AN ERROR ANALYSIS ON THE USE OF GERUND TO THE
FOURTH
SEMESTER
STUDENTS
OF
ENGLISH
DEPARTEMENT,
FACULTY
OF
CULTURAL
STUDIES,
UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA IN THE ACADEMIC
YEAR OF 2012/2013
A THESIS
BY
MARIYADI
REG.NO. 110721022
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
AN ERROR ANALYSIS ON THE USE OF GERUND TO THE FOURTH SEMESTER STUDENTS OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2012/2013
A THESIS
BY
MARIYADI
REG NO. 110721022
SUPERVISOR CO-SUPERVISOR
Dr. Masdiana Lubis, M.Hum Drs. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL NIP. 19570626 198303 2 001 NIP. 19570308 198403 1 004
Submitted to Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara Medan in Partial Fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Sarjana Sastra from Department of English.
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
Approved by the Department of English, Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara (USU) Medan as thesis for The Sarjana Sastra Examination.
Head, Secretary,
Dr. Muhizar Muchtar, M.S. Dr. Nurlela,M.Hum
Accepted by the Board of Examiners in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Sarjana Sastra from the Department of English, Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara, Medan.
The examination is held in Department of English Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara on July 27th, 2013
Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies
University of Sumatera Utara
Dr. H. Syahron Lubis, MA
NIP. 19511013 197603 1 001
Board of Examiners
Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, M.S ...
Dr. Hj. Nurlela, M.Hum ...
Dr. Hj. Masdiana Lubis, M.Hum ...
Drs. H. Chairul Husni, M.Ed.TESOL ...
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to thank to the Almighty God, Allah SWT for blessing and giving me strenght to accomplish this thesis.
There are many people who have supported me to accomplish this thesis. I realize that I would not finish if there is no guidances, advices, and supports from them. Therefore, in this occasion I would like to thank and grateful to:
a. My beloved parents, Saidi and Srifah for having supported me anytime and anywhere.
b. My sisters, brothers, nephews and nieces Sri Yanti, Sri Yuni, Sri Wati, Sri Yani, Susanto, Supriadi, Suparmin, Suparningsih, Sulasmi, Selamat Rahmadani, Agus, Indrawati, Ayu, Lia and Ela. I do thank for having supported me anytime and anywhere.
c. My supervisor, Dr. Masdiana Lubis, M.Hum and my co-supervisor, Mr. Drs. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL. I do thank for having guided and advised me in doing this thesis patiently.
d. The Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies, Dr. Syahron Lubis, MA. e. Dr. Muhizar Muchtar, M.S. as the head of English Department.
f. Dra. Redita Lubis,Dip.Appl.Ling.,M.Hum, as my lecturer that had helped me by giving her students as the object of my research, giving me many advices to be better people and also giving me a chance to help her in her office.
g. My close friends, Fendi, Ferri, Fahmi, Maya, Aida, Mazla and also all my friends in Faculty of Cultural Studies, USU.
h. All the Teater O members, USU.
Finally, the writer hopes that this thesis can be useful for the readers. He also hopes getting critic and suggestion to make this paper better.
Hopefully, this paper can be a consideration of everyone who wants to analyze this topic.
Medan, July 2013
AUTHOR’S DECLARATION
I, MARIYADI DECLARE THAT I AM THE SOLE AUTHOR OF THIS THESIS EXCEPT WHERE REFERENCE IS MADE IN THE TEXT OF THIS THESIS. THIS THESIS CONTAINS NO MATERIAL PUBLISHED ELSEWHERE OR EXTRACTED IN WHOLE OR IN PART FROM A THESIS BY WHICH I HAVE QUALIFIED FOR OR AWARDED ANOTHER DEGREE. NO OTHER PERSON’S WORK HAS BEEN USED WITHOUT DUE TO ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS IN THE MAIN TEXT OF THIS THESIS. THIS THESIS HAS NOT BEEN SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF ANOTHER DEGREE IN ANY TERTIARY EDUCATION.
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NAME : MARIYADI
TITLE OF THESIS : AN ERROR ANALYSIS ON THE USE OF GERUND TO THE FOURTH SEMESTER
STUDENTS OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2012/2013
QUALIFICATION : S-1/SARJANA SASTRA
DEPARTMENT : ENGLISH
I AM WILLING THAT MY THESIS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR REPRODUCTION AT THE DISCRETION OF THE LIBRARIAN OF DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH, FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA ON THE UNDERSTANDING THAT USERS ARE MADE AWARE OF THEIR OBLIGATION UNDER THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA.
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ABSTRAK
Skripsi yang berjudul “ AN ERROR ANALYSIS ON THE USE OF GERUND TO
THE FOURTH SEMESTER STUDENTS OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT, FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA
IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2012/2013” berisi tentang analisa kesalahan yang
dibuat oleh mahasiswa/i semester IV. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menemukan jenis-jenis kesalahan, penyebab kesalahan dan kesalahan yang paling dominan yg dibuat oleh mahasiswa berdasarkan jenis-jenis kesalahannya. Dalam menyelesaikan penelitian ini, metode yang digunakan adalah penelitian lapangan dengan menerapkan metode kuantitatif dan kualitatif. Subjek penelitian ini adalah 54 mahasiswa/i semester empat. Instrumen yang digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data adalah dengan memberikan ujian mengenai penggunaan gerund yang disusun dalam dua bentuk, yaitu: tes melengkapi dan menuliskan paragraf pendek tentang
ABSTRACT
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ... i
Author’s Declaration ... ii
Copyright Declaration ... iii
Abstrak ... iv
Abstract ... v
Table of Contents ... vi
List of Tables ... viii
BAB I INTRODUCTION 1.1. Background of the Study ... 1
1.2. Problem of the Study ... 6
1.3. Objective of the Study ... 7
1.4. Scope of the Study ... 8
1.5. Significance of the Study ... 8
BAB II REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2. 1 Gerund ... 9
2.1 1 Definition of Gerund ... 9
2.1 2 Functions of Gerund ... 10
a. Gerund as Subject ... 10
b. Gerund as (Direct) Object ... 12
c. Gerund as Subjective Complement ... 14
d. Gerund after Preposition ... 15
e. Gerund after Possesive ... 17
f. Gerund Used in the Negative Adjective “NO” ... 19
g. Gerund as Noun Compounds ... 19
2.1 3 Comparison between Gerund and Present Participle ... 20
2.1 4 Comparison between Gerund and Infinitive ... 22
2. 2 Error and Error Analysis ... 25
2.2. 1 Error ... 25
2.2. 1.1 The Source of Error Occurance ... 26
2.2. 2 Error Analysis ... 26
3. 2 Population and Sample ... 34
3.2.1. Population ... 34
3.2.2. Sample ... 35
3. 3 Research Instrument ... 35
3. 4 Data Collection Method ... 36
3. 5 Data Analysis Method ... 36
BAB IV ANALYSIS AND FINDING 4.1. Data Analysis ... 38
4.1.1. The Number of Errors in Using Gerund ... . 38
4.2. Analysis and Finding ... 39
4.2. 1 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund as Subject ... 39
4.2. 2 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund as (Direct) Object ... 45
4.2. 3 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund as Subjective Complement ... 51
4.2. 4 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund after Preposition ... 55
4.2. 5 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund after Possesive ... 60
4.2. 6 The Kinds of Error in Using Gerund Used in the Negative Adjective “NO” ... 64
4.3. Classification of Error ... 67
4.3. 1Error Based on Function of Gerund ... 67
4.3. 2Kinds of Error in Using Gerund ... 70
BAB V CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION 5.1.Conclusions ... 72
5.2.Suggestions ... 73
REFERENCES
APPENDICES
i. Surat Izin Penelitian
List of Tables
Table 4.1. The Number of Errors in Completion Test ... 38
Table 4.2. The Number of Errors in Writing a Short Paragraph ... 38
Table 4.3. Classification of Error per Sub-Category ... 67
Table 4.4. The Percentage of Error per Sub-Category ... 68
Table 4.5. Number of Correct abd Incorrect Sentence ... 69
Table 4.6. Frequency and Percentage of Population Error in Using Gerund ... 69
Table 4.7. Frequency and Percentage of Error Based on the Kinds of Error ... 70
ABSTRAK
Skripsi yang berjudul “ AN ERROR ANALYSIS ON THE USE OF GERUND TO
THE FOURTH SEMESTER STUDENTS OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT, FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA
IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2012/2013” berisi tentang analisa kesalahan yang
dibuat oleh mahasiswa/i semester IV. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk menemukan jenis-jenis kesalahan, penyebab kesalahan dan kesalahan yang paling dominan yg dibuat oleh mahasiswa berdasarkan jenis-jenis kesalahannya. Dalam menyelesaikan penelitian ini, metode yang digunakan adalah penelitian lapangan dengan menerapkan metode kuantitatif dan kualitatif. Subjek penelitian ini adalah 54 mahasiswa/i semester empat. Instrumen yang digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data adalah dengan memberikan ujian mengenai penggunaan gerund yang disusun dalam dua bentuk, yaitu: tes melengkapi dan menuliskan paragraf pendek tentang
ABSTRACT
I. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background of the Study
Gerund is a verb form which ends in –ing and is used in a sentence like a noun. These verbal forms are often found in many sentences with
different functions such as subject, (direct) object, used after preposition, and
after possessive which often lead to some confusion. To know how the
verbals work, it is essential to understand their meaning and purpose.
Verbals in gerund are derived from verbs but function as a noun by
adding the suffix-ing to verbs. According to Allen (1974:177) the part of the
verb that ends in-ing has two very important functions: (1) It can have the
force of an adjective as well as that of a verb. We call this the present
participle, and (2) It can have the force of a noun as well as that of a verb. We
call this the gerund. Unfortunately, this actually causes errors and problems
due to not only the gerunds use verbs + ing in the sentence but also the
present participle. This is consistent with a statement of a thesis entitled
“Teaching Gerund to the Second Years Students of SMPN3 Peusangan by
Using the Five Finger Tehniques” (in www.kapabeujaya.wordpress.com website) which states that many students may get confused on gerund
because gerund has exactly the same form as the present participle. The same
form will also create errors if it is not properly understood. This idea is
supported by Damianus in his thesis “The Ability of the 2007 Year Students of English Literature Department, University of Sumatera Utara to
understanding about them can make serious problem especially in the case of
the use of English grammatical structure correctly.
Lack of understanding of the verb + ing form that can be used either
as gerund or as present participlemay cause errors in its use. It will lead to a
different understanding of the meaning between the speaker and listener in a
communication. This means that the use of language and its message delivery
is not achieved well. Sapir (1949:7) says that language is purely human and
non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions, and desire by
means of system of voluntarily produced symbols.
There are some results of previous studies on the use of gerund to
students stating that the rate of student errors in using gerund is still high. The
research conducted by Damianus to the students of English Department of
USU in 2007 states that they made error about 37.98% and the error analysis
on the use of gerund research conducted by Arjati to the students of English
literature of UNNES in 2007 also found that many students make errors in the
use of gerund. The error rate in each type of gerund ranged 16% to 69%. The
results of the researchs above show that there are still many students who do
not understand the use of the gerund so that they still make many errors.
In addition, to determine whether there are still many learners who
do not understand the use of gerund, the writer had conducted a preliminary
research on January 26th, 2013 to the fourth semester students of English
Department in the academic year of 2012/2013. The writer chose them as
objects of research since they had learned gerund in semester 3 (three) and
preliminary research, the writer took twenty students as sample and data were
obtained by giving them test. The test is completion test consisting of 60
questions, 39 questions of gerund and 21 questions of other English
structures, so that the students must complete the blank in the sentence by
changing verb in bracket into the correct gerund form. The completion test is
arranged randomly.
In the preliminary research, the writer found that many learners still
made errors in the use of gerund. The writer checked their answer and the
result showed that 50% students get correct answer under 60 (poor-enough)
and 50% students get above 60 (good-very good). It means that many of the
students do not understand how to use gerund. For example, many learners
make error in answering these two following questions in the preliminary test.
1. Avoid ... (make) silly mistakes.
→ Avoid making silly mistakes.
2. I am looking forward to ... (get) a salary arise next month.
→ I am looking forward to getting a salary arise next month.
There are 70% of 20 students made errors or in other words, as many as 14
learners make errors in completing them. The first question is a gerund
functioning as a direct object and the second is gerund after preposition.
There are many types of errors made by the learners such as the addition of
affixes "s", "ed", the use of "to" or modal "will".
Based on the previous studies and the results of the preliminary
continuing research on the use of the gerund of the fourth semester students
of English Department in the academic year of 2012/2013.
Errors made by the learners in the process of learning English
because English is the second language in Indonesia. As a second language,
learners have to study hard to understand the sentence structures that are very
different from those Indonesian sentence structures.
Second Language Acquisition may refer to any language that is
learned by learners after they have mastered their mother tongue (first
language). Our mother tongue is Indonesian language while other language
that we want to learn is called Second Language. Ellis (1985:5) says that
Second Language Acquisition is the study of how learners learn an additional
language after they have acquired their mother tongue. There are generally
found errors when learners learn the second language, for every language has
its rule that is different to other languages. It has been proved in the
preliminary test resulted that many of the learners made errors.
There are several definitions of errors according to experts. Ellis
defines that errors reflect the gaps in a learner’s knowledge. They occur because the learner does not know what is correct. It is caused the learners do
not have the capability of understanding the structure of a language. This
understanding is almost the same with the definition of error proposed by
The behaviorists defines that errors occur as the learners get the wrong
teaching method so that they cannot use the language correctly.
The occurrence of errors in learning or using a second language is
normal. Learners are still soldered on the use of first language, so they do not
know which ones are correct to use. The occurrence of errors in the process of
learning is a process of mastering second language because of the presence of
the errors, learners can analyze and correct them. Strevens (1969) in
Richards (1974:4) hypothesized that errors should not be viewed as problems
to be overcome, but rather as normal and inevitable indicating the strategies
that learners use. He conjectured that if a regular pattern of errors could be
observed in the performance of all learners in a given solution and if a learner
were seen to progress through this pattern, his errors could be taken as
evidence not of failure but success and achievement in learning.
In second language acquisition is found the term of error analysis
that has a meaning of investigating the errors in second language learning by
collecting and describing samples made by language learners. In other words,
this is a procedure to analyze the errors in the language learning process to be
known and corrected by using several ways of analyzing. Ellis (1985:296)
states that errors analysis is a procedure used by both researcher and teacher.
It involves collecting samples of learner’s language, identifying the error in sample, describing these errors, classifying them according to their
hypothesized causes, and evaluating their seriousness. Susan and Selinker
(2008:517) say that error analysis is a procedure for analyzing second
language data that begins with the errors learners make and then attempts to
There is a close relationship between an error analysis on the use of
gerund and second language acquisition, that is gerund is one of English
structure features and English is the first foreign language (second language)
in Indonesia that must be learned by Indonesian students. In the process of
learning gerund, many learners make errors and it is a normal case because it
is the process for the learners to acquire the second language.
To find out why the learners could make errors, a research about the
error must be done. There are several types of errors that were dictated by
experts. According to Ellis (1997:15), there are four kinds of errors: (1)
Omission is the error of leaving item that is required for an utterance to be
considered grammatical, (2) misinformation is the error of using one
grammatical form in place of another grammatical form, (3) misordering is
the error of putting the words in an utterance in the wrong order, and (4)
overgeneralization is the error of using over grammatical form in an
utterance.
1.2. Problem of the Study
Learners may make errors when they use English language, especially on the
use of gerund, which is one of the English structure forms. Dealing with the
matters and based on the background above, the writer has formulated the
problems of the study as follows:
1. What kinds of error on the use of gerund are made by the 2012/2013 fourth
semester students of English Literature of Faculty of Cultural Studies of
2. What are the causes and the sources of the errors on the use of gerund
made by the 2012/2013 fourth semester students of English Literature of
Faculty of Cultural Studies of USU.
3. What kind of error on the use of gerund is the most dominant made by the
2012/2013 fourth semester students of English Literature of Faculty of
Cultural Studies of USU.
1.3. Objective of the Study
Mastering a language properly and correctly takes a lot of time as learner of
language needs to know the system of the language. One is dealing with the
grammatical system of grammar and usage.
Based on the explanation above, the writer can describe the objectives of the
study are as follows:
1. To find out kinds of error on the use of gerund are made by the
2012/2013 fourth semester students of English Literature of Faculty of
Cultural Studies of USU.
2. To find out the causes and the sources of errors on the use of gerunds
made by the 2012/2013 fourth semester students of English Literature of
Faculty of Cultural Studies of USU.
3. To find out the kinds of error on the use of gerund is the most dominant
made by the 2012/2013 fourth semester students of English Literature of
1.4. Scope of the Study
In each form of English grammar has its own formula, such as the use of
gerund. Gerund is divided into several types and each type has certain
requirements in its use that the learners might make errors in using it.
According to the explanation above, the writer limits the research related to
the use of gerund such as gerund as subject, gerund as (direct) object, gerund
as subjective complement, gerund as object of preposition, gerund a fter
possessive adjective, and Gerund used in the Negative Adjective in the
2012/2013 forth semester students of English Literature of Faculty of Cultural
Studies of USU.
1.5. The Significance of the Study
The errors on the use of the gerund sometimes are predictable but sometimes
not. The kinds of error were made also varied; therefore, it is very important
to have a better method to avoid making errors.
By doing this research, the writer hopes the result is useful to provide:
1. Input to the readers generally and especially for students of English
Literature in order they become more careful in using gerund.
2. Information about the kinds of error on the use of gerund and as a
consideration matery in teaching and learning gerund especially in English
Literature Department.
3. Guidance on the use of gerund to motivate learners to be more seriously
II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 Gerund
2.1.1. Definition of Gerund
Every language has its own rules and system that make them different
with the other languages. English as the first foreign language in Indonesia has
great difference structures with Indonesian language. We often find verbs in
English that function as nouns. There is no change in making a noun from a verb
in Bahasa Indonesia, but in English we must add the suffix –ing to the verb. On the other hand, the –ing form of a verb is not always a noun. Words derived from a verb stem with the suffix –ing may occur in a variety of meanings and functions. It depends on the contexts where they occur. The –ing form may be used as verbal nouns and verbal adjectives. Allen (1974:177) states that the part
of the verb that ends in –ing has two very important functions: (1) It can have the force of an adjective as well as that of a verb, known as present participle,
and (2) It can have the force of a noun as well as that of a verb, known as
gerund. The function of present participle and gerund is not the same although it
has the same verb-ing form.
Thus, gerund is a verb-ing form functioning as a noun. This verb –ing form is a part of noun and a part of a verb. Pyle (2001:72) says that a gerund is a
verb + ing that is used as a noun or a part of noun phrase. Azar (2003:368) also
states that a gerund is the –ing form of a verb. It is used as a noun. A gerund is a verb from which ends in –ing, but which is used in a sentence like a noun (Richards, 2002:225). Meanwhile, gerund phrase is composed of the gerund and
subjects, complements and objects so that it may be preceded by an article, a
possessive pronoun, or an adjective or followed by a noun-adjunct with ‘of’ (or another preposition). As a noun, gerund may function as the subject, object,
nominal predicate of a sentence, and form part of a prepositional adjunct.
2.1.2. Functions of Gerund a. Gerund as Subjects
Gerund is an action functioning as a noun. Since it can be
functioned as a noun, it can be used as the subject of the sentence. Subject
is any sort of entity: a person, a place, an object, an abstract concept, and a
pronoun that refers to some entity identified elsewhere or an action
functioning as a noun (Stilman, 1992:55). As a subject of a sentence, it
basically has characteristics such as verb + ing, in front of predicate,
subject of a sentence and having meaning as a noun. In addition, gerund as
subject always requires singular verb.
Examples:
1. Reading is my hobby.
2. Swimming is a healthy sport. 3. Skiing is my favourite winter sport.
Gerund followed by some words is called gerund phrase. It can act
as the subject of a predicate although it does not occur frequently because
the common use is in general statements with “be” as the main verb. Examples:
4. Playing tennis is fun. 5. Respecting parent is wise.
Learners may make errors when they make a gerund as a subject of
sentence since the predicate must be in singular form. Based on the
preliminary research, the errors are they omitted the use of-ing, adding to
or ed, and the common one is they use are instead of is as they take
attention to the word after gerund (phrase).
Example:
7. Disturbing friends in the class is not good attitude.
Disturbing friends in the class is gerund phrase and functions as the
subject of the sentence. Learners can make error if they focus on friends
which is plural noun and it must be followed by plural predicate. The main
point of the sentence is disturbing as the subject of the sentence.
Besides it is used in general statement, gerund phrase may also
function as the subject of verb that expresses cause-effect relationship and
emotion (Arjati, 2007:15).
a. Cause-effect relationship
8. Having much money makes him very happy
Gerund phrase which such a verb may have conditional meaning:
9. Playing online games all night everyday (=If you play online game all night, it) will affect to your health.
10.Realizing him so weak disappointed them.
b. Emotion
11.Knowing his failure disappointed them. 12.Being ignored by his friends enrages him.
Disappointed them and enrages him may be interpreted as causes them to
become disappointed and cause him to become enrage. Those show that
Gerund can be used instead of infinitive when the action is
considered in general sense, but it is always safe to use infinitive. When
we wish to refer to one particular action we must use the infinitive.
Examples:
13.It is not always easy to refuse invitations. 14.Refusing invitations is not always easy.
Here the action is considered in general sense, and either gerund or
infinitive is possible (Thomson and Martinet, 1969: 155). Gerund, like
infinitive, can be the subject of a sentence.
Examples:
15.It is easier to read French than to speak it. 16.Reading French is easier than speaking it.
These two sentences have no difference. It is as stated by Thomson
and Martinet (1969:158) that there is no difference between those forms,
but the gerund usually implies that the speaker or person addressed has had
personal experience of the action, having performed it himself probably
more than once, i.e. in the sixteenth example we get the impression that the
speaker can, or has tried to, read and speak French while the speaker in the
first example may only be expressing an opinion or theory.
b. Gerund as (Direct) Object
Gerunds are used in another way, too. It can be found after certain
transitive verb.
Examples:
Gerund phrases also play this role, examples:
20.We avoid travelling in the rush hour. 21.I don’t anticipate meeting any opposition. 22.He denied having been there.
There are certain verbs followed by other verbs, the second verbs can
function as either gerund or infinitive which are considered as the object of
the verb.
Verbs followed by either Gerund or Infinitive begin
Verbs followed by either Gerund or Infinitive with Different Meaning
stop remember forget
a) Verbs in the first row are always followed by gerund (never
followed by Infinitive).
Here Can’t help means “not able to avoid a situation, or stop something from happening”.
23. I appreciate being given suggestions by her. 24. Tony always avoids answering my questions.
b) Verbs in the second row are followed either gerund or infinitive
with the same meaning.
Examples:
25. I begin working or I begin to work
26. Don’t attempt to do it by yourself orDon’t attempt doing it by yourself.
c) Verbs in the third row can also be followed by infinitive, but the
meanings are different with the gerund form.
Examples:
27. My brother always remembers locking his car.
It is different with My brother always remembers to lock his car.
28. My brother always forgets locking his car.
It is different with My brother always forgets to lock his car.
c. Gerund as Subjective Complement
Since gerunds function as a noun, they can serve as subjective
complement as well
.
Their position is usually after “be”.Examples:
29. My cat's favorite activity is sleeping. 30. Her hobby is singing
31. My favorite activity is reading 32. What she loves is painting.
The uses of gerund phrases that function as complement are equivalent to
the subject.
Examples:
34. Her hobby is reading novel.
d. Gerund after Preposition
Gerunds must be used when verbs are put after preposition.
Prepositions usually follow verbs, adjective, or noun. They are actually
verb + preposition, adjective + preposition and noun and pronoun +
preposition. Verbs that are placed after preposition must be in gerund
form.
Examples:
37. He insists on seeing her.
38. He gave up smoking because of his doctor’s advice. 39. After a long trial and error, he finally succeeded in fixing
his laptop.
40. I am looking forward to seeing you soon. 41. Judith is fond of singing while taking a shower. a. Verbs + Prepositions + Gerunds
A number of phrasal verbs and objects of preposition that take the
form of a gerund.
accuse of believe in consist of
blow out content with aim at
call for depend on call on
deprive of arrive at (in) carry out
clean out disapprove of ask for
composed of find out bear out
congratulate on speak of give up
keen on succeed in keep on
superior to go on leave off
look at talk to related to
talk about translate to count on
look forward to think about object to
confess to think of rely on
42. When Francisco wore dive fins to class, everyone knew that he was devoted to swimming.
43. He prefers being neutral to taking sides.
The word “to” after the following verbs is not the sign of infinitive. It
functions as a preposition, therefore it requires a gerund after it.
b. Adjectives +Prepositions + Gerunds
A number of phrasal adjectives and objects of preposition that take
the form of a gerund.
accustomed to interested in fond of
intent on capable of tired of
afraid of successful in angry with
good at jealous of independentof
similar to sure of ashamed of
full of different from indifferent to
44. I am used to studying in the midnight 45. He is good at telling lies
46. I am tired of studying all day long. c. Nouns + Prepositions + Gerunds
A number of phrasal nouns and objects of preposition that take the
form of a gerund.
choice of intention of possibility of
excuse for methods for/of reason for
Examples:
47. The teacher gave us choice of taking another exam. 48. He always has an excuse for being late
49. Have you found the best method for improving your English yet?
Preposition generally can be directly followed by verb + ing form.
Examples:
52. By selling fruit in the market, she gets a lot of money 53. We should have stayed at home instead of travelling to
this such place.
e. Gerunds used after Possessive
Gerund, like a noun, can be preceded by possessive adjective or
noun in the possessive case such as my, his, her, and Budi’s. If the verb after preposition is directly followed by gerund and it refers to subject of
a verb, the gerunds after possessive adjective refer to the person denoted
by the possessive adjective or pronoun.
Examples:
54. We dislike moving to another apartment (we dislike it) 55. We dislike her moving to another apartment. (she must
not move).
There are differences about the usage of gerund after possessive in
formal and informal situation. In formal English, possessive adjectives
(my, your, his, her, etc) are used to modify a gerund.
Examples:
56. Our teacher appreciates our coming on time. 57. He dislikes my working late.
The possessive noun by adding aphosthrope s (‘s) to the noun or pronoun
is usually used in very formal English to modify a gerund
Examples:
The possessive forms are infrequent used in informal English but object
forms (me, you, them) are frequently used in informal English
Examples:
60. It is no use them complaining. (Thomson & Martinet, 1969:165)
61. He left the house without us knowing anything about it. (Thomson & Martinet, 1969)
62. The juries decided us winning the English debate competition.
63. I do not remember my mother complaining about it. 64. She does not mind Alice singing loudly.
But the possessive forms are used in both formal and informal usage if
the gerund phrase acts as the subject of sentence.
65. Her calling in the midnight disturbed me.
Either the unchanged forms of nouns or the object forms of
personal pronoun may be used as the subject of gerund since these forms
establish a closer relationship with the verb or preposition after which
they commonly appear. In a speech they have great stress and are
followed by a longer pause. Gerund phrases ordinarily occur after a main
verb especially such verbs as in the following:
like dread mean save insist on
dislike fancy propose stop it’s no good/use
mind involve recollect suggest object to
remember understand resent (dis)approve of there’s no point
in
what’s the point of
66. I dislike my mother interfering in the affair. (Thomson & Martinet, 1969:165)
67. He insisted on me reading the document. f. Gerunds Used in the Negative Adjective “No”
The negative form of gerunds is made by placing adverb “not” in front of gerunds. There are certain types of the use of “no” following by gerund. 1. Negative gerund is used after There + a form of be.
Examples:
68. There is no giving the beggar some money. 69. There is no assuming that they win the game.
70. There is no complaining the wrong explanation of the teacher.
2. Negative gerund can be used in prohibition that is against certain
activities.
71. No cheating is allowed in this biology test. 72. No fishing in this lake! The officer announces. 73. No parking in this area!
g. Gerunds as Noun Compounds
Since gerund functions as a noun, it can be used in noun compound
or it is also called as noun adjunct. Gerunds are inseparable from the
noun, and it makes it different with present participle used as adjective
and explains the nouns which may be separated from the nouns. The
gerunds explain the function of the nouns; it can be put before or after the
noun such as diving shoe, driving lesson, swimming pool, bird-watching,
and train-spotting. Diving shoe means that the shoe is used for diving, It
explain the shoe, but it is a noun that explain the function of the noun
precede it.
a. Gerund before a noun
Examples:
Swimming pool, running text, boarding house, living room, dining room, fitting room, etc.
b. Gerund as noun compound after noun.
Examples:
Bird-watching, train-spotting, fruit-picking, coal-mining, car-collecting, surf-riding, etc.
2.1.3. Comparison between Gerund and Present Participle
The verb that ends with suffix –ing is not only used as gerund but is also used as present participle. Both gerund and the participle use verbs
+ ing. Allen (1974:177) states the part of the verb that ends with suffix – ing has two very important functions: : (1) It can have the force of an
adjective as well as that of a verb, known as present participle. (2) It can
have the force of a noun as well as that of a verb, known as gerund. By this
same verb – ing form, it sometimes makes learners get confused in differentiating them. Both gerund and the participle can be distinguished
by their use in a sentence. Learners have only to remember the functions
of verb + ing in gerund that is used as noun and can function as subject,
direct object, and after preposition. While the verb + ing in the present
be distinguished by their relation to their subjects. The subject in gerund is
always construed as a modifier of the gerund phrase.
The same verb + ing form in both gerund and the participle usually
become the problem for learners to differentiate the verbs end in –ing form used as gerund and as the participle. This problem is actually can be solved
by understanding the function of both of them which have been explained
by the writer above.
Examples:
74. Her hobby is singing west songs 75. She is singing a west song.
The function of the -ing form of both of the sentences is very
different. The first sentence uses gerund because singing functions as the
complement of the subject, while the second was present participle
because singing in that sentence modifies the subject.
The following sentences are as the examples to understand the comparison
between gerund and present participle :
Gerund Participle
What she likes is watching a movie She is watching a movie
Her running shoes are very expensive
The running girl is beautiful
He likes driving a car. People driving in the rain have to drive carefully
The girl needs a microphone for singing
The singing girl amazed the audience
Swimming pool
(the pool for swimming)
The swimming girl
Sleeping-pill
(a pill that helps people to sleep)
The sleeping son (a son who is sleeping)
These following verbs are sometimes confusing, for they never have the
possessive as its subjects.
see hear have (not in present tense)
notice listen to imagine
watch feel keep
look at perceive catch
observe smell set /start /get hark at
Examples:
76. She looks at the girl painting a mountain. 77. We feel the weather getting hot.
78. He watches us playing football. 79. We will set/start/get them working.
2.1.4. Comparison between Gerund and Infinitive
There are verbs that can be followed by either gerund and infinitive.
Verbs followed by gerund and infinitive may have the similar and different
meaning. Gerunds are formed with “ing” while infinitives are formed with “to”
These following verbs mentioned bellow are verbs that can be followed by a
gerund and an infinitive.
abhor advice agree
allow attempt can/could bear
begin can/could bear cease
continue forget hate
intend it needs/requires/wants like
love mean need
permit prefer propose
start stop try used to
The verbs advice, allow, permit and recomend will take an infinitive if
they are followed by a pronoun; otherwise they take gerund.
Examples:
80. He advised me to apply at once.
81. She recomends housewives to buy big tins. 82. They don’t allow us to park here.
But gerund is used if they are not followed by pronoun
Examples:
83. He advised applying at once. 84. She recomends buying big tins.
Here are the other examples of verbs that can be followed by a gerund or
an infinitive.
Examples:
85. Nancy remembered getting married (Nancy has a memory of getting married)
86. Fred remembered to bring sunblock to the beach. (Fred remembered that he needed to bring sunblock)
87. She forgot paying the bill yesterday.
(Now she does not remember that she paid the bill yesterday)
88. She forgot to pay the bill yesterday. (I did not pay it because I forgot)
89. He is determined to get a seat for the ballet even if it means standing in a queue all night.
90. I mean to get to the top of by sunrise. (mean = intend takes the infinitive)
Some of the verbs above can be used as gerund or infinitive with no or
little difference meaning. Surayin (2003:176) states that the verbs begin, start,
continue, and cease can be followed by infinitive or gerund without any
difference, but infinitive is usually used if the verbs following them are know,
understand and matter.
Examples:
91. I began working/ I began to work
(There is no difference between “began working” and “began to work”)
92. He continued living/to live above the shop.
These following sentences are not followed by gerund but infinitive.
93. I am begining to understand why he acted as he did. 94. It ceased to matter whether or not he sold his work.
(If the main verb is progressive and main verbs are followed by understand, an infinitive is usually used)
Besides the verbs begin, start, continue and cease; there are some other
verbs that may be followed by a gerund or an infinitive with little or no
difference. They are cannot bear, cannot stand, like, hate, love, and prefer.
The gerund can be used instead of the infinitive when the action is being
considered in a general sense, but it is always safe to use an infinitive. When we
wish to refer to one particular action we must use the infinitive:
Examples:
95. He said ‘Do come with me.’ It was impossible to refuse. (Here we are refering to one particular action, so the gerund is not possible).
96. It is not always easy to refuse invitations can be replaced by refusing invitations is not always easy.
(Here the action is considered in a general sense, and either gerund or infinitive is possible)
(Thomson and Martinet,1969:155)
Students need to pay attention to the rules in learning a language in order to
communicate properly both in writing and speaking. In the process of learning the
language, students can not avoid making errors because errors happen as a part of the
learning process. This happens because the students use different forms to
comunicate ideas, feelings or messages. Corder (1981:1) states that most errors were
ascribed to interference and consequently a major part of applied linguistic research
was devoted to comparing the mother tongue and the target language in order to
predict or explain the errors made by learners of any particular language background.
2.2 Error and Error Analysis 2.2.1 Error
Errors, according to behaviourists’ theory, are the result of non
-learning, rather than wrong learning (Ellis, 1995:22). Ellis explains that
errors reflect gaps in a learner’s knowledge; they occur because the
learner does not know what is the correct one (Ellis, 1997:17). By
comparing the learner’s native language with the target language,
differences could be identified and used to predict areas of potential error
(Ellis, 1995: 23).
Corder (1974:1) observes that learner’s errors are indicative both of the state of the learner’s knowledge, and of the ways in which a second
that errors should not be viewed as problems to be overcome, but rather as
normal and inevitable indicating the strategies that learners use. He
conjectured that if a regular pattern of errors could be observed in the
performance of all learners in a given solution and if learners were seen to
progress through this pattern, his errors could be taken as evidence not of
failure but success and achievement in learning.
2.2.1.1The Source of Error Occurrence
As the writer has said above that second language learners
can not avoid making mistakes in the learning process. It is a
normal condition for second language learners. Heidi, Dulay and
Burt in Richard (1974:95) state that you can’t learn without goofing. Richard and Sampson (1974) indentify seven factors
characterizing second-language learner system, namely: (1)
language transfer, (2) intralingual interference, (3) sociolinguistic
situation, (4) modality, (5) age, (6) succession of approximate
system, and (7) universal hierarchy of difficulty (Richards 1974:
5-12).
2.2.2 Error Analysis
Error analysis is a study to investigate the errors in second
language learning by collecting and describing samples made by the
language learners. It is used as a procedure to analyze the errors in the
language learning process to be known and corrected by using several
ways of anlyzing. Ellis (1985:296) states that errors analysis is a procedure
learner’s language. Identifying the error in sample, describing these errors,
classifying them according to their hypothesized causes, and evaluating
their seriousness. Susan and Selinker (2008:517) say that error analysis is a
procedure for analyzing second language data that begin with the errors
learners make and then attempts to explain them.
Corder (1981:45) says that error analysis has two functions. The
first is a theoretical one and the second is a practical one. The theoretical
aspect of error analysis is part of the methodology of investigating the
language learning process. The practical aspect of error analysis is its
function in guiding the remedial action we must take to correct an
unsatisfactory state of affairs for learner or teacher. It is with this second
function of error analysis that I am concerned in this chapter. Corder also
states why error analysis is useful. He mentions error significant in three
different ways: (1). To the teacher; they show a student’s progress, (2). To the researcher; they show how a language is acquired and what strategies
the learner uses, and (3). To the leaner himself; he can learn from these
errors.
The good language use should be correct in grammar and
spelling. The proper grammar and spelling give emphasis and ease to the
reader. That is why the error analysis is needed to assure whether a writing
is good or not. Writers should understand what is meant by an error when
they are going to identify the error. There are several ways to analyze the
1. Identify errors
To identify the error, it is neccesary to compare the error sentences
(original sentence) with the normal or correct sentences in the target
language which correspond with them. By comparing the original
sentences and the normal or the correct sentences, we can find the
errors although this is in fact easier said than done.
2. Describing errors
This is the step to describe and classify the errors into the kinds. This
step can be done by several ways. According to Ellis (1997:18), there
are two ways to classify errors, namely:
a. The first way is classifying the errors through grammatical
categories. It means classifying the errors through their word
classes and tenses.
b. The second way of classifying the errors is try to identify
general ways in which the learners’ utterances differ from the
reconstructed target-language utterances. It means the errors are
classified into several types:
1. Omission
Omission is an error of leaving out an item that is required
for an utterance to be considered grammatical. The example
of this error type is: “My mistake was trust him”. Based on the function that it is gerund as subjective complement. This
sentence leaves an item that is required grammatically. The
Misinformation is the error of using one grammatical form
in place of another grammatical form, for example: Avoid
makes silly mistakes. This sentence cantains misinformation
error in using suffix “s”. It should be verb + ing form.
3. Misordering
Misordering is the error of putting the words in an utterance
in the wrong order, for example: Goats is used baits to trap
tigers. Goats is a plural noun so that it must be followed by
are.
4. Overgeneralization
Overganaralization is the error of using over grammatical
form in an utterance, for example: I eated fried chicken
yesterday. The use of eated is not suitable, it should be ate
because it is in regular verb.
3. Explaining errors
This last step is the step of error analysis where a researcher tries to
explain not only how and why a sentence is called to be erroneous but
also how and why learners make errors.
Corder (in Ellis 1995: 51-52 ) explains the procedure of error
analysis: (1) A corpus of language is selected, (2) The errors in the corpus
are identified, (3) The errors are classified, (4) The errors are explained,
and (5) The errors are evaluated. Error evaluation is only used if the
Dulay, Burt, and Krashen (1982:138) mention four descriptive taxonomies
to analyze errors, namely:
1. Linguistic Category Taxonomy.
Linguistic category taxonomies classify errors according to
either or both the language component (phonology, syntax and
morphology, semantics and lexicon, and style) and other particular
linguistic constituent.
2. Surface Strategy Taxonomy.
Surface strategy taxonomy deals with how the surface structures are
changed by the learner. Among the common errors are:
a. Omission Errors
Omission errors are the absence of an item that must appear in a
well-formed utterance.
Examples:
97. She is good teacher in this school. 98. She is a good teacher in this school. b. Addition Errors
Addition errors are the presence of an item which must not appear
in a well-formed utterance. Three types of addition errors are:
1) Double markings are the failure to remove or avoid some of the
elements needed in a linguistic construction, but it does not need
to be removed to other construction.
Example:
2) Regularizations are the addition category in which some
grammatical markers are added, as a regular form marker is
added to some irregular forms.
Example:
100. drinked for drank, sheeps for sheep. 3) Simple additions are an error adding subcategories.
Example:
101.The students doesn’t listen the explanation. c. Misformation Errors
Misformation errors are characterized by the use of the wrong form
of the morphemes or structure. The types of errors are:
1) Regularization errors are error using the regular features of
formation or a place that is not regular.
Example:
102. The cat drinked the milk.
2) Archi-forms are made when one member of a class of forms is
selected to represent others in the class.
Example:
103. I call him yesterday. His sing on a stage.
3) Alternating forms are the improper placement for a morpheme or
group of morphemes in a word or utterance.
Example:
104. I known her singing yesterday.
Misordering errors are the incorrect placement of a morpheme or
group of morphemes in an utterance.
Example:
105.I don’t know what is that.
3. Comparative Taxanomy
Comparative taxonomies classify errors based on comparison
between the structure used by learner and certain other types of
construction. The errors are classified into developmental errors,
interlingual errors, ambiguous errors, and unique errors.
4. Communicative Effect Taxonomy.
Communicative effect taxonomy deals with errors from the
perspective of their effect on the listener or reader. This taxonomy
classifies errors into global errors and local errors.
III. METHOD OF RESEARCH
3. 1 Reseacrh Design
The researcher uses field research in doing this writing. Field
research is an activity aimed at collecting primary (original or otherwise
unavailable) data, using methods such as face to face interviewing,
telephone and postal survey, and direct observation
(www.businessdictionary.com/definition/field-research.html). The
researcher applies quantitative method and qualitative method . Quantitative
method is used to find out the kinds and the most dominant error in using
gerund. Arikunto (2005:12) states that quantitative research applies number
from collecting the data, describing the data, until the result of the research.
Moreover, the results of the research would be better by applying table,
graph, draft, picture, etc.
Qualitative method is used to describe the sources and causes of the
errors made by the students. Moleong (2006: 3) states that qualitative
method is a procedure that generates the data in the form of descriptive
words in written or spoken from people and observed behavior. According
to Straus and Corbin (in Syamsudin 2007: 73), qualitative research is a
research of which the discovery is not obtained through statistic procedure
or any other calculation form.
These two research methods can be used simultaneously, but it is
not used to compare the advantages and disadvantages of each other. Galser
and Strauss (in Moleong, 2006:22) states that in many cases, both forms of
used together and, when compared, each of which can be used to formulate
the theory.
3. 2 Population and Sample 3.2.1. Population
Population is a very important factor in conducting a
research. Agung (2003:1) states that population can be defined in
several ways as follows: a). A set of individuals with the properties
specified or selected by the researcher in such a way that every
individual can be expressed exactly what the individual becomes
the member of the population or not, b). Associated with the
variable, then the population can be defined as the set of all
variables, both univariate and multivariate, which may be reviewed
by a researcher, c). Relates to the data, both quantitative and
qualitative data, the population can be defined as the set of all
possible data or chopped observed and recorded by a researcher. In
other words, population is the set of all individuals who may (or
may be) provide data and information for an investigation.
The population that the writer used in this research was the
students of English Department, Faculty of Cultural Studies,
University of Sumatera Utara. English Department consisted of 8
regular classes and 2 extension classes with the number of students
semester students as the object of the research. These two classes
consist of 100 students.
3.2.2. Sample
Sample is part of the population. It is a project of selecting
a number of individuals to represent the larger group they belong.
Agung (2003:2) states that sample is a subset of a given population.
The method of sampling used is purposive sampling. Arikunto
(2005:97) states that purposive sampling is sampling technique
used by the researcher if the researcher has specific considerations
in sample collection.
The sample in this research is the fourth semester students
of English Department, Faculty of Cultural Studies, USU in the
academic year of 2012/2013. The fourth semester students is
divided into two classes and it consists of 100 students, but there
were only 54 students following the test because they were absent
on the day when the test was held. The researcher’s considerations
choosing them as the respondent due to they have learned gerund
in the third semester and because of they are obliged to use English
on almost of all subjects.
3. 3 Research Instrument
All researchers need data collecting instrument in doing a
research study. Research instrument is very important for them who will
do a research because it plays an important role in a research project.
Arikunto (2005:134) states that research instrument is an invaluable tool
influence the validity and reliability of the data obtained. To collect data, a
researcher needs data collecting method and data collecting instrument.
Data collecting instrument can be divided into two types, a test
and a non-test. (Arikunto, 1992:122) state that A test is a written set of
questions to which an individual responds in order to determine whether
he or she passes. A non-test is a way to evaluate the learning outcomes of
students without testing the
students(http://liyazafira.blogspot.com/2012/03/
instrumen-tes-dan-nontes.html). In collecting the required data for the analysis of this final
project, the researcher used a test as an instrument to find out the kinds of
error respondents in using gerund.
3. 4 Data Collecting Method
Data collecting methodare ways that can be used by researchers to collect
data. In this research, the writer collects the data by giving test to the
fourth semester students of English Department totaled 54 students. The
data in this study are the answers of the students that contain errors in
using gerund. The test instrument is completion test (24 questions) and
writing a short paragraph entitled “shopping” (250 words). In this test the reseacher only gave 40 minutes for the students to answer the questions.
3. 5 Data Analysis Method
The writer uses descriptive quantitative method and descriptive
qualitative method. Quantitative descriptive analysis conducted by
qualitative descriptive analysis aims to give a title to data examined in
accordance with pre-determined benchmarks. (Arikunto, 2005:296)
The researcher apllies the theory of Dulay, Burt, and Krashen to
explain the kinds of error. For the steps of analyzing errors, the researcher
applies the theory of Rod Ellis. He also applies the grammar structure of
Thomson and Martinet about the use of gerund.
The steps of doing this reseacrh are 1). The researcher made the
questions and distributed them to the students to do it in 40 minutes. 2).
The researcher read and identify the errors made by the students in
answering the questions 3). The researcher classified the errors into groups
based on the kinds of error, then tabulated it, 4). the researcher explains
the data made by the students but not all data are explained, and 5). The
researcher drew some conclusion.
To know the precentage of errors made by the students, the researcher also
uses the formula of Bungin (2005:171-172). The formula is:
N= fx/n x 100%
Notes:
n = stands for the percentages of errors
fx= stands of the total frequency of the sub-categories errors
IV. ANALYSIS AND FINDING
4.1.Data Analysis
This chapter contains of the tabulation and the analysis of errors made by the
fourth semester students of English Department Faculty of Cultural Studies,
University of Sumatera Utara. In the advanced test, the researcher found 54
respondents from 100 respondents. The test consists of two kinds of test namely:
completion test and writing a short paragraph. From 2.369 sentences, there are 512
error sentences. Completion test 367 errors and writing a short story 145 errors or on
the other hand, there is about 21.6% of 54 students failed using gerund.
4.1.1.The Number of Errors in Using Gerund
Table 4.1. The Number of Errors in Completion Test
No Gerund Total
1 Gerund as Subject 46
2 Gerund as (Direct) Object 96
3 Gerund as Subjective Complement 21
4 Gerund after Preposition 65
5 Gerund after Possesive 72
6 Gerund Used in the Negative Adjective “NO” 67
Total Errors 367
Table 4.2. The Number of Errors in Writing a Short Paragraph
No Gerund Total
1 Gerund as Subject 10
2 Gerund as (Direct) Object 91
3 Gerund as Subjective Complement 7
4 Gerund after Preposition 27
5 Gerund after Possesive 10
6 Gerund Used in the Negative Adjective “NO” -
4.2.Analysis and Finding
4.2.1. Kinds of Errors in Using Gerund as Subject
Gerund as subject is one of gerund funtions. According to Stilman
(1992:55), as a subject of a sentence, it basically has characteristics such as verb
+ ing, in front of predicate, and meaningful as a noun. There are 56 errors in
using gerund as subject made by the students. The errors consist of omission,
addition, misinformation and misordering error.
1. Omission Error
Omission is an error of leaving out an item that is required for an utterance
to be considered grammatical. There are 37 errors of omitting items in
gerund as subect found in data.
a. Omission of “ing”
This table shows the samples for omission of “ing”
Original Sentence Reconstruction
1. Swear does not prove anything.
2. Be a boss made Jacob feel uneasy.
3. Go to nearest market or supermall to buy a goods.
Swearing does not prove anything Being a boss made Jacob feel uneasy. Going to the nearest market or supermall to buy goods.
Related on the samples above, the students omitted the suffix -ing
that must appear in those sentences. The omitting of “ing” in those
This error might occurs because the students do not know the use of verb-ing form as subject well.
b. Omission of Consonant Letter “p”
This table shows the sample of omission of consonant letter “p”.
Original Sentence Reconstruction
4. Shoping is a activities is not so interesting.
Shopping is not an interesting activity.
Related to the sample above, the type of error is omission. The
student used “shoping” instead of “shopping”. The omitting of consonant letter “p” in the original sentences makes the sentence error. “Shoping” is not an English word and has no meaning.
The error occurs because the student get interference in using
double consonant letter to certain verbs if they get addition of ed or ing.
The final single consonant letter that stands after a short stressed vowel is
doubled before adding ed or ing.
(http://usefulenglish.ru/writing/adding-endings-ed-ing-to-verbs.).
2. Addition Error
Addition error is the presence of an item which must not appear in a
well-formed utterance. There are 18 addition error of gerund as subject made by
the students.
a. Addition of Article “a”.
This table shows the samples of addition of article “a”.
Original Sentence Reconstruction
5. A swear does not prove anything.
6. A skip to him is a better alternative to jogging.
