Basic Details
Word: Gerund
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A verb form ending in -ing that is used as a noun, as in 'Swimming keeps me fit.'
How to Spell Gerund
Syllables: ger - und
Tricky part: The g is soft and sounds like j, but it is spelt with g. The r is single and the ending is -und.
Watch out for: jerund, gerand, gerrund
Memory tip: A gerund is a verb that has run off to become a noun: the word run sits in ge-RUN-d.
Usage Examples
Example 1: In 'Cooking is my hobby', cooking is a gerund.
Example 2: Our teacher drew a circle around every gerund in the paragraph.
Example 3: A gerund can be the object of a verb, as in 'I enjoy painting'.
Fun Fact
Gerund comes from the Latin gerundium, which is linked to gerere, meaning to carry on or to do.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word:
1. infinative 2. interjecsion 3. gerund 4. sufix
a) letters added at the end of a word
b) a verb form ending in -ing used as a noun
c) a word that shows sudden feeling, such as oh or wow
d) the base form of a verb, often with to
Show answer
b) a verb form ending in -ing used as a noun. Infinitive has only i's before its final e, interjection ends in -tion, and suffix doubles its f.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
In the sentence 'Reading before bed helps me sleep', the word reading is a jerund because it acts as the subject while still looking like a verb.
a) verb
b) jerund
c) sentence
d) subject
Show answer
b) jerund. Gem, giant and gerund all begin with a g that is said like j.
Mingle-Mangle
Unscramble the jumbled word in the sentence and choose the correct word:
In 'Dancing keeps Asha fit', the word dancing is a ednurg.
a) gerund
b) grunted
c) under
d) ground
Show answer
a) gerund. Ground needs an o, grunted needs a t, and under has no g; six letters, including e, make gerund.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In which sentence is the -ing word a gerund?
a) The jogging girl waved.
b) Jogging is good exercise.
c) She is jogging now.
d) They were jogging slowly.
Show answer
b) Jogging is good exercise.
2. A gerund does the work of a ____.
a) preposition
b) article
c) noun
d) conjunction
Show answer
c) noun
