English · Advertising, Consumers and Safety

Gerund (-ing) vs present simple — choosing the correct form

Gerund or present simple: getting the subject right

  • Experimental sciences important
  • Mathematics important
  • Engineering important
  • Management and economics important

6 minutes

The academic content is in Arabic, as at the BAC and as in the app.

What the syllabus expects from you

  • Gerund (-ing) as subject/object vs present simple, choosing the correct form

The method

  1. Test: is the -ing word acting as a noun (subject/object)? → gerund, not present simple

The common mistakes

  • Using a bare infinitive after a probability modal instead of the base verb correctly
  • Using present simple where the -ing noun form (gerund) is required as subject

From the lesson

A supermarket poster warns shoppers: "Eat raw chicken is dangerous."

The vocabulary

  • consuming (استهلاك)
  • eating (تناول الطعام)

What is not on the syllabus

  • Modal expressions of probability (previous concept)

Builds on