Estoy esperando.
I am waiting.Estamos comiendo.
We are eating.¿Qué estás haciendo?
What are you doing?Notice that the form of the gerund is invariable. In other words it does not change
regardless of the subject of the action.
Other uses of the gerund1 The gerund can be used to indicate the means by which something is done. In such
cases it is often the equivalent of the English ‘by ‘-ing’, or ‘if you...’:
e.g. Escuchando bien aprendes mucho.
By listening carefully you learn a lot.
If you listen carefully you learn a lot.
Vas a emborracharte, bebiendo tanto vino.
You are going to get drunk (by) drinking so much wine.
You are going to get drunk if you drink so much wine.
2 It can also be used to indicate the reason for something:
e.g. Siendo muy joven, no va a conseguir el puesto.
Because he’s very young, he won’t get the job.
Estando en Madrid voy a visitar el museo del Prado.
Since I am in Madrid, I am going to visit the Prado museum.
Note: Unlike the English ‘-ing’, the gerund cannot be used to describe nouns. Therefore,
phrases like ‘a man carrying a suitcase’ should be translated as ‘a man who is carrying a
suitcase’:
e.g. Un hombre que lleva una maleta.
A man carrying suitcase.
Una bolsa que contiene 1.000 euros.
A bag containing 1,000 euros.
Present continuous tense 107