smoking. We postponed making any decision. After two years of deciding, we finally made a decision. We heard whispering. They denied having avoided me. He talked me into coming to the party. They frightened her out of voicing her opinion.

[edit]Verbs followed by a gerund or a to-infinitive

[edit]With little change in meaning

advise, recommend and forbid: These are followed by a to-infinitive when there is an object as well, but by a gerund otherwise.

The police advised us not to enter the building, for a murder had occurred. (Us is the object of advised.)

The police advised against our entering the building. (Our is used for the gerund entering.)

consider, contemplate and recommend: These verbs are followed by a to-infinitive only in the passive or with an object pronoun.   People consider her to be the best. She is considered to be the best. I am considering sleeping over, if you do not mind.

begin, continue, start; hate, like, love, prefer With would, the verbs hate, like, love, and prefer are usually followed by the to-infinitive.  I would like to work there. (more usual than working)

When talking about sports, there is usually a difference in meaning between the infinitive and gerund (see the next section).

[edit]With a change in meaning

like, love, prefer In some contexts, following these verbs with a to-infinitive when the subject of the first verb is the subject of the second verb provides more clarity than a gerund.   I like to box. (I enjoy doing it myself.) I like boxing. (Either I enjoy watching it, I enjoy doing it myself, or the idea of boxing is otherwise appealing )  I do not like gambling, but I do like to gamble."

dread, hate and cannot bear: These verbs are followed by a to-infinitive when talking subjunctively (often when using to think), but by a gerund when talking about general dislikes.     I dread / hate to think what she will do. I dread / hate seeing him. I cannot bear to see you suffer like this. (You are suffering now.) I cannot bear being pushed around in crowds. (I never like that.)

forget and remember:

When these have meanings that are used to talk about the future from the given time, the to-infinitive is used, but when looking back in time, the gerund.     She forgot to tell me her plans. (She did not tell me, although she should have.) She forgot telling me her plans. (She told me, but then forgot having done so.) I remembered to go to work. (I remembered that I needed to go to work.) I remembered going to work. (I remembered that I went to work.)

go on:  After winning the semi-finals, he went on to play in the finals. (He completed the semi-finals and later played in the finals.)  He went on giggling, not having noticed the teacher enter. (He continued doing so.)

mean:   I did not mean to scare you off. (I did not intend to scare you off.) Taking a new job in the city meant leaving behind her familiar surroundings. (If she took the job, she would have to leave behind her familiar surroundings.) regret:   try: When a to-infinitive is used, the subject is shown to make an effort at something, attempt or endeavor to do something. If a gerund is used, the subject is shown to attempt to do something in testing to see what might happen.   Please try to remember to post my letter. I have tried being stern, but to no avail. We regret to inform you that you have failed your exam. (polite or formal form of apology) I very much regret saying what I said. (I wish that I had not said that.)

[edit]Gerunds preceded by a genitive Because of its noun properties, the genitive (possessive case) is preferred for a noun or pronoun preceding a gerund.  We enjoyed their [genitive] singing.

This usage is preferred in formal writing or speaking. The objective case is often used in place of the possessive, especially in casual situations:

I do not see it making any difference.

Really, 'I do not see its making any difference' is the correct option. This may sound awkward in general use, but is still the correct manner in which to converse or write. And this form of gerund is applicable in all relative cases, for instance:      He affected my going there. He affected your going there. He affected his/her/its going there. He affected our going there. He affected their going there.

This is because the action, of doing or being, belongs, in effect, to the subject/object (direct or indirect) practising it, thus, the possessive is required to clearly demonstrate that. In some cases, either the possessive or the objective case may be logical:  The teacher's shouting startled the student. (Shouting is a gerund, and teacher's is a possessive noun. The shouting is the subject of the sentence.)  The teacher shouting startled the student. (Shouting is a participle describing the teacher. This sentence means The teacher who was shouting startled the student. In this sentence, the subject is the teacher herself.) Either of these sentences could mean that the student was startled because the teacher was shouting. Using the objective case can be awkward if the gerund is singular but the other noun is plural. It can look like a problem with subject-verb agreement:  The politicians' debating was interesting.

One might decide to make was plural so that debating can be a participle.  The politicians debating were interesting.

[edit]Gerunds

and present participles

Insofar as there is a distinction between gerunds and present participles, it is generally fairly clear which is which; a gerund or participle that is the subject or object of a preposition is a gerund if it refers to the performance of an action (but present participles may be used substantively to refer to the performer of an action), while one that modifies a noun attributively orabsolutely is a participle. The main source of potential ambiguity is when a gerund-participle follows a verb; in this case, it may be seen either as a predicate adjective (in which case it is a participle), or as a direct object or predicate

nominative (in either of which cases it is a gerund). In this case, a few transformations can help distinguish them. In the table that follows, ungrammatical sentences are marked with asterisks, per common linguistic practice; it should be noted that the transformations all produce grammatical sentences with similar meanings when applied to sentences with gerunds but either ungrammatical sentences, or sentences with completely different meanings, when applied to sentences with participles. Transformation Gerund use Participle use

(none)

John suggested asking Bill.

John kept asking Bill.

Passivization

Asking Bill was suggested.

*Asking Bill was kept.

Pronominal substitution

John suggested it.

*John kept it.

Use as a noun

John suggested the asking of Bill.

*John kept the asking of Bill.

Replacement with a finite clause

John suggested that Bill be asked. *John kept that Bill be asked.

Use with an objective or possessive subject John suggested our asking Bill.

*John kept his asking Bill.

Clefting

Asking Bill is what John suggested. *Asking Bill is what John kept.

Left dislocation

Asking Bill John suggested.

*Asking Bill John kept.

None of these transformations is a perfect test, however. [edit]English

gerund-like words in other languages

English words ending in -ing are often transformed into pseudo-anglicisms in other languages, where their use is somewhat different from in English itself. In many of these cases, the loanword has functionally become a noun rather than a gerund. For instance, camping is a campsite in Bulgarian, Dutch, French, Greek, Italian, Romanian, Russian, and Spanish; in Bulgarian, Dutch, French, Polish, and Russian parking is a car park; lifting is a facelift in Bulgarian, French, German, Italian, Polish, Romanian, and Spanish. The French word for shampoo is (le) shampooing.

The Gerund
Recognize a gerund when you see one.
Every gerund, without exception, ends in ing. Gerunds are not, however, all that easy to identify. The problem is that all present participles also end in ing. What is the difference? Gerunds function as nouns. Thus, gerunds will be subjects, subject complements,direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of prepositions. Present participles, on the other hand, complete progressive verbs or act as modifiers. Read these examples of gerunds:
Since Francisco was five years old, swimming has been his passion.

Swimming = subject of the verb has been.

Francisco's first love is swimming.

Swimming = subject complement of the verb is.

Francisco enjoys swimming more than spending time with his girlfriend Diana.

Swimming = direct object of the verb enjoys.

Francisco gives swimming all of his energy and time.

Swimming = indirect object of the verb gives.

When Francisco wore dive fins to class, everyone knew that he was devoted to swimming.

Swimming = object of the preposition to. These ing words are examples of present participles:
One day last summer, Francisco and his coach were swimming at Daytona Beach.

Swimming = present participle completing the past progressive verb were swimming.
A great white shark ate Francisco's swimming coach.

Swimming = present participle modifying coach.

Now Francisco practices his sport in safe swimming pools.

Swimming = present participle modifying pools.

Verbals
Gerunds

A verbal is a word formed from a verb but functioning as a different part of speech. A gerund is a verbal ending in -ing that functions as a noun. Like an ordinary single-word noun, a gerund may be used as a SUBJECT

DIRECT OBJECT

RETAINED OBJECT

SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT

OBJECT OF PREPOSITION

APPOSITIVE

DELAYED APPOSITIVE In the example below, the gerund phrase renames the subject, this.

NOTE: Do not confuse gerunds with verbs (predicates) in the progressive tense. GERUND

PREDICATE VERB

Even though is cooking and was scratching end in -ing, they are not gerunds because they are used as predicate verbs, not as nouns.

Participles

A verbal is a word formed from a verb but functioning as a different part of speech. A participle is a verbal that functions as an adjective. Two kinds of participles: 1. Present participles, always ending in -ing, are created from the form of a verb used with the verb to be ( am, is, are, was, were, been) as an auxiliary verb (progressive tense).

Removing the auxiliary verb and using the -ing form of the main verb as an adjective produces a present participle.

2. Past participles, usually ending in -ed or -en, are created from the form of a verb used with the verb to be as an auxiliary verb (passive voice).

Removing the auxiliary verb and using the -en form of the main verb as an adjective produces a past participle.

Past participles may also be part of a participial phrase.

Participles and participial phrases should be placed near the nouns they modify. They may either precede or follow a noun.

For punctuation rules used with participles and participial phrases, follow this link.

Infinitives

A verbal is a word formed from a verb but functioning as a different part of speech. An infinitive is a verbal formed by placing to in front of the simple present form of a verb. Examples:

to swim to turn

to think

to read

to be

to cut

Infinitives may function as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns.

1. Adjectival infinitives Just like a single-word adjective, an infinitive used as an adjective always describes a noun. An adjectival infinitive always follows the noun it describes. EXAMPLE

Like gerunds and participles, infinitives may incorporate other words as part of their phrase. EXAMPLE

2. Adverbial infinitives Just like a single-word adverb, an infinitive used as an adverb always describes a verb.

An adverbial infinitive usually occurs at the beginning or at the end of a sentence and does not need to be near the verb it describes. EXAMPLE: Adverbial infinitive at sentence beginning

EXAMPLE: Adverbial infinitive at sentence end

HINT: You can always identify an adverbial infinitive by inserting the test words in order in front of infinitive. If the words in order make sense, the infinitive is adverbial.

PUNCTUATION NOTE: 1. Use a comma after the adverbial infinitive when it starts a sentence. 2. Do not separate the adverbial infinitive from the rest of the sentence if the infinitive ends the sentence.

3. Nominal infinitives Like a single-word noun, a nominal infinitive may function as a SUBJECT

DIRECT OBJECT

RETAINED OBJECT

SUBJECTIVE COMPLEMENT

APPOSITIVE

DELAYED APPOSITIVE