Uses of Gerunds
Leila - November 6th
Certain verbs in English are always followed by gerunds and never by infinitives. A gerund is a noun derived from a verb and ending in "ing".
Examples:
He apparently enjoys studying English.
Do you mind closing the window?
He has stopped taking English lessons.
Other verbs besides enjoy, mind and stop, belonging to this same group, are: avoid, consider, appreciate, finish, deny, admit, risk, dislike.
Since the gerund is really a noun, it is used after all prepositions in the same way that a noun is used.
Examples:
John is fond of dancing.
He needs more practice in speaking English.
The difficulty of doing that is clear to all.
The gerund is also used after the special expressions: to be worth and no use.
That movie is certainly worth seeing.
There's no use calling Mr. Jones at this late hour.
