Latin Gerunds and Gerundives Made Easy: The Ultimate Guide

Latin gerunds and gerundives may look similar, but they are used in different ways. This post demystifies the two forms and explains how to tell them apart – with lots and lots of examples.

A gerund is a verbal noun, while a gerundive is a verbal adjective. This distinction is crucial, and I will explain why in detail below.

Gerunds and gerundives appear in slightly different contexts, but I am discussing them in a single post because they are so often confused. Even their names sound the same!

Here’s how you can remember which is which: a gerundIVE is an adjectIVE. Whenever you are in doubt, sing -IVE and -IVE to yourself. This trick should help jog your memory.

Now let’s get into the nitty-gritty details. We will start with gerunds, then move on to gerundives, and finally compare the two!

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Latin Gerunds: Form and Usage

The Latin gerund is a verbal noun. It refers to the action of a verb in a general sense, unlimited by a specific agent or time period.

Gerunds have gender, number, and case just as nouns do. Their verbal properties, on the other hand, are voice and the capacity to be accompanied by adverbs, prepositional phrases, and sometimes direct objects.

Gerunds in English end in –ing. Examples are “sailing”, “running”, “hearing”, etc.

Maybe you sail every weekend. If so, you probably like to talk about sailing as a general concept. For this, you need a gerund.

Forming Gerunds in Latin

The Latin gerund is a neuter singular 2nd declension noun. To form the gerund, add –nd– plus neuter second declension endings to a verb’s present stem (the second principal part minus –re).

Take the sample verb nāvigō, nāvigāre, nāvigāvī, nāvigātus. Remove the re from nāvigāre and you end up with nāvigā– (the present stem). Add nd and you have the gerund stem: nāvigand-. From there, add 2nd declension neuter endings.

(Note: Long vowels shorten before nd and before another vowel, which is why the macron in the stem vowel disappears.)

Here are the fully declined forms of Latin gerunds from all four conjugations. We see the stem vowel ā in 1st conjugation verbs, ē in 2nd conjugation verbs, e in 3rd conjugation verbs, and ī in 4th conjugation verbs.

Case	1st	2nd	3rd	4th / 3rd –iō
Gen.	nāvigandī	manendī	currendī	sciendī
Dat.	nāvigandō	manendō	currendō	sciendō
Acc.	nāvigandum	manendum	currendum	sciendum
Abl.	nāvigandō	manendō	currendō	sciendō
Trans.	‘sailing’	‘remaining’	‘running’	‘knowing’

You will notice that Latin gerunds have no nominative case. Gerunds only exist in the genitive, dative, accusative, and ablative.

Furthermore, they are always neuter and singular. This makes sense, because gerunds are nouns, and in Latin nouns have a consistent gender.

Finally, Latin gerunds are always in the active voice. This is why we translate nāvigandī as “sailing“, not “being sailed”.

The advantage of these restrictions is that you only need to worry about four gerund endings: –ī, –ō, –um, and –ō. Time to learn how to use them!

Using Gerunds in Latin

I want to make one thing very clear: Latin gerunds are more restricted in their usage than English verbal nouns in –ing. Just because a gerund can do something in English does not mean it can do it in Latin.

To begin with, Latin gerunds lack a nominative case, so they cannot serve as subjects. What if you want to say “Sailing is good” in Latin? You use another verbal form – the infinitive – instead.

Nāvigāre est bonum. = Sailing is good.

Literally, nāvigāre est bonum means “to sail is good”. But Latin can’t distinguish, in this instance, between “sailing” and “to sail”. The distinction is insignificant anyway: both forms capture the idea of sailing in general.

Another thing that Latin gerunds do not usually do is take direct objects. This is because Latin has developed a special gerundive construction instead. We will talk about this further in the section on gerundives.

Okay, so what can Latin gerunds do? Let’s look at examples from each grammatical case.

Gerunds in the Genitive Case

There are two common uses of the gerund in the genitive.

First is the objective genitive. This is when the genitive is the object of the implied action of another noun (or adjective). The objective genitive comes after nouns (or adjectives) that include some sort of verbal force: love, fear, memory, desire, etc.

• metus cadendī = fear of falling
• cupidus celeriter redeundī = desirous of returning quickly / eager to return quickly
• memoria in Galliā vīvendī = memory of living in Gaul

Let’s look at two examples of this usage in the wild, that is, in ancient Roman texts.

Example #1

aut si tantus amor scrībendī tē rapit, audē
Caesaris invictī rēs dīcere . . .

Or if so great a love of writing seizes you, dare
to tell the exploits of unconquered Caesar . . .

Horace Satires 2.1.10-11

Example #2

itaque hostēs repente celeriterque prōcurrērunt, ut spatium pīla in hostēs coniciendī nōn darētur.

And the enemies rushed forward so suddenly and swiftly that no space for throwing spears against the enemy was given.

Caesar Gallic Wars 1.52.3

In Example #1, scrībendī depends on the noun amor. The topic is “love of / for writing”, that is, a passion for the general action of writing.

Example #2 supplies a rare instance of a gerund (coniciendī) with an accusative object (pīla). Typically, we would expect the gerundive phrase pīlōrum in hostēs coniciendōrum (for more on this construction, see below). Instead, we have the gerund phrase pīla in hostēs coniciendī.

The quote from Caesar is a reminder that gerunds can take accusative objects, especially in the genitive and in the ablative. The objects are usually neuter plural pronouns or adjectives.

The other major use of the genitive gerund is with causā “on account of” and grātiā “for the sake of”. In such circumstances, the gerund indicates the purpose for which something is done.

Example #3

Quaesō, Erucī, ut hoc in bonam partem accipiās; nōn enim exprobrandī causā sed
commonendī grātiā dīcam.

I ask, Erucius, that you take my words in good faith; for I will not speak for the purpose of reproaching, but for the sake of reminding. (less literal: I do not speak to reproach you, but rather to remind you)

Cicero Pro Roscio 45

Cicero’s goal is to remind his interlocutor of something, not to accuse him.

Gerunds in the Dative Case

The dative of the gerund is much rarer than the other cases. It usually appears alongside verbs and expressions that require a dative object.

Most common is operam dare “to give attention (to)”.

Example

operam praetereā pingendō sub magistrō Diogenetō dedit.

Furthermore, he devoted attention to painting under the master Diogenes.

Historia Augusta, Life of Marcus Aurelius, 4.9

Gerunds in the Accusative Case

In the accusative case, the gerund is always preceded by a preposition, usually ad. Ad + gerund conveys purpose, goal, or intended use.

For instance, we can say: agricolae ad cēnandum vēnērunt. This means that the farmers came in order to eat or for the purpose of eating.

Here are some examples from Cicero.

Example #1

. . . rēs ad vīvendum necessāriae . . .

. . . things necessary to live / for living . . .

Cicero De Officiis 3.31

Example #2

itaque nōn facile est invenīre quī quod sciat ipse non trādat alterī; ita nōn sōlum ad discendum prōpensī sumus, vērum etiam ad docendum.

And so it is not easy to find someone who does not himself pass on what he knows to someone else; we are thus inclined not only to learn, but also to teach.

Cicero De Finibus 3.66

Example #3

cum tibi exposita esset omnis ad praedandum Pamphylia, contentus hīs tam opīmīs rēbus nōn fuistī?

Although all Pamphylia had been exposed to you for pillaging, were you not satisfied with such sumptuous circumstances?

Cicero In Verrem 2.1.91

Unlike in English, we cannot use the Latin gerund as a direct object. If you want to say “I love learning,” you translate this into Latin as “I love to learn” (with a complementary infinitive).

Gerunds in the Ablative Case

Latin gerunds appear frequently in the ablative case both with and without prepositions.

• Dē nāvigandō loquimur. = We are talking about sailing. (ablative with a preposition)
• Errandō discimus. = We learn by making mistakes. (ablative of means)

Frequent prepositions paired with an ablative gerund include in (in, in the course of); ā / ab (from, away from); and dē (about, concerning). Let’s look at four examples from ancient authors.

Example #1 (ablative with in)

deinde nē ante saruerīs, quam asparagus nātus erit, nē in sariendō rādīcēs laedās.

Finally, don’t weed before the asparagus has sprouted, lest you hurt its roots in weeding / in the course of weeding.

Cato De Agricultura 161.2

Example #2 (ablative of means)

Nam eum quī palam est adversārius facile cavendō vītāre possīs.

For you could easily avoid an open adversary [lit: him who is openly an adversary] by being careful.

Cicero In Verrem 2.1.39

Example #3 (ablative with ā)

Ad hominēs ā pīrātārum metū et suspīciōne aliēnissimōs, ā nāvigandō rēbusque maritimīs remōtissimōs . . .

To the people farthest from fear and suspicion of pirates, most disconnected from sailing and affairs of the sea . . .

Cicero In Verrem 2.5.70

Example #4 (ablative of means)

Semprōnius ā Pīsīs prōfectus in Apuānōs Ligurēs, vāstandō agrōs ūrendōque vīcōs et castella eōrum aperuit saltum usque ad Macram fluvium et Lūnae portum.

Sempronius, after setting out from Pisa against the Ligurian Apuani, by ravaging fields and by burning their villages and fortresses opened up the pass all the way to the river Macra and the harbor of Luna.

Livy 39.32.2

Example #4 includes rare instances of a gerund taking an accusative object. Vāstandō and ūrendō are both gerunds used as ablatives of means. Agrōs is the direct object of vāstandō, while vīcōs and castella are both direct objects of ūrendō.

Now you have seen examples of the gerund used in all four possible cases, so it is time to move on to gerundives.

Latin Gerundives: Form and Usage

As I said at the very beginning of this post, Latin gerundives are verbal adjectives.

As with gerunds, gerundives are formed by adding –nd– to a verb’s present stem. Unlike gerunds, however, gerundives can be any gender, number, or case. They have the endings of a 2-1-2 adjective.

• 1st conjugation: nāvigandus, a, um
• 2nd conjugation: monendus, a, um
• 3rd conjugation: mittendus, a, um
• 4th conjugation / 3rd –iō conjugation: sciendus, a, um

We often use the term “gerundive” interchangeably with “future passive participle”, but the situation is more complex than this.

Yes, Latin gerundives can serve as future passive participles – but they also can do things that regular participles cannot. These are the usages that we will focus on in this post.

👉 Need a refresher on the future passive participle? Read all about it here.

Gerundives have no direct equivalent in English. The gerundive developed in some Italic languages (Latin, Oscan, and Umbrian) after their split from other branches of the Indo-European language family. That’s why we don’t have it in English, a Germanic language.

In the following two sections, I will explain two crucial functions of the gerundive:

1. The passive periphrastic
2. The gerundive replacing a gerund

These constructions may seem odd to you as a speaker of English, but you will get used to them. In both, you will notice that gerundives obey the #1 rule of Latin adjectives: they agree with a noun in case, number, and gender.

Passive Periphrastic

The passive periphrastic is a grammatical construction consisting of a gerundive and a form of the verb sum. This construction expresses obligation, necessity, or duty.

Look at this sentence: Vēritās est laudanda. Vēritās is the subject, so it is in the nominative case. Est (the 3rd sg present of sum) is a linking verb, and it joins the participle laudanda with vēritās. Laudanda is nominative singular feminine because it agrees in case, number, and gender with vēritās.

A word-for-word translation would be “Truth is about-to-be-praised” or “Truth is worthy-of-being-praised.” But in order to capture the proper meaning in English, it is better to rephrase.

There are various options.

• Truth must be praised.
• Truth should be praised.
• Truth ought to be praised.
• Truth has to be praised.

Choose whatever translation seems to fit best based on the context. You can even switch to active voice if this sounds better in English, supplying whatever subject is appropriate – e.g. “We must praise truth”.

Changing the tense of sum shifts the obligation or necessity into different time frames. Compare the following sentences:

Canēs sunt servandī. = The dogs ought to be guarded / have to be guarded. [present tense]

Canēs erunt servandī. = The dogs will have to be guarded / will need to be guarded. [future tense]

Canēs erant servandī. = The dogs ought to have been guarded / had to be guarded / needed to be guarded. [imperfect tense]

The passive periphrastic can be quite complicated, so I wrote a whole post about it! This post covers the difference between personal and impersonal uses of the passive periphrastic and gives many more examples.

Gerundives replacing Gerunds

It is now time to discuss the usage that gave the gerundive its name: its “gerund-like” or “gerundive” use. In certain circumstances, the Latin gerundive appears where we – as English speakers – would expect a gerund.

Whenever the gerund would take an accusative direct object, ancient Romans prefer to substitute a gerundive construction. The direct object is put into the case in which the gerund would have been, and a gerundive is inserted to agree with this erstwhile object.

This will make much more sense with an example.

Dē pecūniam inveniendō loquimur. [gerund]

We talk about finding money.

The gerund phrase here has two parts:

1. inveniendō, the gerund itself
2. pecūniam, its accusative direct object

Inveniendō is in the ablative case because it is the object of the preposition dē.

Romans don’t like this format, though. Instead we find:

Dē pecūniā inveniendā loquimur. [gerundive]

We talk about finding money.

The gerundive phrase has the same meaning as the version with the gerund, but the component parts are different.

1. pecūniā, ablative object of the preposition dē
2. inveniendā, gerundive agreeing in gender, number, and case with pecūniā

Dē pecūniā inveniendā looks very odd to us. It seems like it ought to mean “about the money to-be-found”, but it doesn’t. Here the gerundive possesses neither a future sense nor a sense of obligation.

Instead, it acts like a gerund. It conveys the general idea of “finding money”.

This use of the gerundive confuses everyone at first, so I give my students the following formula. When you see a noun + gerundive construction, translate the gerundive first as “________ing”. Then translate the noun second as its direct object.

Here are a few more side-by-side comparisons of gerunds and gerundives. Again, I would like to emphasize that the gerundive construction is standard (at least in classical written Latin).

Comparison #1

GERUND: Ad vōs audiendum vēnimus.

GERUNDIVE: Ad vōs audiendōs vēnimus. [preferred construction]

TRANSLATION: We came to hear you.

In the first sentence, audiendum is a gerund in the accusative after ad. Vōs is also in the accusative because it is the direct object of audiendum.

In the second sentence, vōs is still in the accusative, but now it is the object of the preposition ad. Audiendōs is a gerundive in the masculine plural accusative (to agree with vōs).

Comparison #2

GERUND: Aenēās cupidus urbem condendī erat.

GERUNDIVE: Aenēās cupidus urbis condendae erat. [preferred construction]

TRANSLATION: Aeneas was eager to found a city (desirous of founding a city).

In this example we are dealing with the genitive case. In the first sentence, condendī is a genitive gerund depending on the adjective cupidus, while urbem is the accusative direct object of condendī.

In the second sentence, urbis is in the genitive and now depends on cupidus, while condendae is a gerundive. It is feminine singular genitive to agree with urbis.

Gerundives can be used in place of gerunds in any case (genitive, dative, accusative, or ablative). The following examples come from different ancient texts.

Example #1 (genitive depending on speciem)

ad Eumenēn per speciem captīvōrum redimendōrum missus lēgātus erat.

A legate had been sent to Eumenes under the guise of ransoming the captives.

Livy Ab Urbe Condita 44.24.7

Example #2 (dative with the adjective idōneum)

Cāseō ūsibus domesticīs praeparandō hoc maximē idōneum tempus est.

This is a time of year especially ideal for preparing cheese for domestic uses.

Columella De Re Rustica 12.13

Example #3 (accusative after ad)

temporis tanta fuit exiguitās hostiumque tam parātus ad dīmicandum animus, ut nōn modo ad īnsignia accommodanda, sed etiam ad galeās induendās scūtīsque tegimenta dētrahenda tempus dēfuerit.

They had so little time and the enemies’ minds were so prepared for fighting that time was lacking not only for putting badges in place, but also for putting on helmets and removing covers from shields.

Caesar Gallic Wars 2.21

Example #4 (ablative of means)

ita plūrēs diēs efficiendīs pontibus absūmptī.

Thus many days were taken up with building bridges.

Tacitus Annals 2.8

How can you tell Latin gerunds and gerundives apart?

Both gerunds and gerundives feature the distinctive –nd– marker after a verbal stem. These forms can look similar or even identical, so how can you know which you are dealing with if you see one in an ancient text?

There are two tricks that I teach my students.

Trick #1: Remember that gerunds are neuter singular nouns. They have a grand total of four possible case endings: –ī, –ō, –um, and –ō.

If you see –nd– followed by any other case ending, you are NOT looking at a gerund. Feminine endings and plural endings signal that your mystery word is a gerundive.

So if you stumble across a phrase such as rosārum laudandārum causā, you can immediately exclude gerunds as a possibility. –ārum is a feminine plural ending, so laudandārum MUST be a gerundive.

But what if your mystery word does end in –ndī, –ndō, or –ndum? Based purely on the case ending, it could be either a gerund or a gerundive. So we need to turn to another strategy.

Trick #2: Remember that gerunds are nouns and gerundives are adjectives. Gerunds can stand on their own, but gerundives MUST be paired with a noun or pronoun.

Look at the words surrounding your mystery form. Is there a noun (or pronoun) that the form could agree with? If so, you are looking at a gerundive.

If there is no possible noun for your mystery word to modify, you have a gerund.

Let’s try this out on the following sentence.

Pīrāta captus est amōre regendī et cupīdine rēgis vincendī.

We have two words ending in –ndī in this sentence: regendī and vincendī.

When we look around the word regendī, there is no noun that it could possibly agree with. The nearest noun, amōre, is in the ablative singular, while regendī is a genitive singular. Thus regendī must be a gerund.

Vincendī, on the other hand, is right next to the 3rd declension noun rēgis. Rēgis is genitive singular masculine, and vincendī can also be genitive singular masculine. The two go together; vincendī is a gerundive.

Pīrāta captus est amōre regendī et cupīdine rēgis vincendī.

TRANSLATION: The pirate was seized by love of ruling and by desire to conquer the king.

I hope these two strategies help you to distinguish Latin gerunds and gerundives with confidence!

FAQs about Latin Gerunds and Gerundives

Gerunds vs. Gerundives in Latin: Final Tips

Gerunds and gerundives are one of the hardest topics in Latin grammar to master. Even my advanced students often struggle with them.

Part of this may be that many Latin textbooks put them at the very end (in Wheelock’s, for instance, they come in Chapter 39, the second-to-last chapter). If you finish the textbook as you are finishing a semester of school, your mind is tired and may not process things as easily as you might like.

It is absolutely essential that you understand gerunds and gerundives. Gerundives especially are a go-to construction for Latin authors.

My advice is to keep pushing forward. Review the grammatical explanations. Read and reread sentences and paragraphs involving gerunds and gerundives. Look for different explanations, since you never know whose words will click for you.

And don’t forget this awesome mnemonic: a gerundIVE is an adjectIVE!

You have now seen plenty of examples of Latin gerunds and gerundives in action. If you would like to read even more about these tough constructions, then here are my top recommendations.

👉 E. C. Woodcock’s book on Latin syntax has an awesome section on gerunds and gerundives. Chapter XVII (pages 157-166) is devoted to this topic, and I learn something new every time I read it.

👉 Allen and Greenough’s is also quite helpful. §500-507 cover the gerund, the gerundive, and their various uses.

You may also like the following posts for advanced Latin learners:

Latin Subjunctive Demystified

The Ultimate Guide to Latin Participles

Deponent and Semi-Deponent Verbs

Latin Meter & Scansion

Dactylic Hexameter in Latin & Greek