In Nouns^x, Adjuncts^x, Gerunds^x

Hi GM "I like swimming- swimming is a gerund. Compare: I like movies . In this structure, swimming and movies are both nouns." (Even one word can be a phrase.) We do not disagree because I am of the opinion that 'giving' is a gerund, too. swimming in the la ke” No it is not...

Eating a hearty breakfast , we prepared for our long journey. Why is the underlined part of the sentence a participle phrase? 'eating' is a non-finite verb, not a gerund, but the whole phrase may be considered as a verbal noun (gerund phrase), not a verbal adjective (participle...