Gerunds as Subjects and Objects
Gerunds can function as both subjects and objects in English sentences, providing a way to talk about actions or states as concepts.
Example: "Surfing isn't easy." Surfenistnichteinfach.
In this sentence, "Surfing" is the subject.
Example: "I enjoy living in New York." IchwohnegerninNewYork./Ichgenießees,inNewYorkzuwohnen.
Here, "living" is the object of the verb "enjoy".
Some verbs, such as enjoy, finish, imagine, mind, miss, practise, and suggest, require a gerund rather than an infinitive as their object.
Highlight: After begin/start, continue, hate, like, love, and prefer, both a gerund and a to-infinitive can be used with the same meaning.
However, after would like, would love, would hate, and would prefer, only the to-infinitive is correct.
Example: "Grandma would prefer to move to a small village, but my parents would hate to live in the country."
Understanding these distinctions is crucial for mastering Gerund vs Infinitive Übungen.