Gerunds – English Grammar Exercises for A2
Choose the best answer (A, B, or C) to complete each sentence. The context of this test is a casual conversation with your friends. You don’t know what to do tonight, so you are gently suggesting different ideas for the group to discuss.
1 How about ______ a movie at the cinema tonight?
(a) watch
(b) watching
(c) to watch
2 What about ______ some pizza for dinner?
(a) ordering
(b) order
(c) to order
3 How about ______ to the new Italian restaurant?
(a) to go
(b) go
(c) going
4 What about ______ a board game at my house?
(a) playing
(b) play
(c) to play
5 How about ______ a walk in the park this evening?
(a) to take
(b) taking
(c) takeing
6 What about ______ our bikes by the river?
(a) ride
(b) rideing
(c) riding
7 How about ______ the museum tomorrow morning?
(a) to visit
(b) visit
(c) visiting
8 What about ______ a picnic if the weather is nice?
(a) having
(b) have
(c) to have
9 How about ______ at the coffee shop downtown?
(a) meeting
(b) to meet
(c) meet
10 What about ______ on some music and dancing?
(a) puting
(b) putting
(c) put
11 How about ______ a cake for Sarah’s birthday?
(a) to bake
(b) bake
(c) baking
12 What about ______ shopping at the new mall?
(a) going
(b) to go
(c) go
13 How about ______ a table at the rooftop bar?
(a) to book
(b) booking
(c) book
14 What about ______ some snacks and drinks for the party?
(a) buy
(b) to buy
(c) buying
15 How about ______ until the weekend to decide?
(a) waiting
(b) wait
(c) to wait
16 What about ______ friends over for a barbecue?
(a) inviteing
(b) inviting
(c) to invite
17 How about ______ home and relaxing tonight?
(a) stay
(b) to stay
(c) staying
18 What about ______ a car and driving to the beach?
(a) renting
(b) rent
(c) to rent
19 How about ______ some photos in the old town?
(a) take
(b) taking
(c) to take
20 What about ______ the city tour bus?
(a) to try
(b) try
(c) trying
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (b)
Explanation: “Watching” is correct. The word “about” is a preposition. Any verb that directly follows a preposition must be in the gerund (V-ing) form. (a) is a bare verb. (c) “to watch” is grammatically incorrect.
2 (a)
Explanation: “Ordering” correctly follows the preposition “about”. (b) is a bare verb. (c) “to order” is a common trap for learners.
3 (c)
Explanation: “Going” is the required gerund form after “How about”. (a) and (b) are structural errors.
4 (a)
Explanation: “Playing” is the correct gerund. (b) and (c) violate the preposition rule.
5 (b)
Explanation: “Taking” is correct. You must drop the ‘e’ from “take” before adding “-ing”. (a) is structurally incorrect. (c) “takeing” is a basic spelling mistake.
6 (c)
Explanation: “Riding” is correct. Drop the ‘e’ from “ride” to form “riding”. (a) is a bare verb. (b) “rideing” is a spelling error.
7 (c)
Explanation: “Visiting” correctly follows the preposition “about”. (a) and (b) are incorrect forms.
8 (a)
Explanation: “Having” is the correct gerund. Drop the ‘e’ from “have”. (b) and (c) are grammatically invalid.
9 (a)
Explanation: “Meeting” is the required gerund after “How about”. (b) and (c) are incorrect.
10 (b)
Explanation: “Putting” is the correct spelling. Because “put” is a short, one-syllable verb ending in a consonant-vowel-consonant (C-V-C), you must double the final ‘t’. (a) “puting” is a spelling error. (c) is a bare verb.
11 (c)
Explanation: “Baking” correctly follows the preposition “about”. Drop the ‘e’ from “bake”. (a) and (b) are structural errors.
12 (a)
Explanation: “Going” is the correct gerund. (b) and (c) are incorrect.
13 (b)
Explanation: “Booking” is the correct gerund form following “How about”. (a) and (c) violate the grammar rule.
14 (c)
Explanation: “Buying” is correct. (a) and (b) are grammatically incorrect in this structure.
15 (a)
Explanation: “Waiting” correctly follows the preposition “about”. (b) is a bare verb. (c) is an infinitive.
16 (b)
Explanation: “Inviting” is correct. Drop the ‘e’ from “invite”. (a) “inviteing” is a spelling error. (c) “to invite” is a common learner mistake.
17 (c)
Explanation: “Staying” is the required gerund. Notice how it perfectly balances with the other gerund “relaxing” later in the sentence. (a) and (b) are incorrect.
18 (a)
Explanation: “Renting” is correct. It parallels the other V-ing verb in the sentence (“driving”). (b) and (c) are structural errors.
19 (b)
Explanation: “Taking” correctly follows the preposition “about”. Drop the ‘e’ from “take”. (a) and (c) are incorrect forms.
20 (c)
Explanation: “Trying” is the correct gerund. We do not drop the ‘y’ when adding “-ing”. (a) and (b) are grammatically invalid.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- Making Gentle Suggestions: When you want to suggest an idea to your friends without sounding too bossy or demanding, the best phrases to use are “How about…?” and “What about…?”.
- The “About” Preposition Rule: The word “about” is a preposition. In English grammar, if a verb comes immediately after a preposition, that verb must be changed into a Gerund (V-ing).
- Correct: How about going to the cinema?
- Incorrect: How about go to the cinema? / How about to go to the cinema?
- Parallel Structure: If you are suggesting two actions in the same sentence, both actions must be in the V-ing form to keep the sentence balanced.
- Example: What about staying home and relaxing tonight?
- Spelling Reminders:
- Drop the ‘e’: remove the final ‘e’ before adding ‘-ing’ (take -> taking, ride -> riding, invite -> inviting).
- Double the Consonant (C-V-C): for short verbs ending in a single consonant-vowel-consonant, double the last letter (put -> putting).