0
Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Gerund after ... 'to be' .. please help
Hi, I would like to ask you to give me some examples of gerund after the verb 'to be'.
Somehow I have never had problems with speaking but the more grammar I analyze the less confident I become, and whatever I would have said would have been ok until now that I start to think about grammar when I speak.
I have read that gerund follows prepositions and CERTAIN verbs, and that it can be a subject, but I have found myself using it after 'to be'.
Please take a look at these sentences, they're from the Internet:
The thing I like least about my job is telling people "No."
1) My job is looking after the people.
2) One of the coolest aspects of this sport is watching these athletes build storied careers.
3) The biggest risk here is breaking the relationships because the relationships themselves aren't completely understood.
Now, I know that some -ing verbs look like gerunds but in fact they are true nouns, which means that they can follow the verb 'to be', unfortunately I am not able to distinguish them from real gerunds:
My favourite sport is riding a bike/swimming.
Somehow I have never had problems with speaking but the more grammar I analyze the less confident I become, and whatever I would have said would have been ok until now that I start to think about grammar when I speak.
I have read that gerund follows prepositions and CERTAIN verbs, and that it can be a subject, but I have found myself using it after 'to be'.
Please take a look at these sentences, they're from the Internet:
The thing I like least about my job is telling people "No."
1) My job is looking after the people.
2) One of the coolest aspects of this sport is watching these athletes build storied careers.
3) The biggest risk here is breaking the relationships because the relationships themselves aren't completely understood.
Now, I know that some -ing verbs look like gerunds but in fact they are true nouns, which means that they can follow the verb 'to be', unfortunately I am not able to distinguish them from real gerunds:
My favourite sport is riding a bike/swimming.
Top answer
The present continuous is formed by be + -ing form of a lexical verb. The auxiliary verb be is used to indicate the progressive aspect. He/She/It is working.
- The present continuous is formed by be + -ing form of a lexical verb.
- The auxiliary verb be is used to indicate the progressive aspect.
- He/She/It is working.
- Cheers Everard
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
2 Answers
0
The present continuous is formed by be + -ing form of a lexical verb.
The auxiliary verb be is used to indicate the progressive aspect.
He/She/It is working.
Cheers
Everard
The auxiliary verb be is used to indicate the progressive aspect.
He/She/It is working.
Cheers
Everard
00
Gerunds can usually but not always be replaced with an infinitive.
My job is looking after/(to look after) the people.
When a gerund follows the verb 'to be' it's possible to front the sentence with the gerund (sentence rewrite).
Looking after/( to look after) the people is my job.
My job is looking after/(to look after) the people.
When a gerund follows the verb 'to be' it's possible to front the sentence with the gerund (sentence rewrite).
Looking after/( to look after) the people is my job.
0
Related Questions