The gérondif in french

06 oct. 2017 12:20 - language-swap

Niveau intermédiaire

1. Definition

The French “gérondif” is a mode corresponding to the -ing form in English.
It is formed by the present participle (verbs finished by -ant; ex: en lisant) preceded by the preposition en.
It is to be remembered that the present participle is formed by the verb conjugated at the first person plural to which we change the termination and we replace it by the termination -ant.
Example:
Nous mangeons → en mangeant
Nous chantons → en chantant
Nous finissons → en finissant
Nous rendons → en rendant

The “gérondif” is the equivalent of a circumstantial subordinate having the same subject as the principal, of a circumstantial prepositional group or sometimes of a way adverb. It is used to talk about two things happening at the same time by the same subject of the sentence.
The circumstances may be very diverse.
Examples:
En lisant, vous formez votre cerveau. (condition)
Je l'ai renversé en me garant. (manière)
Tu l'as saluée en allant à la boulangerie. (temps)

2. Its formation

It is ALWAYS formed by the preposition en + verb conjugated at the first person plural + termination -ant
examples:
en marchant, en jouant, en se rendant, en criant,…

/!\Warning:
If the verb conjugated at the first person plural is irregular, then so is the “gérondif”.
Manger → nous mangeons → mangeant → en mangeant
Placer → nous plaçons → plaçant → en plaçant
Voir → nous voyons → voyant → en voyant

There are three exceptions to this mode that are to be underlined:
avoir → en ayant
être → en étant
savoir → en sachant