[In the following examples, the gerund is bold and the gerund phrase is underlined.]

• Flying above the lake at this time of night seems a little dangerous.
  • FLYING is the subject of the sentence. A subject is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. FLYING is a gerund.
    
    
• Bill decided that scrambling over the pile of debris was not safe.
  • SCRAMBLING is the subject of the dependent clause. A subject is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. SCRAMBLING is a gerund.
    
    
• Ethan avoided doing his homework because the Ducks were playing the Cougars.
  • DOING is the direct object of the verb AVOIDED. An object is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. DOING is a gerund. HOMEWORK is the object of the gerund.
    
    
• The student gathered signatures for increasing the hours of the library.
  • INCREASING is the object of the preposition FOR. An object is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. INCREASING is a gerund. HOURS is the object of the gerund.
    
    
• Philip Morris continues its fight to prevent government from regulating tobacco; nevertheless, the government is placing restrictions on marketing cigarettes to youth.
  
  • Both REGULATING and MARKETING are objects of prepositions (FROM and ON).
    
    
• The young man opposes marketing smoking cigarettes as if it were glamorous.
  
  • MARKETING is the direct object of the verb OPPOSES. SMOKING is a gerund and the object of the gerund MARKETING. CIGARETTES is the object of the gerund SMOKING.
    
    
• Andrew continues his crusade to prevent the university from limiting free speech.
  
  • LIMITING is the object of the preposition FROM. SPEECH is the object of the GERUND.