The gerund is a kind of helping verb that ends in -ing which follows the main verb:
sleeping
Dr. Freud imagined sleeping through a double feature starring Betty Grable.(red= main verb)
dreaming
Blimpy never finished dreaming of his hamburger.(red= main verb)
The counterpart to the gerund is the infinitive. Whether one uses the gerund or the infinitive depends on what the main verb in the sentence. The following is an incomplete list of verbs that take only gerunds.
Verb + Gerund
| admit | discuss | imagine | put off | risk |
| appreciate | enjoy | miss | quit | suggest |
| avoid | escape | postpone | recall | tolerate |
| deny | finish | practice | resist |
Bill enjoys playing the piano.(red= main verb)
Some main verbs will take both the gerund and the infinitive.
Verb + Gerund or Infinitive
| begin | continue | like | can't stand | start |
| hate | love |
I love skiing.[gerund] (red= main verb)
I love to ski.[infinitive] (red= main verb)
With some verbs, however, the choice of a gerund or infinitive changes the meaning dramatically:
| forget | remember | stop | try |
She stopped speaking to Lucia.[gerund] (red= main verb)
She stopped to speak to Lucia.[infinitive] (red= main verb)