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Smithsruleok Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Grammatical structure
In the statement 'He stopped smoking', what is the grammatical structure of smoking? I thought it was the verb smoke in it's -ing form but apparently not.
Top answer
You were right. " And there she sat, smoking a joint. ) Welcome to English Forums, by the way.
- You were right.
- " And there she sat, smoking a joint.
- ) Welcome to English Forums, by the way.
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5 Answers
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You were right. It's the "-ing" form of the verb "to smoke." In some cases we call it a "present participle," but in this case we call it a "gerund," because it serves as a noun, being the direct object of the verb "to stop."
And there she sat, smoking a joint. (This is a present participle, fronting a participial phrase, modifying the entire main clause, I would say.)
And there she sat, smoking a joint. (This is a present participle, fronting a participial phrase, modifying the entire main clause, I would say.)
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smithsruleok in it's -ing form
and of course its and not it's as the possessive
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I should add that although my 1980's American Heritage Dictionary does not, several online dictionaries have separate listings for "smoking" as a noun and as an adjective.
This is often the case with both the present and past participles. Both can usually serve as adjectives, and the gerund is functionally a noun.
When they become widely used in these "secondary" functions, some dic
This is often the case with both the present and past participles. Both can usually serve as adjectives, and the gerund is functionally a noun.
When they become widely used in these "secondary" functions, some dic
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