When using the idiom "A way with", can I add a verb after it if it's a gerund?
For example,
- She has a way with playing cards.
- The school has a way with accepting only good candidates.
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pilti
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2I'm a non-native speaker, but as a rule of thumb (only for my personal uses), I usually assume I can use gerunds in the places of 'something' that has been specified on the dictionary. I'm assuming gerund is basically a different kind of noun. – Gwangmu Lee Mar 09 '19 at 08:38
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2@GwangmuLee https://ell.stackexchange.com/a/114533/3395 – Mar 10 '19 at 14:55
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A gerund is a noun, not a verb. The expression "a way with" means "a talent for", and a noun following is required. I would hesitate to use 'accepting' in the second example, since acceptance is a matter of policy, and might prefer to use 'selecting' instead, since this would be something that the school has a flair for.
Michael Harvey
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The definition of a 'gerund' is an -ing verb form functioning as a noun. When it is functioning as a verb, it is called a 'present participle'. – Michael Harvey Mar 10 '19 at 15:04