“To Infinitive” vs “_____ing”
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Learning to use gerunds and infinitives can feel a bit overwhelming at first. Here, we introduce gerunds and infinitives and explain the basics of everyday usage.
What is an infinitive?
1. An infinitive is the “to” form of the verb. The infinitive form of “learn” is “to learn.” You can also use an infinitive as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.
Examples:
- To learn is important. subject of sentence
- The most important thing is to learn. complement of sentence
- He wants to learn. object of sentence
Infinitives can be made negative by adding “not.”
Examples:
- I decided not to go.
- The most important thing is not to give up.
What is a gerund?
2. A gerund is a noun made from a verb by adding “-ing.” The gerund form of the verb “read” is “reading.” You can use a gerund as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.
Examples:
- Reading helps you learn English. subject of sentence
- Her favorite hobby is reading. complement of sentence
- I enjoy reading. object of sentence
Gerunds can be made negative by adding “not.”
Examples:
- He enjoys not working.
- The best thing for your health is not smoking.
Use a gerund or an infinitive?
3. As the object of a sentence, it is more difficult to choose between a gerund or an infinitive. In such situations, gerunds and infinitives are not normally interchangeable. Usually, the main verb in the sentence determines whether you use a gerund or an infinitive.
Examples:
- He enjoys swimming. “Enjoy” requires a gerund.
- He wants to swim. “Want” requires an infinitive.
Verbs Followed by Gerunds (___ing)
| admit | He admitted cheating on the test. |
| advise | The doctor generally advised drinking low-fat milk. |
| allow | Ireland doesn’t allow smoking in bars. |
| anticipate | I anticipated arriving late. |
| appreciate | I appreciated her helping me. |
| avoid | He avoided talking to her. |
| begin | I began learning Chinese. |
| can’t bear | He can’t bear having so much responsibility. |
| can’t help | He can’t help talking so loudly. |
| can’t see | I can’t see paying so much money for a car. |
| can’t stand | He can’t stand her smoking in the office. |
| cease | The government ceased providing free healthcare. |
| complete | He completed renovating the house. |
| consider | She considered moving to New York. |
| continue | He continued talking. |
| defend | The lawyer defended her making such statements. |
| delay | He delayed doing his taxes. |
| deny | He denied committing the crime. |
| despise | She despises waking up early. |
| discuss | We discussed working at the company. |
| dislike | She dislikes working after 5 PM. |
| don’t mind | I don’t mind helping you. |
| dread | She dreads getting up at 5 AM. |
| encourage | He encourages eating healthy foods. |
| enjoy | We enjoy hiking. |
| finish | He finished doing his homework. |
| forget | I forgot giving you my book. |
| hate | I hate cleaning the bathroom. |
| imagine | He imagines working there one day. |
| involve | The job involves traveling to Japan once a month. |
| keep | She kept interrupting me. |
| like | She likes listening to music. |
| love | I love swimming. |
| mention | He mentioned going to that college. |
| mind | Do you mind waiting here for a few minutes. |
| miss | She misses living near the beach. |
| need | The aquarium needs cleaning. |
| neglect | Sometimes she neglects doing her homework. |
| permit | California does not permit smoking in restaurants. |
| postpone | He postponed returning to Paris. |
| practice | She practiced singing the song. |
| prefer | He prefers sitting at the back of the movie theater. |
| propose | I proposed having lunch at the beach. |
| quit | She quit worrying about the problem. |
| recall | Tom recalled using his credit card at the store. |
| recollect | She recollected living in Kenya. |
| recommend | Tony recommended taking the train. |
| regret | She regretted saying that. |
| remember | I remember telling her the address yesterday. |
| report | He reported her stealing the money. |
| require | The certificate requires completing two courses. |
| resent | Nick resented Debbie’s being there. |
| resist | He resisted asking for help. |
| risk | He risked being caught. |
| start | He started studying harder. |
| stop | She stopped working at 5 o’clock. |
| suggest | They suggested staying at the hotel. |
| tolerate | I tolerated her talking. |
| try | Sam tried opening the lock with a paperclip. |
| understand | I understand his quitting. |
| urge | They urge recycling bottles and paper. |
Verbs Followed by Infinitives (To + Infinitive)
| agree | Tom agreed to help me. |
| appear | His health appeared to be better. |
| arrange | Naomi arranged to stay with her cousin in Miami. |
| ask | She asked to leave. |
| begin | He began to talk. |
| can’t bear | He can’t bear to be alone. |
| can’t stand | Nancy can’t stand to work the late shift. |
| care | He doesn’t care to participate in the activity. |
| cease | The government ceased to provide free healthcare. |
| choose | I chose to help. |
| claim | She claimed to be a princess. |
| continue | She continued to talk. |
| decide | We decided to go to Hawaii. |
| demand | He demanded to speak to Mr. Harris. |
| deserve | He deserves to go to jail. |
| dread | I dread to think what might happen. |
| expect | They expect to arrive early. |
| fail | He failed to get enough money to pay for the new project. |
| forget | I forgot to lock the door when I left. |
| get (be allowed to) | Debbie gets to go to the concert next week! Why can’t I? |
| happen | She happened to be at the bank when it was robbed. |
| hate | He hates to clean dishes. |
| hesitate | She hesitated to tell me the problem. |
| hope | I hope to begin college this year. |
| intend | We intend to visit you next spring. |
| learn | I learned to speak Japanese when I was a kid. |
| like | Samantha likes to read. |
| love | We love to scuba dive. |
| manage | He managed to open the door without the key. |
| need | I need to study. |
| neglect | She neglected to tell me the date of the meeting. |
| offer | Frank offered to drive us to the supermarket. |
| plan | We plan to go to Europe this summer. |
| prefer | He prefers to eat at 7 PM. |
| prepare | They prepared to take the test. |
| pretend | The child pretended to be a monster. |
| promise | She promised to stop smoking. |
| propose | Drew proposed to pay for the trip. |
| refuse | The guard refused to let them enter the building. |
| regret | I regret to inform you that your application was rejected. |
| remember | Did you remember to lock the door when you left? |
| seem | Nancy seemed to be disappointed. |
| start | Marge started to talk really fast. |
| swear | She swore to tell the truth. |
| tend | He tends to be a little shy. |
| threaten | He threatened to leave forever. |
| try | Mary tried to lift the table, but it was too heavy. |
| vow | He vowed to get revenge. |
| wait | She waited to buy a movie ticket. |
| want | I want to study Spanish. |
| wish | I wish to stay. |
| would like (meaning “wish” or “want”) | We would like to start now. |
| yearn | Melanie yearns to travel somewhere exotic. |
