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I saw countless youtube videos and grammar books but -ing is too hard.

losing weight

gaining weight

are "losing" and "gaining" gerund or adjective?

herisson
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english
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1 Answers1

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In theory, both. Gerunds are verbal forms that function as nouns: in this sense, gaining weight has roughly the same meaning as process where one gains weight, with weight being the object of the verb.

However, they could also be adjectives, modifying weight: the weight that is gaining. This doesn't make sense for this particular choice of words (which is why I start my answer with "in theory"); but if we take another example:

  • Cheating friends is the worst: gerund (the activity where one cheats one's friends is the worst)
  • Cheating friends are the worst: adjective (friends who cheat are the worst)
Amadan
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  • Gerunds are not nouns. Gerunds are verbs—always. Gerund phrases function as nouns. Gerunds do not. A gerund phrase is a verb phrase that is functioning as a noun. The gerund itself cannot. For example “always cheating your friends” has only one noun: friends, because it is the object the verb cheating. It takes an adverb because it is a verb; if it were a noun, it could not take an adverb. – tchrist Nov 11 '16 at 05:01
  • @tchrist: I never said gerunds are nouns. Good point, gerund phrases function as noun phrases, not gerunds themselves as nouns; but a gerund itself can be a gerund phrase ("running is fun"). But most dictionaries I checked carry the simplified definition I quoted. – Amadan Nov 11 '16 at 05:09
  • Could you please show me then a gerund that functions as a noun? I don't mean a gerund phrase filling the NP slot either. Please show me a gerund by itself not as a gerund phrase that comports itself after the manner of a noun by accepting adjectives and prepositions joining it to another noun. I don't think these exist because I don't believe gerunds can ever be nouns, only verbs. I am willing to be shown otherwise. – tchrist Nov 11 '16 at 05:27
  • For the record, the OED2 has: “A form of the Lat. vb. capable of being construed as a n., but retaining the regimen of the vb. Hence applied to forms functionally equivalent in other langs., e.g. to the Eng. verbal noun in -ing when used rather as a part of the vb. than as a n.” So the OED says that in English it means an -ing “verbal noun” used as a verb rather than as a noun. All that said, they are not especially consistent. – tchrist Nov 11 '16 at 05:32
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    I (as I already said) agree with you. But I don't have access to OED; meanwhile, M-W: an English noun formed from a verb by adding -ing; Cambridge Dictionary: a word ending in "-ing" that is made from a verb and used like a noun; Oxford Living Dictionaries: A verb form which functions as a noun, in Latin ending in -ndum (declinable), in English ending in -ing (e.g. asking in do you mind my asking you?); even your own quote says "capable of being construed as a n.". None of them mention noun phrase. – Amadan Nov 11 '16 at 05:40
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    That said, I think a gerund form can act as a noun or as a verb, but not both: keeping cooking as head, I like delicious cooking is okay, I like cooking meat as well, but not **I like delicious cooking meat* (needs either delicious cooking of meat or cooking meat deliciously). – Amadan Nov 11 '16 at 05:46
  • Er, not quite. In “I like delicious cooking”, there is no gerund at all because that’s a deverbal noun accepting an adjective. In “I like cooking meat” it is either a participial adjective describing meat or else it is a verb whose direct object is meat. Deverbal nouns and participial adjectives are not gerunds because they are no longer verbs: they are merely nouns and adjectives. Only in the case taking object complements is the -ing word functioning as a verb, and thus only there alone is it a gerund. Once verb-ness is lost, so too is gerund-ness. :) – tchrist Nov 11 '16 at 05:50
  • @tchrist: I was careful to say "gerund form", not "gerund" :) And I still agree with you :) – Amadan Nov 11 '16 at 05:53
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    Related: http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/154886/pure-verbal-nouns-deverbal-nouns-vs-gerunds – pyobum Nov 11 '16 at 06:12