Phil: I agree with the statement you make in your article that there is great confusion concerning words used to define grammatical terms. I have recently reviewed 18 (eighteen) grammar books of different sizes and origins, including Quirk’s “Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language,“ and each one of the uses a different set of terms to describe the grammar system of the English language. Standardization of grammar terminology would eliminate a lot of confusion and would make different grammar books more accessible to teachers and students. I do not have any trouble with the term *gerund* probably because I learned this term when I was in grammar (junior high) school, but I agree that the term is redundant. As you know, it comes from Latin (gerundium), and can be easily abandoned as the term *participle* can be used to describe both the verbal and the nominal functions of the [-ing] form. Someone asked a question about *parts of speech,* a term which seems rather counterintuitive for grammar (as grammar deals mainly with written language), and I found out that some grammar book authors use the term *word classes* to describe the same thing. I believe that WORD CLASSES is much better than PARTS OF SPEECH to describe the different categories into which we can prototypically categorize the lexicon of every language. Eduard To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/