THE GERUND. "Подвиг этот, будет в памяти жить И в наших сердцах гореть

30 Ноября 1941 года командир звена 127-го ИАП Старший лейтенант Маравицкий погиб в неравном воздушном бою, защищая Ленинград... Общий итог его боевой деятельности, в различных источниках, оценивается по разному. Наиболее часто встречается цифра 47 (10 побед одержанных лично и 37 в составе группы), реже – 49 (12 лично и 37 в группе). Однако все эти цифры никак не стыкуются с цифрой личных побед – 14, приведенной выше. Более того, в одной из публикаций вообще утверждается, что свою последнюю победу Лука Муравицкий одержал в Мае 1945 года, над Берлином. Точных данных, к сожалению, пока нет.

THE GERUND

The Gerund is a non-finite form of the verb, which has verbal and nominal traits.

Nominal traits:

1. can perform the functions of subject, object, predicative, attribute.

(Reading is her favourite occupation. I remember reading it. He finished reading

the book. I had the pleasure of reading in the newspaper of your success.)

1. can be preceded by a preposition.

(I think of going to the South in the autumn.)

1. can be modified by a noun in the possessive case or by a possessive pronoun.

(Is there any objection to my seeing her?)

Verbal traits:

1. can be modified by an adverb.

(She ran out crying bitterly.)

1. can take a direct object.

(I have now made a good progress in understanding and speaking their language.)

3. has tense distinctions, gerund of transitive verbs – voice distinctions.

 

	active	passive
Indefinite	reading	being read
Perfect	having read	having been read

Indefinite (Simple)	active	He likes telling fairy tales. рассказывать
passive	He likes being told fairy tales. чтобы ему рассказывали
Perfect	active	He is proud of having spoken to this outstanding person. что поговорил
passive	He is proud of having been spoken to. что с ним поговорили

 

Functions in the sentence:

1. subject (Skating is pleasant.)

Герундий, выполняющий функцию подлежащего, может стоять

после сказуемого. В этом случае перед сказуемым стоит место-

имение it. Такое употребление герундия часто встречается после

выражений: it is (of) no use

it is useless бесполезно

it is no good

it is worth while стоит (потраченного времени)

(It’s no use talking about it. Is it any good doing it?)

2. attribute (always preceded by preposition)

The Oblique List:

idea of opportunity of interest in

hope for possibility of experience in

way of habit of skill in

chance of effort of pleasure in / of

feeling of gift of difficulty in

method of objection to instrument for

means of surprise at reason for

importance of disappointment at plan for

fear of astonishment at apology for

right of art of necessity of

problem of intention of process of

excuse for program for

(There are different ways of solving this problem.)

 

3. predicative (The only remedy for such a headache as mine is going to bed.)

- after the prepositions “for”, “against”

- to be on the point of

- to be far from

(When I came to the office the manager was on the point of leaving.)

Object

a). direct object

· mind the verbs after which the gerund is preferable:

to begin to prefer to deny

to continue to hate to avoid

to like to intend to postpone

to dislike I can (can’t)afford to stop

to finish to put off to mind

to enjoy to try to start

to keep (on) to go on to suggest

to give up to leave off to delay

to need to require to cease

to want to remember to quit

to recall to recollect to regret

to risk to mention to endure

· also after the phrases: to be worth, to be busy.

· after certain modal phrases in the negative form: can’t help can’t bear

can’t stand can’t resist

can’t face can’t fancy

can’t imagine

(When I entered the room, he was busy translating an article. I can’t help

telling you about it. They can’t bear being humiliated. I remember having seen him before. I don’t mind walking )

b). indirect prepositional object

mind the following verbs and word combinations:

to be fond of to be proud of to be sure of

to be ashamed of to be capable of to be surprised at

to be engaged in to be busy in to be interested in

to be keen on to be pleased at to be responsible for

to be aware of to be guilty of to look like

to feel like to insist on to depend on/upon

to complain of to succeed in to thank for

to think of to look forward to to praise for

to accuse of to confess to to be used to

to dream of to object to to approve of

to agree to to rely on to prevent from

to speak of to suspect of to blame for

to be tired of to give up to persist in

to apologize for to congratulate on to be tired of

to be sorry for to be afraid of to quick in

to aim at to believe in to long for

(He complained of my walking too slowly. He objected to the ships leaving the port in such stormy weather.)

 

5. adverbial modifier:

a). a. m. of time (with the prepositions: on, upon, after, before, in, at)

(Before leaving for Moscow I called on my brother.)

b). a. m. of cause (for, through, for fear of, owing to)

(Excuse me for being so late. He caught cold through getting his feet wet.)

c). a. m. of manner (by, in)

(The day was spent in packing. He improved his article by changing the end.)

d). a. m. of condition (without, in case of, in the event of)

(You will never speak good English without learning grammar.)

e). a. m. of purpose (for)

(One side of the gallery was used for dancing.)

f). a. m. of concession (in spite of, instead of)

(In spite of being busy, he did all he could do to help her.)

g). a. m. of attendant circumstances (without, besides, apart from, instead of)

(Besides being clever, he is very industrious. He left the room without waiting

for a reply.)

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№ 103 Point out the Gerund and comment on its noun and verb characteristics. Translateinto Russian.

1.He stopped writing and ran out into the bathroom. He started washing with great speed. He was two minutes late already. 2.It’s silly of me, but I can’t help feeling jealous. 3.On hearing the sound Rose hurried to the door and Grand to the window.4.The boy spent half the night in writing to his people. 5.I remember seeing it on the table. 6.He denied having opened the box. 7.I don’t like being lied to. 8.He left

without having paid the bill. 9.He was accused of having entered the country illegally.10.Would you mind waiting a moment in the hall? 11.I disliked my mother’s interfering in our business. 12.Writing quickly tires my hand. 13.Talking

about ourselves is what we modern authors have a strong objection to doing.

 

№ 104 Find gerunds in the sentences and state their noun and verb characteristics.

Translate into Russian.

1.Travelling abroad can be exiting enough, but just now it is more exiting being here. 2.She stopped answering my letters and I wondered what the matter might

be. 3.Can you recall having mentioned this fact to anyone? 4.Young Jolyon, on

the point of leaving the club, had put on his hat, and was in the act of closing the

hall, as the porter met him. 5.I understand perfectly your wanting to leave. 6.The

host broke the silence by inviting the guests to proceed to the dining-room. 7.The

idea is worth considering. 8.This is laying the blame at the wrong door. 9.People

will talk, there is no preventing it. 10.On being told the news she gave a gasp of

surprise. 11.I wonder at Jolyon’s allowing the engagement. 12.After having been

rejected by a dozen magazines, the stories were published by “the Globe”.

 

№ 105 Give all the forms of the gerunds of the following verbs:

e. g.: writing Indefinite

having written Perfect

being written Indefinite passive

having been written Perfect passive

 

To read, to attract, to surprise, to walk, to discover, to sit.

 

№ 106 State the syntactical function of the Gerunds in the following:

1.I like skating better then any other sport. 2.His managing the sail-boat so skillfully saved him from a shipwreck. 3.Catching the dog was not an easy matter. 4.

Your speaking so angrily makes me feel very sad. 5.I cannot go to his place with-

out having done my lessons first. 6.He didn’t like her for finding fault with everything he did. 7.On entering the hall he noticed something strange in the corner. 8.His experiments have shown that portions of the brain may be cut off without producing any pain. 9.Looking after children requires patience. 10.It is no use discussing it now, we must act. 11.It was no good taking the little darling up to town, she got only tired.12.Seeing is believing. 13.What he loves best in the world is playing football. 14.By studying early in the morning he saved a good deal of time. 15.She knew that there was a danger of falling ill. 16.He was busy getting ready for the journey. 17.He enjoyed teaching and he knew that he did it well.

 

№ 107 Comment on the functions of the Gerund in the following sentences:

1.The main thing to do in this situation is getting away as soon as possible. 2.The car began moving away down the road. 3.Every second he kept glancing at the clock. 4.The kind woman began crying before the boy had finished his sad story. 5.Do you mind seeing these photos again? 6.On reading her letter he had once more a feeling of disappointment. 7.The idea of settling down in that little town filled her with nothing but regret. 8.He was in the habit of reading after dinner in his favourite armchair. 9.However hard he tried he could not stop thinking about it. 10.I dislike reminding you of the things you ought to have done. 11.I can’t afford buying this expensive hat. 12.Before speaking he carefully thought out what he was going to say. 13.I walked to my place as fast as I could without breaking into a run. 14.Oh, how I dislike being interrupted! 15.Nobody thought of anything but spending money, and having what they called “a good time”. 16.But instead of soothing Shelton these words had just the opposite effect.

 

№ 108 Complete the following using gerunds

a).as a part of a compound verbal predicate:

1.Has it stopped …? 2.We must go on …. 3.The guide began …. 4.The doctor continued …. 5.When will you finish …? 6.Before the band started …. 7.The boy kept on …. 8.When the motors ceased …. 9. The kid burst out....

 

b). as a non-prepositional object:

1.Don’t put off …. 2.You should avoid …. 3.He hates …. 4.The book (poem, picture, film, proverb) is worth …. 5.She does not seem to mind …. 6.I don’t think he remembers …. 7.I don’t regret …. 8.Do you intend …? 9.Everyone enjoyed ….10.The car (stockings, house, shoes) wants (want) …. 11.They denied …. 12.The father suggested …. 13.He never mentioned …. 14.Just imagine …. 15.They don’t seem to have attempted …. 16. This new job is worth.... 17. She prefers... to....

18. When will you stop...? 19. Do you remember...?

c). as a prepositional object:

1.He never thought of …. 2.The boy is very clever at …. 3.I don’t insist on ….4.Does anyone object to …? 5.His friends accused him of …. 6.Children ought

to be prevented from …. 7.I am not used to …. 8.Nobody suspected us of …. 9.He was quick in …. 10. Did he confess to …? 11.We were tired of …. 12.Why do you persist in …? 13.We are most grateful to our guide for …. 14.Who would have thought him capable of …? 15.Did you succeed in …? 16. I found them engaged in ….17.Who is responsible for …? 18. The parents didn’t approve of.... 19. He was blamed for....20. The old friends were used to.... 21. Nothing could prevent him from....

 

d).as an attribute:

1.It was very kind of you to have taken the trouble of …. 2.The idea of … was extremely exciting. 3.I can’t make out the reason for …. 4. There was little hope of …. 5.He is well-known for his skill in …. 6.In summer you will have the chance of …. 7.Do you have any objections to …? 8.At the party I had the pleasure of …. 9.He displayed no interest in …. 10.He very quickly got into the habit of …. 11.We were tired of …. 12.They snatched at the opportunity of …. 13.I’ve got no experience in …. 14.We took precautions against …. 15.This is the most perfect instrument for …. 16.What is the most effective method of …? 17. It was the only chance of.... 18. The young student gave the impression of.... 19. We must find the best way of.... 20. He grew into the habit of....

 

e).as an adverbial modifier:

1. His outlook has broadened after …. 2.In … she missed a line. 3. She took far too much upon herself by …. 4.I don’t want to raise false hopes by …. 5.He produced his pass on …. 6.You will have to take my words on faith before …. 7.He was so much irritated that on … he banged down the receiver without …. 8.In … the geological party struck upon a new oil deposit. 9.He could tell the funniest joke without …. 10.In spite of … the sportsman pulled through to the finish. 11.He was afraid he might upset all their plans by …. 12.But for … the

play would not have enjoyed such popularity. 13.On … the young man did not trouble himself to reply. 14.Take your time before …. 15.On … she suddenly felt her nerves were at breaking point. 16.The matter cannot be so easily dismissed without ….

 

f).as subject or predicative:

e. g.:(He liked to read books.)

a). … was his favourite pastime.

b).His favourite pastime was ….

a).Reading books was his favourite pastime.

b).His favourite pastime was reading books.

 

1.(Why go into every detail?) I think it’s no use …. 2.(Now you keep strict hours

of meals.) … must do you a lot of good. 3.(The children watched the monkeys go through different tricks.) It was such fun …. 4. (We could not get in that night.)

All the tickets were sold out, there was no …. 5.(I see you are going to assemble your bicycle.) Is it worth while … so long before the beginning of the season? 6.(It was so very pleasant to be free and alone.) What I enjoyed most in that quiet corner after the noise of the city was …. 7.(The boy cried over the broken toy.) “Is it any good …?” the mother said to the child. ”Tears are no help in sorrow.” 8.(I did not expect to find you there.) It was quite unexpected …. 9.(You distort facts and turn things upside down.) This is …, it is …. 10.(He liked to collect postage stamps.) a). … was a hobby with him. b).His hobby was …. 11.(When one reads without paying attention to the language, one robs oneself of great intellectual pleasure.) … is …. 12.(Did he realize what risk he was running when he tried to land the plane on such a small clearing in the wood?) He knew only too well that … was …, but there was

no alternative.

 

№ 109 Use the appropriate form of the Gerund:

1. The old man caned me for (to smoke, to drink, to lie), (to avoid) church, (to skip) school. 2. Psychologists have succeeded in (to undermine) parents’ confidence in their own authority. 3. The children apologized for (not to come) home for Christmas dinner. 4. I am really ashamed of (not to write) to you so long. 5. He is proud of (to graduate) from Oxford University. 6. They insisted on the decision (to take) immediately. 7. She was indignant at her husband (to keep) so late at the office. 8. Nick’s mother was surprised at his (to accuse) of bad conduct at school. 9. Even now I still don’t like (to be) an only child. I hate a horror of (to be) alone. 10. He didn’t remember (to feel) lonely as a child, but he used to invent his own dream world.

 

№ 110 Use the appropriate form of the Gerund of the verbs in brackets:

1.(to speak) without (to think) is (to shoot) without aim. 2.Do you know what is peculiar about the English rule of (to drive)? 3.I’m glad to say that the lady didn’t keep us (to wait). 4.I remember (to take) to Paris when I was a very small child. 5.I strongly suspect Geruld of (to know) all about it beforehand, though he says he didn’t. 6.Excuse me for not (to write) more at the moment. 7.She never lost the power of (to form) quick decisions. 8.She denied (to see) me at the concert though I’m sure I saw her in the stalls. 9.I want to thank her for (to look) after the children while I was out. 10.He passed to the front door and out without (to see) us. 11.I enjoy (to read) poetry. 12.I don’t mind (to stay) here for a little while. 13.Are you going to keep me (to wait) all day? 14.He suspected her of (to give) the police information about him. 15.They reproached us for not (to come) to the party; they were waiting for us the whole evening. 16.I sat on the doorstep thinking over my chances of (to escape) from home. 17.There is very little hope of the work (to do) in time. 18.He had an air of (to be) master of his fate.

 

№ 111 Use the appropriate form of the Gerund. Insert prepositions where necessary.

1.Now I can boast (to see) Rome and London, Paris and Athens. 2.How did you like the English rule (to drive) on the left side of the road instead of the right? 3.I hate (to be) ill and (to stay) in bed. 4.We all kissed Mother (to go) to bed. 5.I’m not used to (to receive) presents. 6.At every school she went to she learned drawing, besides (to teach) by her father at home. 7.I remember (to go) to the British Museum one day. 8.She walked a little (to leave) her office. 9.My wife and I are looking forward (to see) you and Rosa. 10.The doctor left three different medicines with instructions (to give) them. 11.You can improve you pronunciation (to read) aloud.12.The children had to help (to sweep) and (to clean) the rooms and (to wash up) after meals. 13.The silence was broken by the sound of a door (to lock). 14.I dislike the idea (to spend) a holiday with thousands of other people. 15.I went out for a while (to give) the boy the prescribed medicine.

 

After the verbs to want, to need, to require, to deserve;after worth active gerund is used though it is passive in its meaning.

(My watch needs repairing.)

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№ 112 Open the brackets using the Gerund of the given verb in the active or passive voice (non-perfect form):

1.Why do you avoid (to see) me? 2.He tried to avoid (to see). 3.We insist on (to send) him there at once. 4.He insists on (to send) there instead of me. 5.Do you mind (to examine) the first? 6.He showed no sign of (to know) them. 7. He showed no sign of (to impress). 8.He had the most irritating habit of (to joke) at the wrong moment. 9.I was annoyed at (to interrupt) every other moment. 10.He hated (to remind) people of their duties or (to remind) of his. 11.On (to introduce) they easily fell (to talk). 12.In (to discuss) the problem they touched upon some very interesting items. 13.The equipmentmust go through a number of tests before (to install). 14.The water requires (to filter). 15.The matter is not worth (to speak of). 16.The operator can set the machine in motion by (to push) the button or (to press) the pedal.

 

№ 113 Open the brackets using the Gerund of the given verb in the active or passive voice (non-perfect form):

1. He was always ready for (to help) people. 2. He was very glad of (to help) in his difficulty. 3. On (to allow) to leave the room, the children immediately ran into the yard and began(to play). 4. In (to make) this experiment, they came across some very interesting phenomena. 5. The results of the experiment must be checked and rechecked before (to publish). 6. David was tired of (to scold) all the time. 7. The watch requires (to repair). 8. The problem is not worth (to discuss). 9. Jane Eyre remembered (to lock) up in the red room for (to contradict) Mrs. Reed. 10. Why do you avoid (to speak) to me? 11. She tried to avoid (to speak) to. 12. The doctor insisted on (to send) the sick man to hospital. 13. The child insisted on (to send) home at once. 14. Do you mind him (to examine) by a heart specialist. 15. He showed no sign of (to recognize) me. 16. She showed no sign of (to surprise). 17. He had a strange habit of (to interfere) in other people’s business. 18. I was angry at (to interrupt) every other moment.

 

№ 114 Use the correct form of the Gerund.

A. 1. Managers enjoy (to boss) other people but they hate (to contradict) to though some of them don’t mind (to give) a piece of advice if they are in trouble. 2. You denied (to ask) Langton to get poison or rather you expressed surprise at his (to do) so. 3. I remember (to go) to the British museum one day to read Encyclopedia Britannica. 4. I’ll talk to my convenience friend about (to be) overweight but not about (to depress). 5. I felt proud of (to be) of use to her but I couldn’t think of anything to say to her. 6. Mother jumped to the conclusion that the girl had gone out for the evening without (to tell) anybody. 7. We are thankful to you for (to meet) our friends at the airport. 8. He is upset by (to reject) by her. 9. That meant (to work) very hard and (to earn) no money for two or three more years. 10. I took a deep breath and followed my rule of never (to speak) frankly to women in moments of emotion.

B. Mr. Davis hated his wife (to look) at. He also hated her (to invite) anywhere w