Question

Is this a Gerund or not?

I need a help to understand if I implement the right sentence or not . here we go
"I appreciate you discussing the opportunity further with me and allowing me time to consider your offer"

Both are nouns, aren't they?

I run down a search but I still can't understand why it'll appear as a verb or
it might lead to misunderstanding of what I want to say in the first place.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/627/01/

Thanks

Answer 1

Both of which words are nouns? There is no indication in your post of which two words you are speaking of.

In terms of what gerunds are, gerunds are verbal forms (always -ing) that act as nouns. So they have the *form* of a verb, but the *function* of a noun.

In the sentence you post, the more formal version would be --

I appreciate your discussing . . .

Because the subject of a gerund should be in the possessive case. "Discussing" is here being used as a gerund.

If you are wondering whether there are gerunds in that sentence, yes, there are two: discussing and allowing. They are gerunds because they are functioning as nouns -- they are the object of the verb, "appreciate," or more properly, they begin the phrases that are the objects of that verb. The base form of the sentence is "I appreciate [something]. That "something" is the direct object of the verb. And that "something" is the two full phrases "your discussing . . . . " and "[your] allowing me . . . ."

Make sense?

Answer 2

Yes, Thank You