Download Gerunds and the progressive tenses

Gerunds and the progressive tenses
Introduction: The gerund (gerundio) is a special, invariable form of the verb
which always ends in -ndo in Spanish, for
example: hablando, comiendo, viviendo. An alternate name for it is simply
“the -ndo form”. In English it is translated as the “-ing” form of the verb (for
example, “speaking”), which has lead to the frequent mistake of calling this
form the “present participle”. The gerund is a verb form which has an adverbial
function, not an adjectival function like a participle, nor a noun function like an
infinitive.
I.
Forms:
A. To form the gerund, remove the infinitive ending (-ar, -er, or -ir)
of a verb and add -ando for -ar verbs, and -iendo for -er and ir verbs:
caminar > caminando; volver > volviendo; abrir >
abriendo.
B.
There are a few special cases:
1. ER and/or IR verbs ending in a vowel you change iendo to -yendo: leer > leyendo; caer > cayendo.
2. The gerund for the verb ir is yendo.
3. IR verbs with stem changes:
a. Those which have the changes o>ue>u [e.g., dormir,
duermo, durmió] use that u which appears in
preterit third-persons forms in the gerund: dormir >
durmiendo; morir > muriendo.
b. Those which have the changes e>ie>i [e.g., sentir,
siento, sintió] use that i which appears in preterit
third-persons forms in the gerund:sentir > sintiendo.
c. Those which have the changes e>i>i [e.g., pedir,
pido, pidió] use that i which appears in preterit
third-persons forms in the gerund: pedir> pidiendo.
II.
Uses. The gerund is primarily used: with estar to form the progressive
tenses; with verbs of motion and seguir/continuar; to introduce an
adverbial phrase or express “by (do)-ing (something)”.
A. Progressive tenses: estar + gerund.
To form a progressive tense, use the appropriate tense of the
verb estar immediately in front of the gerund, e.g.:
No me molestes; estoy
trabajando.
Estábamos almorzando
cuando llegaron.
Estuvimos haciendo
ejercicio por tres horas.
Dudo que estén practicando
a esta hora.
B.
C.
D.
Don't bother me; I'm working.
We were eating lunch when they arrived.
We were exercising three hours [Or: We
spent three hours exercising.]
I doubt they're practicing at this hour.
Note that any tense can be used to form a progressive, even the
preterit as given in the third example above [note that there the
action is viewed as having been limited to a three hour period].
However, the present and imperfect tenses the ones most
frequently seen.
Caution: As the name indicates, the progressive tenses express an
action viewed as being in progress. Do not use the progressive for
other purposes, such as for expressing a future action: “We're
leaving for Mexico tomorrow” (Salimos para México
mañana [NOT Estamos saliendo).
The gerund with verbs of motion and seguir/continuar.
1. To express the idea “to continue (to do something)” or “to
keep on (doing something)”, use seguir or continuar with
the gerund:
Sigo teniendo problemas con
mi computadora.
Continúan haciendo las
mismas preguntas.
I keep on having [continue to
have] problems with my computer.
They keep on asking the same
questions.
2.
Note that the stem vowel in continuar is the weak vowel u, so it
needs a written accent in the form used above.
3.
Numerous verbs of motion may also be used with the
gerund, for a variety of effects or purposes. Please note the
uses of entrar, salir, venir, and andar given below:
Marcos salió (de la casa) Marcos went running (out of the
corriendo.
Mi hermana entró
llorando.
Luego ellos vinieron
pidiendo más dinero.
Ese tipo anda
quejándose de todo.
E.
house). [O: Marcos ran out ...]
My sister came in crying.
Then they came along asking for more
money.
That guy goes around complaining
about everything.
The gerund in adverbial phrases
1. To express “by (do)-ing (something)” when it comes after a
verb, normally the gerund is used :
Ella ganó miles de dólares
escribiendo cuentos cortos.
Mejoré mi técnica como
violinista practicando ocho
horas al día.
Perdieron el partido haciendo
un error increíble...
2.
Note that the this idea is not expressed by
preposition por plus an infinitive. Por used in that way
means things like “because of (do)-ing (something)” or “for
the sake of (do)-ing (something)”:
Salió por ser
cobarde.
3.
He left because of being [because he was] a
coward.
The gerund can also be used to introduce a phrase with a
“by the way”-type meaning, or causal (“because” or
“since”) or temporal (“while”, “when”) meanings:
Hablando de vacaciones,
¿qué vas a hacer este
verano?
Sabiendo qué hacer, pude
entrar en la oficina sin que
nadie me viera.
Caminado por el pueblo,
noté que nadie estaba en las
calles.
4.
She earned thousands of dollars
by writing short stories.
I improved my technique as a
violinst by practicing eight
hours a day.
The lost the game by making
one incredible mistake...
Speaking of vacations, what are
you going to do this summer?
Knowing [because I knew] what to
do, I was able to get into the office
without anyboy seeing me.
[While / When I was] walking
through the town, I notice that
nobody was in the streets.
After verbs of perception —for
example, ver, mirar, notar, oír, escuchar— the gerund
(or the infinitive) may be used to describe how or when the
action is being performed.
Ayer vi a Elena caminando por el
parque.
¿Has oído a tu marido cantando
en la ducha?
Habrás notado los muchos gansos
caminando por nuestra ciudad
universitaria.
III.
Yesterday I saw Elena [as
whe was] walking through
the park.
Have heard your husband
singing in the shower?
You've probably notice the
many geese walking around
our campus.
Cautions. A few things mentioned above may need to be repeated:
A. The gerund is a verb form with an adverbial function; do not use it
as a noun. Use the infinitive as the object of a preposition or as the
subject of a verb:después de descansar = “after resting”; Leer es
divertido = “Reading is fun”.
B. Do not overuse the progressive tenses, since they are used far less
frequently in Spanish than in English, and do not use them unless
you are portraying an action as truly being in progress.
C. Remember that “by (do)-ing (something)” is normally expressed
with the gerund and not por + infinitive [which means “because
of (do)-ing (something)” or “for the sake of (do)-ing something”.