The Gerund in the functions of Subject, Predicative, Part of Compound Verbal Predicate

9.1. As Subject GER is used in two types of sentence structures taking position either before the Pred. or following it:

Walking quickly is difficult; Not being tall was not a serious disadvantage for him. True, it's bad her having been a governess in our house. It’s difficult finding your way in a strange city.

Note the similarity between the way INF and GER are used in the same structure displaying some difference in grammatical semantics: It’s difficult to find/finding your way in a strange city – GER may refer to an action in progress (or someone’s experience), whereas the INF may imply action in general, stating how things can happen.

9.1.1. In the sentences whose subjects are introduced by it the predicatecontains be+ nominal elements. They distinguish several varieties, depending on the predicative to the linking verb be:

It+be+Adj: It’s strange Jack’s behaving like this.

It+be+N (NPh): It’s a nightmare worrying where the children might be. It’s tedious business attending so many meetings.

It+be+Negation: It's no use taking up a job you are not fit for. "It's not worth while yelling like that." She's not the one I'm after, so it's notworth looking at her; It's no use your looking frightened as I will show you no mercy; No, it's no use arguing - I have made up my mind; I'm afraid you must go... it's no good your staying.

9.1.2. Gerundial Subject in the sentences with introductory it follows such common phrases as:

Most of these sentences, especially those containing nouns use/good/point, relate to actions that are in process but are considered useless (pointless or purposeless) and can be paraphrased using modal verbs need, should and other expressions with the meaning “absence of necessity”: It’s no good complaining – Why complain? / You shouldn’t complain / Stop complaining (there’s no point).

9.2. In the function of Predicative GER follows linking verbs be (to express characterization or identity) and feel (like) (to identify someone’s feeling, desire, perception): Seeing is believing; His main hobby was collecting coffee mugs, although he had others, too, such as rowing, trekking, and attending operas; I don’tfeel like singing now, I’m too tired; “I assure you, Marilla, that I feel like praying tonight and I'm going to think out a special brand-new prayer in honor of the occasion.” (Compare other predicatives with feel– This feels like an orange. This material feels quite rough to me).

9.3.1. As Part of Compound Verbal Pred. GER follows a phasal verb and becomes an element of the Compound Verbal Phasal (aspective) Pred. (P of CVP). The phasal verb denotes a stage, a phase of the action referred to by the Gerund. The most common phasal verbs that take GER (and INF in the same function) are such as begin, cease, commence, continue, and start, but only gerunds follow such verbs as burst out, discontinue, finish, give up, go on, keep (on), take to (=resort to, begin practicing smth. as a habit):

The woman kept looking at me pretty curious, and I didn't feel a bit comfortable; Any one who keeps on asking one thing for a long time is a bad inquirer (Aristotle); When we went to the front porch, Jake was busy telling it to Miss Atkinson: they looked around at us and went on talking; And he burst out crying, hid his face in his hands, turned to the window and shook all over with his sobs. She took to getting up at five to go jogging before work.

9.3.2. The Gerund is not used as the Part of CVP after phasal verbs in the continuous form as two –ing forms used repeatedly (or in contact) within one member of the sentence, would sound awkward, e.g. it will be ungrammatical to say *It was beginning snowing. To avoid awkwardness the INF is used after the Continuous form of the phasal verb: It was beginning to snow. Although one may find frequently two –ing forms close they will belong to different parts of the sentence: We were disputingattending the school party (were disputing is Continuous Aspect of the verb used as predicate and attending is GER used as Obj.).

9.3.3. In such Predicates the verbs understand, realize, know and see in the sense of mental activity are used only in the form of the Infinitive: I do begin to realize that the matter must be presented in such a way as may interest the reader (*I began realizing is not acceptable).

9.3.4. GER is also used to make a specific type of idiomatic predicates that consist of the verbs go/come and GER and renders the meaning of outdoor activities concerned mostly with recreation and sport or with such routine activities as shopping, e.g. Why don’t we go swimming? Come dancing with us on Saturday. Yesterday we went sightseeing. Kids go Trick-Or-Treating on Halloween. I often go shopping on Saturdays. Is it all right if I go riding?

Such predicates are grammatically idiomatic – they are built on a regular basis with the help of verbs that have partly lost their lexical meaning and are needed merely as indicators of movement or general activity (come and go). Together with GER they refer to activities connected with movement from one place to another, such as climbing, dancing, (scuba-) diving, driving, fishing, hiking, hunting, mountaineering, (horse-back) riding, sailing, (wind-) surfing, (roller-) skating, (water-) skiing, shopping, sightseeing, trekking, walking, etc.