Question

Read the sentences below. Decide how the bolded verbal is functioning in the sentence. Write
the letter of the correct function in the box.
Sentence Fun
ctio
n
Typ
e
To win requires dedication. A Infi
Function Bank
A. Subject (Doing the action)
B. Direct Object (Receiving the action)
C. Modifier (Acting as an adjective
describing a noun)






niti
ve
The barking dog woke the
neighbors.
Par
tici
ple
I really enjoy reading mystery
novels.
Ger
und
Running keeps him healthy. Ger
und
She bought a book to read on the
plane.
Infi
niti
ve
￿ Hint: If you can replace
the verbal with "IT" and the
sentence still makes
grammatical sense, it's
acting as a Noun (Subject
or Object)!
￿ Puzzle 3: The Tricky Participle vs. Gerund
Both present participles and gerunds end in -ing. Can you tell them apart? Sort the phrases
below into the correct column.
Phrase Bank:
● Dancing is fun
● The dancing bear
● I love cooking
● The cooking show
● Falling leaves
● Afraid of falling
Gerunds (Nouns) Participles (Adjectives)

Answer 1

Answers — part 1 (choose A = Subject, B = Direct Object, C = Modifier)

1. To win requires dedication. — A
2. The barking dog woke the neighbors. — C
3. I really enjoy reading mystery novels. — B
4. Running keeps him healthy. — A
5. She bought a book to read on the plane. — C

Brief note: “to read on the plane” is an infinitive phrase showing purpose and thus modifies “book” (adjective).

Part 2 — Gerund vs Participle

Gerunds (nouns)
- Dancing is fun
- I love cooking
- Afraid of falling

Participles (adjectives)
- The dancing bear
- The cooking show
- Falling leaves