QUESTION: gerund clauses

Hi, Everybody,

    Do all languages have equivalents to verbal gerund clauses?

    e.g.

    CASTING STONES is inadvisable.

    The police disapprove of BREAKING INTO HOUSES.


    It seems to me that these could be easily paraphrased:

    One casts stones inadvisably.

    When one breaks into houses, the police disapprove.


    I'm working on a language that doesn't have gerunds so far.   I'm
reluctant to add them, because I'm afraid it might make my language too
typical.

    On the other hand, I don't want to fall into the trap of trying to make
my language exotic by forbidding this, that, and the other thing, until all
I'm left with too inflexible and limited a grammar.

signed,

wringing my hands in Washington State

(Jim)



Jim