The English Gerund-Participle - A Comparison with the Infinitive

There is considerable confusion regarding the English suffix "ing," which is usually treated as "progressive." The sentence "I regret telling him" shows, however, that this is not always the case. The very same form can sometimes evoke an ongoing process and sometimes a completed action. This book brings much-needed clarity to this area of English grammar, proposing a simple coherent explanation based on meaning. ESL teachers will find it a valuable contribution to the "focus on form" approach. It will also be of interest to linguists as it addresses the problems of tense and control that have been the object of considerable debate.

About the author

The Author: Patrick J. Duffley is Professor of English Language and Linguistics at Laval University in Quebec, Canada. He has published extensively in the area of complementation, and he is the author of The English Infinitive (1992) as well as numerous articles in linguistic journals.

Product details

• Authors: Patrick J Duffley, Patrick J. Duffley, Patrick Joseph Duffley
• Publisher: Peter Lang
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 31.12.2018
• EAN: 9780820463995
• ISBN: 978-0-8204-6399-5
• No. of pages: 188
• Dimensions: 150 mm x 16 mm x 225 mm
• Weight: 410 g
• Series: Berkeley Insights in Linguistics and Semiotics; Berkeley Insights in Linguistics and Semiotics
• Subject: Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative linguistics