Thread: I hope none of you is bidding on this

A verb form that ends in -ing and is used as a noun.


see what happens when I stay awake?

I tip my hat to your word of the week.


A gerund phrase includes a present participle (a verb form ending in -ing) plus any complements and modifiers.

A verb used as a noun (in Modern English with an “–ing” ending) is a gerund. In the sentence “Reading was Alfred’s favorite leisure

verb ending in -ing, such as "printing

a noun formed by adding the suffix -ing to an infinitive verb.




john

Originally Posted by JohnE

I tip my hat to your word of the week.


A gerund phrase includes a present participle (a verb form ending in -ing) plus any complements and modifiers.

A verb used as a noun (in Modern English with an “–ing” ending) is a gerund. In the sentence “Reading was Alfred’s favorite leisure

verb ending in -ing, such as "printing

a noun formed by adding the suffix -ing to an infinitive verb.




john

So far, so good, but you haven't got to the tricky bit yet.

Most people would quite happily and deftly (are we allowed to use other forms of the word of the week?) use gerunds (there's the alternate word of the week) while remaining quite oblivious to the fact that they are using one.

The problem arises when they are used with pronounsin a sentence such as, "What did your wife think about you buying yet another Series I project vehicle?"

The pronoun "you" is incorrect for the same reason it would be incorrect to say, "What did your wife think about you sixth Series I project vehicle?"

"Buying" is behaving like a noun in the first sentence just as much as "vehicle" is in the second.

So the correct version would be, "What did your wife think about your buying yet another Series I project vehicle?" for the same reason that it would be, "What did your wife think about your sixth Series I project vehicle?"

Mind you, there are only about two or three of us left alive who bother to use the possessive case of pronouns with gerunds and we were all born before the middle of last century.

Is this the most hijacked thread in AULRO history ?

55 posts & only 17 can be linked to the original .

Originally Posted by Scouse

Is this the most hijacked thread in AULRO history ?

55 posts & only 17 can be linked to the original .

Including these last 2 (49+17=56)

Maybe we need an English Language Forum, where all the spelling, grammar, syntax rants can be placed. Putting a language related post (other than a seminal language related link in a thread) anywhere else on AuLRO will result in 1 demerit point.

Diana

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Including these last 2 (49+17=56)

Maybe we need an English Language Forum, where all the spelling, grammar, syntax rants can be placed. Putting a language related post (other than a seminal language related link in a thread) anywhere else on AuLRO will result in 1 demerit point.

Diana

if that were the case all posts would get moved there and leave the rest of the forum redundant i reckon

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Including these last 2 (49+17=56)

Maybe we need an English Language Forum, where all the spelling, grammar, syntax rants can be placed. Putting a language related post (other than a seminal language related link in a thread) anywhere else on AuLRO will result in 1 demerit point.

Diana

Originally Posted by dullbird

if that were the case all posts would get moved there and leave the rest of the forum redundant i reckon

Right - there's the first 2 demerit points .

Originally Posted by vnx205

The problem arises when they are used with pronounsin a sentence such as, "What did your wife think about you buying yet another Series I project vehicle?"

"What does your wife think about you, buying another etc. etc"

would this make 'and your' understood?