Support material

Learning activity 2
Presentation

Gerunds are quite common in English. They are formed

with the base of a verb plus ing. Even though gerunds look like verbs in the
present continuous, their grammatical function is different.

Gerunds can be affirmative or negative. Negatives are formed by putting not before
the ing form.

Amanda is talking about her weekend activities. Read the text below and see how
gerunds were used:

I love Saturdays; they are delicious. I

like waking up early to go to the gym.
I exercise for about two hours.
Exercising is good for your health.
Then, I go to my guitar class. I am
interested in playing musical
instruments. I am not very good at
playing the guitar, but I am learning.
After lunch, I love having some coffee
with good friends or going to the
movies with my boyfriend. Finally, I
enjoy reading a good book in front of
my chimney and drinking a glass of
wine. I then go straight to bed as I am
usually exhausted.

Fuente: SENA

As you can see in the text above, gerunds have different functions depending on
their position in a sentence. Read the chart below and get familiar with its different
uses:
 Type Function Example

I love taking naps in the

When gerunds are used afternoon.
as objects of a sentence, She enjoys talking to her mother.
Objects:
they are preceded by a We dislike cleaning the house.
verb or preposition: She is worried about losing her
job.

Working makes me hungry.

When you use a verb as
Living in a big city is stressful.
the subject of a sentence,
Subjects: Smoking is not allowed.
you regularly use its
gerund form. No having a healthy diet is a
cause of cancer.

She is good at dancing.

Andres is interested in surfing.
If you use a verb after a
After I always take a shower before
preposition, you have to
preposition: sleeping.
use its gerund form.
I am thinking of moving to
Medellin.

Common verbs followed by gerund. Observe the following chart. These verbs are
commonly followed by gerunds. Here, gerunds are used as objects in the sentence.

Verbs to express likes and dislikes:

Verb Example
Love I love swimming in the beach. It is quite relaxing
Enjoy Mark enjoys singing Karaoke at the bar
Dislike The baby dislikes taking a shower
Hate I hate working in such stressful environment
Dont mind Karen doesnt mind taking care of the baby.
Cant stand Sofia cant stand using high heels at the office
Cant bear I cant bear living in such a mess!
Other verbs commonly followed by gerunds:

Verb Example
Appreciate I appreciate studying in this university.
Consider The government considers paying taxes is
compulsory.
Delay They delayed moving to a bigger office due to the budget.
Deny He denied killing his girlfriend.
Fancy I fancy jumping from an airplane.
Finish I always finish doing the dishes by 9.
Imagine Karl cant imagine living without her.
Involve Your duties involve writing monthly reports.
Keep Andy keeps studying French in that academy.
Mention The teacher mentioned doing the presentations next class.
Mind Do you mind working extra hours?
Miss Does your mom miss speaking to you on the phone?
Practice I practice speaking French in my free time.
Prefer Do you prefer taking the test now?
Stop I usually stop working at noon to have lunch.
Suggest The doctor suggests moving to a peaceful place.

Attention: Some verbs from the list below can be followed either by a
gerund or an infinitive: like love - Hate - prefer - cant stand

Example:

I like going to the movies on weekends

Both are correct.
I like to go to the movies on weekends

Arnold Hates eating meat.

Both are correct.
Arnold hates to eat meat.

Practice
A. Observe the following signs. Match each sign to the correct description below.

Fuente: SENA

a. Fishing permitted.

b. Taking photos is not allowed.

c. Swimming is prohibited.

d. Wearing a helmet is required.

e. No hunting.

f. Smoking is banned.

B. These sentences are supposed to use gerunds. However they have mistakes.
Find and correct the mistake in each sentence. One example is done for you.

Example:

She enjoying playing the piano. She enjoys playing the piano.

1. Andres hates live in New York. _________________________

2. I miss swim at the beach. _________________________

3. She is good at dance. _________________________

4. Maria loves visited her mother. _________________________

 5. Wear swimsuit is require. _________________________

6. Nicole is interesting in snorkeling. _________________________

C. Watch the pictures and write a sentence using the information provided. Follow
the model in the example.

Image Clue Sentence

She loves eating ice

love / eat
cream.

like / walk

cant stand / use /

metro
 hate / exercise

dislike / do the dishes

like / listen to music

Fuente de imgenes: SENA

D. Mark is talking about his weekend activities. Complete the text with using the
verbs in the box. Use each verb only once. Use the gerund form of each verb.

Sleep - do - shop - stay - work - live - drink

- go

My Saturdays are boring. I have to study in the morning at the university. Then, I
have to work all afternoon at my parents supermarket. I hate (1) __________ on
Saturdays. The supermarket is usually very busy. People love (2) __________on
Saturdays. I usually finish working late at night, so I relax (3) __________ some
beers with my friends until midnight.

Sundays are different. I like (4) __________ late, so I wake up at about midday
and take a shower. My family loves (5) __________ out to have lunch on Sundays.
We usually go to a restaurant outside the city where we can enjoy nature and
breathe clean air. I dont really like (6) __________in the city as the air is quite
polluted and the traffic is hectic. In the afternoon, I finish (7) __________ my
homework for next week and then I go to sleep. I dont like (8) __________ up late
as I have to wake up early on Mondays.

E. Organize the words to make sentences. One example is done for you.

0. listening / loves / she / to / music / classical

She loves listening to classical music

1. dancing / she / good / is / at

___________________________________

2. Mario / interested / in / football / is playing?

___________________________________

3. near / we / living / hate / landfill / the

___________________________________

4. she / smoking / started / her / pregnancy / after

___________________________________

5. wearing / Karol not / glasses / does / like

___________________________________

6. Panama / they / living / miss / in

___________________________________

7. listening / we / stand / music / to / rock / cant

____________________________________
 Production

A. What do you usually do on the weekend? Write a 150-word text describing your
weekend activities. Mention things you like and things you dont like doing. Use
gerunds when possible and the vocabulary studied in this learning activity.

Fuente: SENA
 Document control

Name Position Dependence Date

Theme expert
Asesor English Direccin de
Author Juan Carlos
Dot Works - Formacin October
Solano
Programa de Profesional. 2014
Franco
Bilingismo Direccin General

Centro
Luz Clarena Copy editor Lnea
Adaptation Arias Agroindustrial. October 2014
de Produccin
Gonzlez Regional Quindo