Gerunds, Present And Past Participles

1.  GERUNDS, PRESENT AND PAST PARTICIPLES

(Rosaliala Dita, Andika Putri & Yudha M.)

v Gerunds

A gerund is the-ing form of a verb used as a noun. A gerund phrase will begin with a gerund, an –ing word. Gerund phrase always function as nouns.

3 kinds of gerunds:

1.      Gerund as Subject

Placed in the beginning of sentences.

Ex: Reading a novel is my hobby.

2.      Gerund as Object

Placed at the end or after verb 1.

Ex: I love studying English so much.

3.      Gerund after Preposition

Preposition such as: at, in, on, for, before, after, without, by, of, with, about, etc.

Ex: The team should be hard at exercising.

v Present and Pas Participle

A.    Present Participle (Verb + ing)

Present participle is used adjective form for noun. Present participles are formed by adding –ing to the verb stem. As an adjective, a present participle modifies a noun that affects someone or something else.

Function: To modify a noun that affects someone or something else.

Examples:

·         The plot of the movie is boring.

·         The journey was really exciting.

·         The new song is interesting.

·         The fans are interesting in the new song.

B.     Past Participle (Verb + ed)

Past participle is past form of verb, as an adjective. Past participles are formed by adding –ed, to the verb stem, but some of the irregular forms may end in –d, -en, -n, or –t.

Function: To modify a noun that is affected by someone or something else.

Examples:

·         I am rather bored with the plot of the movie.

·         I was really excited after the journey.

·         The fans were interested in the new song.

·         The new song was interested.

The difference

When we use a verb in –ing form more like a noun, it is usually a gerund.

Example:

§  Fishing is fun.

The word of fishing in the sentence is an example of gerund, because it uses as a noun.

When we use a verb in –ing form more like a verb or an adjective, it is usually a present participle.

Example:

§  I have a boring teacher.

This is example of present participle, fishing and boring used as adjective and verb.