Gerund as Subject, Object or Complement. Week 12

One issue that is important to emphasize is the gerunds as subjects of the sentence; then a little explanation of the topic:

Try to think of a gerund as a noun in verb form.

Like nouns, gerunds can be the subject, object or complement of a sentence:

• Smoking costs a lot of money.

• I don't like writing.

• My favourite occupation is reading.

But, like verbs, a gerund can also have an object itself. In this case, the whole expression (gerund + object) can be the subject, object or complement of the sentence.

• Smoking cigarettes costs a lot of money.

• I don't like writing letters.

• My favourite occupation is reading detective stories.

Like nouns, we can use gerunds with adjectives (including articles and other determiners):

• pointless questioning

• a settling of debts

• the making of this film

• his drinking of alcohol

When we use a gerund with an article, it does not usually take a direct object:

• a settling of debts (not a settling debts)

• Making this film was expensive.

• The making of this film was expensive.

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