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Types of Verbals

The document explains three types of verbals: gerunds, infinitives, and participles, detailing their functions and providing examples. Gerunds end in -ing and act as nouns, infinitives include 'to' plus a verb and can function as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns, while participles act as adjectives. It also covers verbal phrases, which include verbals and their modifiers, with examples for each type.

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4 views

Types of Verbals

The document explains three types of verbals: gerunds, infinitives, and participles, detailing their functions and providing examples. Gerunds end in -ing and act as nouns, infinitives include 'to' plus a verb and can function as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns, while participles act as adjectives. It also covers verbal phrases, which include verbals and their modifiers, with examples for each type.

Uploaded by

Marinel Padua
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Types of Verbals

Using single-word verbals is an effective way to vary your sentence structure and add descriptive
details to your writing. Take a look at the three types of verbals, and see if you can identify them
in example sentences.

Gerunds

A gerund is a verbal that ends in -ing and functions as a noun. In the sentence "Reading is my
favorite hobby," the -ing word reading is the gerund. You could replace the gerund with another
noun, such as "baseball" or "gymnastics," and the sentence would still make sense.

Gerunds often appear as the subject of the sentence. For example:

 Cooking helps me relax at the end of the day.


 Practicing will only help you get better.
 Smoking is dangerous for everyone.
 Cheating has become much easier with technology.
 Winning isn't the most important part of the game.

You'll also find gerunds as the object of a sentence:

 I think cooking is a relaxing activity.


 Even though you don't like practicing, it will help you get better.
 Never start smoking because it's dangerous for everyone.
 Technology has led to an increase in cheating.
 We don't believe that winning is the most important part of the game.

Notice that in all of these examples, the gerund is functioning as a noun. Whether it's the subject
or the object of the sentence, a gerund always ends in -ing.

Infinitives

An infinitive is a verbal that includes "to" and a present-tense verb. In the sentence "Now is the
best time to start," the infinitive is to start. Infinitives can function as adjectives, adverbs or
nouns in a sentence.

When an infinitive modifies a noun, it's functioning as an adjective. For example:

 Let's find a game to play. ("to play" modifies "game")


 France is my favorite country to visit. ("to visit" modifies "country")
 Your ability to dance is incredible. ("to dance" modifies "ability")

Infinitives function as adverbs when they modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs:
 To play, we all draw a card. ("to play" modifies "draw")
 I traveled to France to visit. ("to visit" modifies" traveled")
 Did you go to Julliard to dance? ("to dance" modifies "go")

Finally, infinitives can function as nouns, either as subjects or objects in a sentence. For
example:

 I'd like to play. ("to play" is the direct object)


 This is a movie that we really want to watch. ("to watch" is the direct object)
 To dance is to express yourself with your body. ("to dance" is the subject)

Participles

A participle is a verbal that functions as an adjective. Like all adjectives, you'll either find
participles right before the noun they modify, or you'll find them functioning as predicate
adjectives after a linking verb. There are two kinds of participles: present participles (ending in -
ing) and past participles (ending in -ed or -en).

Like gerunds, present participles end in -ing. However, unlike gerunds, they only act as
adjectives. For example:

 This depressing movie makes me feel sad.


 Tyler is so charming and thoughtful.
 Did you understand that confusing book?
 The ending to that episode was surprising!
 These gloves warm up my freezing fingers.

Examples of past participles in a sentence include:

 This movie makes me feel depressed.


 Wendy was immediately charmed by Tyler's thoughtfulness.
 That last math problem left me so confused.
 Were you surprised by the ending of the episode?
 These gloves warm up my frozen fingers.

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Types of Verbal Phrases


Verbal phrases include verbals and their modifiers. They’re exactly the same as verbals, except
they have a few added words. Just like verbals, there are three kinds of verbal phrases: gerund
phrases, infinitive phrases, and participial phrases.

Gerund Phrases
A gerund phrase contains a gerund along with some modifiers. The phrase then functions as a
noun. Remember, gerunds always end in -ing.

Examples of gerund phrases include:

 Cooking dinner helps me relax at the end of the day.


 Even though you don't like practicing the trumpet, it will help you get better.
 Smoking in public is dangerous for everyone.
 Technology has led to an increase in cheating among students.
 Winning trophies isn't the most important part of the game.

As you can see, gerund phrases can appear as subjects or objects in a sentence. Like gerunds, you
can replace these phrases with another noun and the sentence will still make sense.

Infinitive Phrases

When you add modifiers to an infinitive, you create an infinitive phrase. The whole phrase acts
as an adjective, adverb or noun. These verbals always begin with the word “to" and a present-
tense verb.

Examples of infinitive phrases in sentences include:

 Let's find a game to play while we wait.


 I traveled to France to visit my grandmother.
 To dance on stage is to express yourself with your body.
 I'd like to watch the new action movie.
 To be a firefighter, you must go through a lot of physical training.

As long as the phrase begins with "to" and a verb, it's an infinitive phrase. If the phrase begins
with "to" and a noun, you're looking at a prepositional phrase.

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Participial Phrases

Adding modifiers to a participle results in a participial phrase. These verbal phrases act as
adjectives to describe nouns in the sentence. You can put participial phrases at the beginning or
end of a sentence.

Examples of present and past participial phrases include:

 Depressed from the movie, I decided to watch something else.


 Tyler, charming as always, complimented Wendy's outfit.
 Confused by the book, we asked the teacher for help.
 Surprised by the episode's ending, I sat on the couch in shock.
 My fingers, frozen from the snow, shivered as I put on gloves.

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