A gerund is a noun made from a verb by adding '-ing'.You can use a gerund as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence. But the words ending in 'ing' can also be termed as a present participle. Therefore, it is vital to understand the difference between the two. 

Example:

1. Seema is eating
2. My class is boring.

When a verb is used as a noun then it can be referred as gerund. For e.g. Dancing is fun.

Next, a gerund can be used as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.

· Gerund as a subject

A gerund can be used as a subject.

Examples:

1. Smoking is injurious to health.
2. Brushing your teeth is important
3. Flying makes me nervous.

· Gerund as an object.

In the same way,  gerund can be used as an object, 
Examples:

1. Do you like smoking?
2. I don't like singing songs.
3. My favorite hobby is dancing contemporary.

· Gerund after a preposition

For using gerund after a preposition, you must use a verb which also functions as a noun (gerund), only then you can use it after a preposition. It generally relates one activity to another.

Examples:

1. I look forward to hearing from you
2. Do you object to working late?

Let’s take a quiz for gerund after prepositions and check how many of them you get right.

My friend is good ­­__ playing cricket.
She complains ___ bullying.
They are afraid___ losing the competition.
She doesn't feel___working on that project.
They are looking forward ___ going out at the weekend.
Shreya dreams ___ living in a big house.
Rohit apologized ____ being late.
Do you agree ____ staying in a foreign country?
The girls insisted ____ going out with Priya.
Sunny thinks ___ climbing trees this afternoon.

Answers: 1. At 2. About 3. Of 4. Like 5. To 6. Of 7. For 8. With 9. On 10. Of

The above explanations will help you clear the concept of gerunds in a better way. Keep practicing and if you get stuck, then you can take the help of an online English teacher and clear your doubts.

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