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Verb + Prep + Gerund

Express opinion or comment on activities

¹ specified preposition – is a preposition that takes a noun phrase or gerund/gerund clause as its complement (see below). See Prep Complements.

² gerund clause (formerly a "gerund phrase") –  is called a gerund nonfinite clause. A nonfinite clause cannot stand alone. It rarely includes a subject, and its verb is a secondary verb form (infinitival, gerund-participle or past participle) which cannot be inflected for tense, person or number. It is a dependent clause serving as a subject or a complement to a verb, a preposition or a noun.

gerund phrase – is a deprecated term. The term phrase is reserved for an element of a clause such as: noun phrase (NP), prepositional phrase (PP), verb phrase (VP), adverb phrase (AdvP) and so on. See Phrase–a dependent in a clause.

complement — is an element or elements (required by some other part of the clause) to complete the meaning of the clause. (e.g., We thanked / him/ for his gift. [verb complements (objects)] or  He is arriving in [the morning]. (prep complement—P [NP]) The noun phrase is required to complete the preposition.])

look forward — eagerly anticipate, wait for something that you want to happen soon

specify (V) – require an element (a particular element)

A verb that requires another element (NP, PP, Clause) is called transitive (a term not limited to verb + direct object.)  For example, the subject and verb cannot stand alone in the following: He dropped his coat. He hung up his coat. He knows that I am wrong.)  

Other Lists: Verb + Prep (List) | Adjective + Prep Phrase (List) | Participle Modifier & Preposition (List) | Noun + Prep Phrase

 

Word Categories: N – Noun; V – Verb; Aux – Auxiliary; Adj – Adjective; Adv – Adverb; P –Preposition; Det –Determiner. See Word Categories.

Phrasal Categories: NP – Noun Phrase; VP – Verb Phrase; AdjP – Adjective Phrase; AdvP – Adverb Phrase; PP – Prepositional Phrase; DP – Determinative Phrase.

Clausal Categories: Cls – clause; F – finite clause; NF – nonfinite clause: Ger – gerund; Inf – infinitive; PPart – past participle.

Word Functions: Subj – subject; Pred – predicate/predicator; Comp – complement: an element or elements required by a word or structure to complete its meaning in the clause (e.g., DO – direct object; IO – indirect object; PP - prep. phrase); Adjunct – adjunct: elements not required by an expression to complete its meaning (Subord – subordinator; Coord – coordinator); Supl – supplement: a clause or phrase added onto a clause that is not closely related to the central thought or structure of the main clause.

 

 

 

 

 

Verb + Prep + Gerund List

Complete the idea expressed by the verb with a prepositional phrase

 

 

Verb & Preposition Lists

(Huddleston 7 §6.2) (Swan 416 449)

Pop-Q "Dream of" | "Use to" | "Look forward" | "Confine to"

Other Lists: Verb + Prep (List) | Adjective + Prep Phrase (List) | Participle Modifier & Preposition (List) | Noun + Prep Phrase

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coordinated Expressions

Decide whether to specify or omit a preposition

 

 

 

Coordinated Verb and Preposition Expressions

COORDINATED EXPRESSIONS
When coordinating two verb + preposition expressions, the preposition after the first verb may be omitted if it is the same preposition as the one used after the second verb. However, if the prepositions differ, both must be included. Also, both verb should make sense with the complement after the second verb.
SUBJ	PREDICATE + PREP	COORD	PREDICATE + PREP	PREP COMPLEMENT
PREPOSITION AGREEMENT
Jack	*apologizes apologizes for	but	continues on	looking at his phone during dinner.
His girlfriend	*objects objects to	and	complains about	sitting alone at dinnertime.
VERB FORM AGREEMENT
Jack	isn't interested in	or	engage in doesn't engage in	having a face-to-face conversation.
His girlfriend	won't stand for	or	put up with (both share won't)	being ignored.
AGREEMENT WITH COMPLEMENT
Jack	will agree to	and	adjust to	becoming a better dinner companion.
Jack	refrained from (answering his phone)	and	concentrated on	being a better companion.  (Does not make sense with both verbs.)

refrain (V)  — stop, discontinue

 

 

 

 

 

Gerund Perfect

Express an earlier time frame in the prepositional complement

 

 

 

Unspecified Time vs. an Earlier (Past) Time

 

See Nonfinite Clause Forms—express timing and voice in gerund and infinitive clauses.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Commonly Confused

Verb + Prep Phrase Combinations

 

 

 

Commonly Confused Verb Expressions

Also see Phrasal Verbs.  (think up, think over, think of)
Pop-Q "Think of"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common Mistakes

Errors and Solutions

 

 

Error and Solution

Pop-Q "Took charge"

 

 

 

 

 

 

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