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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

Why isn't 'by' a conjunction?

I really don't understand why 'by' isn't a conjunction when used to mean 'through the means of'.
Take these sentences:

'She made a sound by moving her mouth.'
'He decided by flipping a coin.'

They can't be simple sentences because they contain more than one main verb, right? And if they're compound sentences then they have to contain a conjunction, which is surely 'by'?

Please help, it's doing my head in. Thanks, Megan
  

Top answer

Anonymous I really don't understand why 'by' isn't a conjunction The -ing form when used without an auxiliary verb is not considered a finite verb form. "moving" and "flipping" in your examples are called gerunds, a sort of hybrid between a verb and a noun. Gerunds are never considered "main verbs".

— CalifJim

  • Anonymous I really don't understand why 'by' isn't a conjunction The -ing form when used without an auxiliary verb is not considered a finite verb form.
  • "moving" and "flipping" in your examples are called gerunds, a sort of hybrid between a verb and a noun.
  • Gerunds are never considered "main verbs".
  • , constructions with finite verb forms.
  • ) CJ
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2 Answers
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AnonymousI really don't understand why 'by' isn't a conjunction
The -ing form when used without an auxiliary verb is not considered a finite verb form. "moving" and "flipping" in your examples are called gerunds, a sort of hybrid between a verb and a noun. Gerunds are never considered "main verbs".

Conjunctions typically join clauses, i.e., construc
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Anonymous'She made a sound by moving her" mouth.' 'He decided by flipping a coin.'
"by" is a preposition in the sentences. It is followed by a verbal noun, gerund, (a noun-like form derived from a verb).
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