How to master the gerund ING in French

Maybe you wonder why you need the gerund or how to construct this structure. However, you’ll see how useful it can be in this lesson. Something important to remember: even if there are some similarities in both languages, the gerund in French is pretty different from the English one. Consequently, try to put yourself in the French brain mode while learning and using the gerund.

Let’s see some different examples so you can remember how to use the gerund, and explain how not to make the biggest mistake in translating word for word!

How do you make the gerund in French?

First, the gerund allows us to:

• describe actions taking place at the same time (think of “while”)
• give the cause (think of “on” or “by”)

Let’s see what it means with examples:

• Elle mange en regardant la TV >>> She's eating while watching TV (Yet we would say she's watching tv and eating at the same time).
• Ils ont réussi leur examen en étudiant tous les jours >>> They passed their exam by studying every day.
• En regardant toujours la télé en français, elle a finalement décidé de mettre les sous-titres. >>> On watching tv always in French, she finally decided to put the subtitles on.

So, how do you spot the gerund in French? Facile! (easy). You would have your verb ending with “ant”. 

In English the gerund is recognisable by the “ing” ending. However, you must be able to distinguish the present continuous from the gerund in order to avoid a big mistake in French that you'll see in the next section…

How to translate the present tense in French.

In English, there are 3 ways to say “je mange”:

• I eat = je mange
• I do eat = je mange
• I am eating = je mange

The bottom line is that it’s easier in French because there’s just one option. The very common mistake is to think that “eating” in the third example is a gerund when it’s a part of the verb. 

The common trap when translating the present continuous.

Oui! When you see a verb in “ant” there’s a big chance it’s a gerund (or present participle) but it doesn’t mean that when you see “ing” in English, it’s a gerund!

 Therefore saying the following would be a big “non”...

• Je suis mangeant * >>> not translatable!!!

Why? Because the present continuous in English requires 2 parts: the auxiliary and the verb with “ing”. If you really want to translate the idea of “in the moment”, you could use the expression “en train de”:

• Je suis en train de manger >>> I am eating (= I am in the process of eating RIGHT NOW)

However, it’s not necessary. The simple present would suffice.

Master the French (regular) gerund.

As we have mentioned, the gerund in English can be preceded by the words of “on”, “by”, “while” and even “upon”.

In French? One word: “en”!

• En allant au marché, il s’est rendu compte qu’il avait oublié son argent à la maison >>> On going to the market, he realised he’d left his money at the house.

Avoid the traps with some gerunds.

There are not really traps as long as you know how to form the gerund. The base of it is with the first person of the plural: “nous”. So, if you know how to conjugate (irregular) verbs with this pronoum, it will be flawless…

You don’t remember traps with the “nous” pronoun? They are related to the spelling and the pronounciation. Here are some examples for you:

• manger (to eat) >>> nous mangeons
• voyager (to travel) >>> nous voyageons
• commencer (to start) >>> nous commençons
• effacer (to erase) >>> nous effaçons 

Others are really irregular:

• boire (to drink) >>> nous buvons
• croire (to believe) >>> nous croyons
• prendre (to take) >>> nous prenons
• aller (to go) >>> nous allons
• venir (to come from) >>> nous venons
• devoir (have to) >>> nous devons

Here’s a full sentence to illustrate it:

• En mangeant son déjeuner, il a bu trois tasses de café. >>> While eating his breakfast, he drank 3 cups of coffee.

By the way, there are only 3 irregular gerunds you have to memorise:

• avoir (to have) >>> en ayant
• être (to be) >>> en étant
• savoir (to know) >>> en sachant

How to use the negative form with the gerund in French.

For the negative form, follow the same pattern and add the “ne” or “n” (if your verb starts with a vowel or h) before the verb and put “pas” after your ver:

• prendre (to take) >>> en ne prenant pas
• aller (to go) >>> en n’allant pas
• venir (to come from) >>> en ne venant pas
• avoir (to have) >>> en n’ayant
• être (to be) >>> en n’étant pas
• savoir (to know) >>> en ne sachant pas

A full sentence to have a bigger picture:

• En n'utilisant pas le tournevis électrique, il n’a pas assez tourné la vis et les étagères sont aussitôt tombées. >>> By not using the electric screwdriver, he didn’t turn the screw enough and the shelves fell down straight away.

The French gerund is reflected in the spelling.

To sum up this lesson, the gerund in French always have the word “en” before it. The gerund itself ends with “ant” and the root comes from the conjugation of your verb with the pronoun “nous”.

As long as you know the conjugation of the present, you are good. The only 3 French gerunds you need to remember are: “en ayant”, “en étant” and “en sachant”.

Also, remember that the present continuous in English can’t be translated with a French gerund!

By following these tips, you should be a pro of the French gerund! (En suivant ces astuces, vous devriez être des pros du gérondif français !)

Don’t be shy and contact me, should you have any doubt or question!