<p>Does anyone know the answer to this question? Also, how do you know if it is gramatically correct in a sentence?</p>
<p>You mean like “Sarah’s whining is really starting to bother me”? Not tested.</p>
<p>More like this…</p>
<p>In this speech, the candidate (made a comment of spending) sleepless nights worrying over the large number of people without health insurance. </p>
<p>a) wrong
b) commended on the spending of his (wrong)
c) gave a comment that he spent (“gave” is inappropriate in this context)
d) commented on his spending (correct; possessive + gerund)
e) made a comment stating about spending (wordy)</p>
<p>D is correct because we say “comment on” not “comment of” (idiom).</p>
<p>Remember that gerund is the “noun” form of a verb.</p>
<p>If you need a fool-proof test, try replacing the gerund with other nouns or “it” and see if the sentence is still grammatically correct.</p>
<p>One more question: Are possessives + Gerunds ALWAYS correct? Here’s another sentence:</p>
<p>The opponents of the bull were few but influential enough to prevent its being passed in the House.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Possessive should always be used to modify gerunds. </p>
<p>Think about it in simple terms. Do you say …</p>
<p>I like he fencing technique.</p>
<p>or</p>
<p>I like him fencing technique.</p>
<p>or </p>
<p>I like his fencing technique.</p>
<p>Okay, I think I understand now. However, does a possessive +a gerund affect the tense of a sentence? For example, if a sentence is in the past, and all of a sudden you use a possessive + gerund, does it affect the verb forms of the sentence, perhaps, creating a parallelism error?</p>
<p>Because Sylvia respected Michael Jackson, she would often imitate him, singing and dancing everyday.</p>
<p>Does the comma after him make this sentence correct, or is the comma optional?</p>
<p>Because Sylvia considered Michael Jackson a role model, she would often imitate him singing and dancing everyday.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I admired the speaker’s adhering to the facts in his many speeches; he always had his speech writers triple check every statistic, fact, and reference.</p>
<p>The above sentence came out just fine ;). I think the answer is no. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I think the extra comma after “him” makes the sentence incorrect. Adding the comma makes the sentence deviate from its intended meaning, thanks to the placement of “him.”</p>
<p>Do you think the second sentence is correct?</p>
<p>I don’t know if its just that I’m getting crazy with possessive + gerunds or what but, wouldn’t the sentence be correct if the “him” was changed into the possessive form? So it should read: “Because Sylvia considered Michael Jackson a role model, she would often imitate HIS singing and dancing everyday.” Can someone please explain which one is correct?</p>
<p>Yes, the second sentence is correct.</p>
<p>the second one being the sentence with the possessive HIS?</p>
<p>Well, here it depends. Perhaps Sylvia was so enamored by every aspect of Michael Jackson that she simply imitated “him.” Or perhaps Sylvia was only enamored by Jackson’s singing and dancing; in this case, use the possessive “his.”</p>
<p>Shouldn’t there be a comma after “him” for the former case?</p>
<p>You’re right. Both “can” be correct, but they will mean different things.</p>
<p>^I don’t like the placement of the comma there.</p>