When the verb snowboarding (for example) is a gerund, it acts like a noun. It can be a subject, an object, the object of a preposition, or a subject complement.
For example:-Snowboarding is a winter sport. [snowboarding = subject]
-i love snowboarding. [snowboarding = object ]
-i am excited by snowboarding. [snowboarding = object of a preposition]
One popular sport is snowboarding. [snowboarding = subject complement]
BUT When snowboarding is a present participle, it is part of a continuous verb tense.
For example: Right now, the athlete is snowboarding. [is snowboarding = present continuous]
-He was snowboarding yesterday afternoon. [was snowboarding = past continuous]
-Tomorrow, my friends and I are going to be snowboarding. [are going to be snowboarding = future continuous]
Unlike a gerund, a present participle can act like an adjective that modifies a noun or follows the be verb.
