Clauses · -ing

Before/After: Clause or Gerund?

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Full clause

Before I leave, I check my bag.

Reduced · same subject

Before leaving, I check my bag.

Full clause

After she ate, she studied.

Reduced · same subject

After eating, she studied.

Broken transfer

before to leave ✗ · after to eat ✗

After a preposition, a verb form takes -ing: before leaving, after eating.

Si el sujeto es el mismo, puede reducirse a verbo-ing.

Slide 25

Tips

Before/After: Clause or Gerund?

  1. Before y after pueden introducir una cláusula completa o una forma reducida en -ing.
  2. Si ambas acciones tienen el mismo sujeto, “Before I leave” puede reducirse a “Before leaving.”
  3. Después de estas preposiciones no uses to + verb: no “before to leave.”