The gerund has only two grammatical categories, those of voice and perfect. Voice – active::passive; perfect – perfect::non-perfect.
- Category of perfect. The non-perfect gerund denotes an action simultaneous with that expressed by the finite verb(F.e. He improved his pronunciation by listening to tape recordings). The perfect gerund denotes an action prior to the action denoted by the finite verb(F.e. I regret having uttered these words).
- Category of voice. Active gerund points out that the action is directed from the subject, whereas the passive gerund indicates that the action is directed towards the subject.(F.e. I hate interrupting people::I hate being interrupted). There are some verbs [need, want require, deserve] and the adj. worth, which are followed by the active gerund with passive meaning(F.e. You hair needs washing).
