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The
gerund
is
a non-finite form of the verb which combines the functions of the
noun and the verb.
There’s
no gerund in Russian and so it can be treated by:
a
noun
: e.g.
Dancing is good. Танцы это хорошо.
an
infinitive:
e.g.
It’s no good hiding from the truth. Бесполезно прятаться
от правды.
the
Russian деепричастие
e.g.
On seeing her he stopped in amazement. Увидев её,…
a
subordinate clause(the
passive forms of the gerund are nearly always rendered such):
e.g.
He regretted having come. Он сожалел, что ..
e.g.
After having been informed of this event he set to work quietly.
После того, как ему сообщили…
The
noun characteristics of the gerund are:
like
a noun it can be used as subject
e.g.
Teaching is our family tradition.
like
a noun it can be used as object
e.g.
I remember hurrying to the station that night.
like
a noun it can be used as predicative
e.g.
His hobby is collecting computer games.
Like
a noun it takes
a preposition in the functions of a post-positional attribute and an
adverb.mod.
e.g.
We disliked his idea of spending the night in the dirty motel. On
(если без on, то Part.1) returning home he saw them all
present.
Like
a noun it can
be modified by a possessive pronoun or by a noun in the possessive.
e.g.
I can rely on his doing it properly. Mary’s sleeping at that
hour puzzled me.
То, что Машка спит…
The
verb characteristics of the gerund are:
like
a verb the gerund distinguishes tense,
but it expresses only relative time.
A
non-perfect
gerund
expresses simultaneousness
or
futuaruty.
Any perfect
gerund
expresses priority.
e.g.
She
enjoyed reading this book (simult.)
She
insisted on going there without their parents.(fut.)
He
confessed to having done it in fun.(prior.)
He
spoke of already seen that movie(prior.)
!!!
N.B
after
the prepositions
after,
on, before, without
and
after
remember,
forget,
regret,
thank
we
can use both
perf.&non-perf.
gerund
to express priority.
e.g.
On hearing (--having heard)the buzzer she rushed into the class. I
remember doing it at random.
2.
like a verb the gerund disting. voice
(active
& passive)
e.g.
I like asking questions but I dislike being asked.
He
wrote of having recovered and of having been advised to spend a
month in the South.
!!!
N.B.
After need,
want, require, deserve, worth
the
gerund is used in the form of the active voice
and
in
the
meaning of the passive voice.
e.g.
The fence wants painting. The film is worth seeing|watching. The
boy deserves punishing.
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Voice
|
Tense
|
Simple
|
Perfect
|
|
Active
|
writing
|
having
written
|
|
Passive
|
being
written
|
having
been written
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3.
like a verb the gerund of transitive verbs can
take a direct object.
e.g.
Watering flowers was her favourite occupation.
4.
like a verb the gerund can
be modified by an adverb.
e.g. She stopped crying bitterly.
Functions of the Gerund
subject.
e.g.
Learning rules without examples is useless.
In
this funct. The gerund is always placed after the predicate &
the position of the subject is filled in by the formal it
or there.
e.g.
It’s no use crying over spilt milk.
There
was no stopping him.
There’s
no forgetting it.(это нельзя забыть)
There’s
no denying this fact.(этот
факт нельзя отрицать)
predicative.(
only Simple Active \ Passive Gerund)
e.g.
What she loves best in the world is going to the zoo.
Her aim is1the mastering English
in the
shortest
time possible.
What
tired him greatly was being questioned by the reporters.
3.
the
notional part of a CV(M\A) predicate
(begin,
start, go on, continue, leave off, give up,
finish,
have done)
e.g.
It began snowing. They may start asking some questions.Have you
done writing?
prepositional(non-prepositional)
object a verb,
a verb-phrase or to the adj. busy,
worth:
an
attribute
(it’s always used with a preposition in this function.)
e.g.
His habit of chewing his nails won’t do him any good.
6.
an
adverbial modifier
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