A gerund is a special noun. It is a verb that has been transformed into a noun by adding the “-ing” suffix.

Using gerunds in a sentence:

(a) as a Subject

• Swimming is my favourite past time.
• I find that reading and writing are difficult language skills to master.
  

(b) as a Complement

• My favourite past time is swimming.
• The most difficult skills to learn are reading and writing.

(c) as an Object

• Mary loves drinking hot chocolate with her boyfriend.
• My students dislike watching romantic movies.

(d) with articles and adjectives

• The (art.) actual (adj.) making of the movie will be shown on TV.
• The (art.) strange (adj.) writing on the wall is a mystery.

So, a gerund is a verbot that deceptively transforms into a nounbot to confuse our fellow humans. If you haven’t been watching “Transformers“, you obviously wouldn’t understand.