A gerund is a verb that ends in -ing and acts as a noun in a sentence. A gerund phrase is a group of words that begins with a gerund and includes any objects or modifiers associated with the gerund.
Here are some examples of gerund phrases:
- Singing in the shower (gerund: “singing”; object: “shower”)
- Playing soccer with my friends (gerund: “playing”; object: “soccer”; modifier: “with my friends”)
- Cooking dinner for my family (gerund: “cooking”; object: “dinner”; modifier: “for my family”)
- Dancing at the party (gerund: “dancing”; modifier: “at the party”)
In each of these examples, the gerund phrase is functioning as a noun in the sentence. It can be the subject of the sentence, the object of a verb, or the object of a preposition.