The gerund

10.1 Certain verbs may be followed by an -ing verb form instead of an infinitive. The -ing
form of the verb that follows another is called a gerund. Verbs followed by a gerund
instead of a to-infinitive include:

avoid deny feel like keep practise

admit dislike finish mind resist

consider enjoy go miss risk

delay escape imagine postpone suggest

Excuse me. I am I’m sorry,

conducting a survey on but I don’t feel like
tourism. Would you mind answering.
answering some questions?
It won’t take long.

10.2 Verbs that follow most prepositions (at, in, on, of, about, by, etc.) are also used in the -ing form.
In this situation, the gerund is an object of the preposition.
Peter is good at dancing.
Joyce is thinking of learning Japanese.
Daniel was fined for littering.

10.3 After phrasal verbs (give up, look for, put off, etc.) and some expressions like can’t help, can’t stand,
etc. we also use the gerund.

I can’t stand I’ve decided to

waiting here any longer. give up smoking.
It’s noisy and crowded.

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 NOTE
If you can’t stand doing something, you strongly dislike it, or cannot accept it.
If you can’t help doing something, you can’t stop yourself from doing it.
I couldn’t help laughing when I heard the joke.
Compare: I’m sorry I couldn’t help you (to) paint your new flat yesterday.

10.4 The negative is formed by adding not before the gerund.

Would you mind not playing here? I’m doing my homework.

10.5 Some verbs can be followed by the -ing form or the to-infinitive without much difference
in meaning. Some of these verbs are:

begin continue hate like prefer

can’t bear intend love start try

Do you often Yes. I like

come here?
swimming/to swim.

Why don’t you

go by plane? My grandma
prefers travelling/to
travel by train.

NOTE
1 We do not normally use the -ing form after begin, start and continue when they are in the
continuous tenses.
It’s beginning to rain. We’d better hurry.
The verbs understand, see, know and realise usually take the to-infinitive form when they follow
the verbs begin, start and continue.
Not long after leaving home, she began to realise how much she missed her parents.
2 When we want to say that we like one thing better than another, we can use prefer in this way:
I prefer tea to coffee.
When our preference concerns two actions, we can say:
I prefer having dinner at home to eating out.

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 Practice

A Complete these sentences using the -ing form of the verbs in the margin. Use each word once only.

1 Anita enjoys travelling . She has been to many places around the world.
answer
break
2 I’m not in a hurry. I don’t mind waiting .
do
have
3 Ted denied breaking the window. He said it was already broken when he arrived.
leave
make leaving
4 They put off until the rain had stopped so they were late for the show.
meet
play
5 ‘The food is terrible,’ she said. ‘Who suggested having dinner in this restaurant?’
travel
wait
6 Why did he insist on doing the job himself? Didn’t he trust you?
write
7 ‘I wonder why she has delayed making the trip.’ ‘Perhaps she can’t get away from
her job.’

8 The actress avoided answering some of the questions the reporters asked her.

9 The two friends kept on writing to each other for many years. One day, they put
all their letters in this box.

10 I got Kate’s letter yesterday, but she didn’t mention meeting Andy on her trip.

11 Tony gave up playing football after his injuries.

B Rewrite the sentences using the given words. Make changes where necessary. Use the -ing form of verbs.

1 She left. She did not have breakfast. (without)

She left without having breakfast .
2 She brushed her teeth. Then she went to bed. (after)
She went to bed after brushing her teeth .
3 I feel sorry. I broke my promise. (for)
I feel sorry for breaking my promise .
4 I left a note for my mother. Then I went out. (before)
I left a note for my mother before going out .
5 We did not eat out last night. We had a simple dinner at home instead. (instead of)
instead of eating out last night
We had a simple dinner at home .

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 6 I collect stamps. It’s my passion. (for)
I have a passion for collecting stamps .
7 Betty doesn’t play squash any more. (give up)
Betty has given up playing squash .
8 I won’t join the club. I’m not interested. (in)
I’m not interested in joining the club .
9 She exercises every day. That way she manages to keep fit. (by)
She manages to keep fit by exercising every day .
10 They were able to climb to the top of the mountain. (succeed in)
They succeeded in climbing to the top of the mountain .

C Complete the exchanges using the verbs in brackets You can use either the -ing form or the to-infinitive
form of the verbs provided.

1
Are you interested
in photography? Yes. I like taking/to take (take)
photographs.

2
I didn’t know you had
so many stamps. Well, I started collecting/to collect (collect)
when I was ten.

3
Do you go to
No, not usually. I prefer walking/to walk (walk).
school by bus?
I take a bus only when the weather is bad.

4
Did you continue working/to work (work) Yes, we didn’t stop until
after I left? the job was finished.

5
Does your sister playing/to play
like music? Oh, yes, she loves (play)
the piano and she practises every day.

6
Do you know how Suzie’s
move to Australia went? I’ve tried contacting/to contact (contact)
her but I’ve had no news.

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 7
Why did you turn
off the TV? I couldn’t bear watching/to watch (watch)
that stupid programme.

8
writing/to write
When did he begin (write)
More than ten years
his book? ago.

9
Did you ask Fred to lend
you his surfboard? No, I hate borrowing/to borrow (borrow)
anything from others.

D Use the correct form of the verbs in the margin to complete the sentences. Sometimes there may be two
possible verb forms. Use each verb once only. The first two have been done for you as examples.

1 ‘I learned to swim when I was ten, but I’m afraid I’m not very good,’ he told me.
be
dance
2 She often goes to parties because she enjoys dancing .
fight
go
3 I did not begin packing/to pack until the night before I started the trip.
live
make to go
4 It’s still early. We don’t need home yet.
pack
see
5 My parents prefer living/to live here because it is convenient to get to their place
swim
of work.
take
turn
6 ‘The boys are starting to fight again,’ Mrs Chan said to her husband. ‘Can’t
watch
you do something to stop them?’

7 ‘Let’s take a tram.’ ‘I’d prefer to take a bus. It’s faster.’

8 My grandpa likes watching/to watch old Cantonese films on DVD. ‘They bring back
memories of the good old days,’ he says.

9 ‘I’ll be there on time,’ she said. ‘I hate being/to be late.’

10 She loves animal films, so she suggested seeing A Bite of Love, a film
about the friendship between a little girl and a dog.

11 When they started, they didn’t expect the weather to turn bad.

12 ‘I’m hungry,’ he said. ‘Would you mind making me some noodles?’

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E Choose the correct words to complete these sentences.
1 I like Shanghai, but I don’t want to stay (to stay/staying) there for a long time.

2 ‘Shall we go now?’ she asked. ‘No,’ he said. ‘I’d prefer to wait (to wait/waiting)
a few minutes.’
3 As time went by, I began to understand (to understand/understanding) her better.

4 ‘Shall I take you home?’ ‘Please don’t bother. I don’t mind going (to go/going)
home by myself.’
5 We prefer going (to go/going) to the cinema to renting a DVD from a video shop.

6 ‘I’d love to come (to come/coming),’ she said. ‘But my parents are out, and I can’t
just leave my brother at home alone.’
7 ‘Look,’ she said as she glanced out the window. ‘It’s starting to snow (to snow/
snowing).’

8 Emily doesn’t want her friends to know (to know/knowing) her home telephone
number.
to get
9 My grandmother has been ill for days but now she’s beginning (to get/
getting) better.

10 ‘Oil prices are continuing to rise (to rise/rising),’ the taxi driver complained.
‘This makes life harder for us.’
11 ‘Ben, I’d like you to meet (to meet/meeting) my brother Tim,’ she said to me.

12 As it was getting late, he suggested continuing (to continue/continuing) our discussion
the next day.

F Decide whether the underlined verbs are in the right form. Write a tick (✓) if the underlined verb is correct.
If not, write the correct answer in the space provided. The first two have been done for you as examples.

1 My father loves classical music. I plan getting him a CD for Father’s to get
Day.

2 People have only begun to see the importance of protecting our ✓

environment in recent years.

3 Alex has a lot of books. He enjoys reading. ✓

4 After Mrs Chan finished to clean the house, she took a short break. cleaning

5 She was angry and refused speaking to me. to speak

6 Linda started to cry when I asked her what had happened. ✓/crying

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 7 After dinner I like watching the news on TV before doing my ✓/to watch
homework.

8 What shall we do this afternoon? Would you like to go to the beach? ✓

9 Mr Chan plans to buy a house across the border. ‘It’s cheaper,’ he says. ✓

10 Do you prefer to live with your parents to having a flat of your own? living

11 Where’s Kate? I need talking to her about the picnic tomorrow. to talk

12 Why did they attempt crossing the river? What was the point of to cross
doing that?

13 ‘I hate to see you make a fool of yourself,’ she said to him. ✓

14 He is out of town. We don’t expect seeing him again until next Friday. to see

G Alice is talking about the city she wishes to visit and what she wants to do there. Complete the sentences
with the help of the pictures.

1
I’ve never been to Beijing. I’d love to visit

the city one day.

2
I’d like to take the train. I don’t mind
spending a longer time to get there. We
can relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way.

3
I love taking/to take photos. When I go there,
I will certainly take my camera with me.

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4
I’ve never seen snow, so I’d prefer to go

there in winter. Of course I will bring my warmest clothes

to catch
with me. I’d hate a cold when I’m
on holiday.

5
I plan to visit all the interesting places in the
city. My uncle has offered to show me round.
It’s so kind of him!

6
I will start learning/to learn to ski when I am there. My
aunt is good at it. She’s promised to teach me.

7
I hate staying/to stay in hotels. I’ve asked my uncle and
aunt to let me stay with them, and they have
agreed. I think that way I can learn more about the people in the
city and their lives.

8
During my stay, I’ll continue writing/to write my diary. I
will write down all of the things I do there and share

my experiences with my friends when I return.

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H Complete the following diary entry using the structure verb + to-infinitive or verb + gerund and
the words provided. Remember to use the correct form of the verb.

August 12

I had an argument with my mother again. She did not (1) allow me to go

(allow/me/go) to Jane’s party. She (2) kept talking (keep/talk) about

how I could easily pick up bad habits like smoking and taking drugs at parties.
I (3) tried to explain (try/explain) to her, but she wouldn’t listen. At last,

I (4) agreed to stay (agree/stay) at home. I always (5) enjoy being

(enjoy/be) with my friends. If Mum continues to (6) stop me

from going (stop/me/from go) out with my friends after school, nobody will

ever (7) think of inviting (think of/invite) me again. I must talk to Dad

about it. I’m sure he’ll help me out.

My sister (8) refused to eat (refuse/eat) her dinner again. She

admitted trying risked taking
(9)
(admit/try) to lose weight. She even (10)

(risk/take) drugs when she started dieting in Form 1. Every time

I talk to her, I can never (11) manage to convince (manage/convince) her of the

damage dieting can do to her health. She can’t go on like this. What should I do?

I Complete the following passage using the to-infinitive form, the bare infinitive form or the -ing form
of the verbs provided.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was a great inventor. He enjoyed (1) learning

(learn) things and as a result of hard work, he invented many useful devices.

Franklin’s school education came to an end when he was ten years old, but he never
stopped (2) learning (learn). For him, books were the tools that could help
him (3) (to) live (live) a happy and successful life.

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In his early youth, he had a friend who worked for a bookseller. Sometimes, his
lend
friend would (4) (lend) him a book, which he was required
(5) to return (return) quickly. Often, he had to keep on (6) reading

(read) for the whole night in order to return a book before his friend’s
employer noticed it was missing.

Later, he decided (7) to form (form) a club. He liked (8) holding

(hold) discussions on different topics at the meetings. The questions

were given to the members the week before they were asked (9) to discuss

(discuss) them. Franklin encouraged the members (10) to read

(read) as many books on the subject as they could (11) get

(get) so that they might (12) speak (speak) with more

understanding.

Before the middle of the 18th century, there was not even a good book shop south
of Boston, a city in the United States, from which you could (13) buy

(buy) the books you needed. People who loved (14) reading (read) had
(15) to order (order) their books from London, the capital of Britain.
Franklin decided (16) to improve (improve) the situation.

Franklin asked all members of the club (17) to bring (bring) their books
to the club. Members would be allowed (18) to borrow (borrow) and take
home any books they wanted (19) to read (read).

The arrangement was welcomed by the members and Franklin soon planned
(20) to do (do) something similar for other people in the city. The
next few days, he started (21) to make (make) the necessary plans and
before long, the people of Philadelphia had their first lending library.

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