When studying the grammar of a language, one task is to identify different word forms (morphology) and word classes (lexical categories, parts of speech). So, then, does English have a gerund (verbal form)? Many would probably answer this question in the affirmative, but I say "no, it doesn't". What is a gerund? Well, it's a verbal form in Latin (and it does occur in other languages) that is one way to noun a verb (mark verbal nominalization). In Latin grammar, there are actually two different grammatical forms with slightly different names: the gerund and the gerundive. The former is a verbal noun and the latter a verbal adjective. Latin also has a present participle, which is a different kind of verbal adjective. Let's take a look at the forms:
Verb: amo, amare, amavi, amatus 'to love'.
Present participle: amans 'loving' as in a loving parent.
Gerund: amandi 'of loving' (with loving as a noun); the gerund does not occur in the nominative in Latin grammar, so the genitive form is cited.
Gerundive: amandus 'loving' (as an adjective).
Now for English.
Verb: love.
Present participle: loving (adjective).
Gerund: loving (noun).
I would analyze English grammar as having an -ing form, and describe how adjectives can be nominalized by zero morphology (aka nouning the verb or using an adjective as a noun). It doesn't really help much to posit a different verb form (the gerund), which is identical in its morphology to another form (the present participle). To be truthful, the roman grammarians were guilty of this multiplying of terminology, because the difference between the gerund and the gerundive in Latin is not one of outward marking, but of the changing of word classes.
OP
