GerundsGerunds&&

infinitivesinfinitives

Gerunds and infinitivesGerunds and infinitives can function as:can function as:

A gerund is formed by adding –ing a verb.

An infinitive is the base form of the verb, with either the infinitive marker “to” or without it, which is called bare infinitive.

The gerundThe gerund:: This always has the same function as a noun

(although it looks like a verb), so it can be used:

as the subject of the sentence:e.g. Eating people is wrong.

after prepositions:e.g. She is good at painting.

after certain verbs,e.g. like, hate, admit, imagine

in compound nouns,e.g. a driving lesson, a swimming pool, bird-watching, train-spotting

NOUNS(subjects, objects, subject complements)

As subjects, they take a singular verb. Only Gerunds can be object of the preposition.

THE GERUNDTHE GERUNDThis This lookslooks exactly the same as a present exactly the same as a present participle, and for this reason it is now common participle, and for this reason it is now common to call both forms to call both forms 'the -ing form'.'the -ing form'.   a. as the subject of the sentence:a. as the subject of the sentence:

- - Eating people is wrong.Eating people is wrong. Hunting elephants is Hunting elephants is dangerous.dangerous. -- Flying makes me nervous.Flying makes me nervous.

b. as the complement of the verb b. as the complement of the verb 'to 'to be'be': : -- One of his duties is One of his duties is attendingattending meetings.meetings. - - The hardest thing about The hardest thing about learninglearning English is understanding the gerund.English is understanding the gerund.

- - One of life's pleasures is One of life's pleasures is havinghaving breakfast in bedbreakfast in bed

c. after prepositions. The gerund c. after prepositions. The gerund mustmust be used when a verb comes after a be used when a verb comes after a preposition:preposition:

-- Can you sneeze Can you sneeze withoutwithout openingopening your your mouth?mouth? -- She is good at She is good at paintingpainting.. -- They're keen They're keen onon windsurfingwindsurfing.. -- She avoided him She avoided him byby walkingwalking on the on the opposite side of the road.opposite side of the road. -- We arrived in Madrid We arrived in Madrid afterafter drivingdriving all all night.night. -- My father decided My father decided againstagainst postponingpostponing his trip to Hungary.his trip to Hungary.

This is also true of certain expressions This is also true of certain expressions ending in a preposition, e.g. ending in a preposition, e.g. in spite in spite of, there's no point in..:of, there's no point in..:

-- There's no point in There's no point in waitingwaiting.. - - In spite of In spite of missingmissing the train, we the train, we arrived on arrived on time.time.

d. after a number of d. after a number of 'phrasal verbs' 'phrasal verbs' which which are composed of a verb + are composed of a verb + preposition/adverbpreposition/adverb

Example:to look forward to, to give up, to be for/against, to take to, to put off, to keep on:

- I look forward to hearing from you soon. (at the end of a letter)

- When are you going to give up smoking? - She always puts off going to the dentist. - He kept on asking for money.

NOTE: NOTE: There are some phrasal verbs and other There are some phrasal verbs and other expressions that include the word expressions that include the word 'to''to' as a as a preposition, preposition, notnot as part of a as part of a to-infinitiveto-infinitive: :

- - to look forward to, to take to, to be accustomed to look forward to, to take to, to be accustomed to, to be used to.to, to be used to. It is important to recognise that It is important to recognise that 'to''to' is a preposition in these cases, as it must be is a preposition in these cases, as it must be followed by a gerund:followed by a gerund:

- We are looking forward to seeing you. - I am used to waiting for buses. - She didnt really take to studyin'g

English.

e. in compound nounse. in compound nouns

Example: - a driving lesson, a swimming pool,

bird-watching, train-spotting

It is clear that the meaning is that of a noun, not of a continuous verb.

Example:- the pool is not swimming, it is a pool for

swimming in.

f. after the expressions:f. after the expressions:

can't help, can't stand, it's no use/good, and the adjective worth:

      -   The elephant couldn't help falling in love with the mouse.

     -  I can't stand being stuck in traffic jams.

   - It's no use/good trying to escape.       -  It might be worth phoning the

station to check the time of the train.

GERUND OR INFINITIVE?GERUND OR INFINITIVE?

The two groups of verbs below can be followed either by the gerund or by the infinitive. Usually this has no effect on the meaning, but with some verbs there is a clear difference in meaning.

( Verbs marked * can also be followed by a that-clause. )

Example: to prefer - I prefer to live in an apartment.

- I prefer living in an apartment.

A. Verbs where there is little or no A. Verbs where there is little or no difference in meaning: difference in meaning:

Allow Deserve Neglect

Attempt Fear * Omit

Begin Hate * Permit

Bother Intend * Prefer *

Cease Like Recommend *

continue Love Start

B. Verbs where there is a clear B. Verbs where there is a clear difference in meaning:difference in meaning:

Verbs marked with an asterisk* can also be followed by a that-clause.

come forget go on mean regret remember

stop try

Come:Come:Come + gerund is like other verbs of

movement followed by the gerund, and means that the subject is doing something as they move:

e.g.She came running across the field.

Come + to-infinitive means that something happens or develops, perhaps outside the subject's control:

e.g.This word has come to mean something quite different.

Forget, regret and remember:Forget, regret and remember:

When these verbs are followed by a gerund, the gerund refers to an action that happened earlier:

e.g.I remember locking the door (= I remember now, I locked the door earlier)

e.g.He regretted speaking so rudely. (= he regretted at some time in the past, he had spoken rudely at some earlier time in the past.)

Forget is frequently used with 'never' in the simple future form: e.g. I'll never forget meeting the Queen. When these verbs are followed by a to-

infinitive, the infinitive refers to an action happening at the same time, or later:

e.g. I remembered to lock the door (= I thought about it, then I did it.)

e.g. Don't forget to buy some eggs! (=Please think about it and then do it.)

Go on:Go on: Go on + gerund means to continue

with an action: e.g.He went on speaking for two

hours. Go on + to-infinitive means to do the

next action, which is often the next stage in a process:

e.g.After introducing her proposal, she went on to explain the benefits for the company.

Mean:Mean: Mean + gerund expresses what the

result of an action will be, or what will be necessary:

e.g.If you take that job in London it will mean travelling for two hours every day.

Mean + to-infinitive expresses an

intention or a plan: e.g.I mean to finish this job by the end

of the week! e.g.Sorry - I didn't mean to hurt you.

Stop:Stop: Stop + gerund means to finish an

action in progress: e.g.I stopped working for them

because the wages were so low. Stop + to-infinitive means to

interrupt an activity in order to do something else, so the infinitive is used to express a purpose:

e.g.I stopped to have lunch. (= I was working, or travelling, and I interrupted what I was doing in order to eat.)

Try:Try: Try + gerund means to experiment

with an action that might be a solution to your problem.

e.g. If you have problems sleeping, you could try doing some yoga before you go to bed, or you could try drinking some warm milk.

e.g. I can't get in touch with Carl.' 'Have you tried e-mailing him?'

Try + to-infinitive means to make an effort to do something. It may be something very difficult or even impossible:

e.g. We'll try to phone at 6 o'clock, but it might be hard to find a public telephone.

e.g. Elephants and mice have to try to live together in harmony.

VERBS FOLLOWED BY THE GERUND The gerund is used after certain verbs.

Example:miss : I miss living in England.

Those marked can also be followed by a that-clause

Example:Example:

VERB She admitted...  

She admitted...

GERUND breaking the

window THAT-CLAUSE that she had

broken the window.

acknowledge,admit,

appreciate,avoid,celebrate,consider, defer,delay,deny,detest, dislike,enjoy,entail,escape,excuse,fancy (=imagine),finish,forgive,imagine,involve,

keep,mean,(=have as result)mention,mind,miss,pardon,postpone,prevent,propose,recall,recollect,remember,report,resent,risk,save (=prevent the wasted effort)stop,suggest,understand,

phrases:be devoted tobe used tocan’t helpleave offput offwith a view to

give upgo oninsist onlook forward toobject toget through

The InfinitiveThe Infinitive

Form of infinitive To-infinitive Bare infinitive Function of infinitive Verbs usually followed by infinitive

Form of infinitiveForm of infinitive

The infinitive is the base form of a verb. It may be preceded by 'to' (the to-infinitive) or stand alone (the base or zero infinitive).

To-infinitiveTo-infinitiveThe to-infinitive is used:

a. after certain verbs. e.g. want, wish, agree, fail, mean, decide, learnb. after the auxiliaries to be to, to have to, and ought toc. in the pattern ‘ it is + adjective + to-infinitive ‘

Examples:Examples:

The elephant decided to marry the mouse The mouse agreed to marry the elephant You will have to ask her You are to leave immediately He ought to relax She has to go to Berlin next week It's easy to speak English It is hard to change jobs after twenty years It's stupid to believe everything you hear

Bare infinitiveBare infinitiveThe bare infinitive is used:a. after most auxiliaries (e.g. must, can, should, may, might) b. after verbs of perception, (e.g. see, hear,

feel) with the pattern ‘ V + O + zero infinitive ‘

c. after the verbs 'make' and 'let', with the pattern make/let + O + zero

infinitived. after the expression 'had better‘

ExamplesExamples:: After auxiliaries:        -   She can't speak to you.         -   He should give her some money.         - Shall I talk to him?      - Would you like a cup of coffee?        - I might stay another night in the hotel.          - They must leave before 10.00 a.m.

After After verbs of perceptionverbs of perception::Pattern : S + See + O + V+ing Notice bare infinitive Observe Watch Hear Feel Smell Listen toE.g. I saw her stand/standing . I watch the children play/playing in the park . I listened to her sing/singing.

After the verbsAfter the verbs ' 'makemake' and '' and 'letlet'':: Pattern : S + Let + O + V(bare infinitive) Make HaveE.g. I let him go . I make her cry . I have my mother wash my clothes .

NOTICE that the 'to-infinitive' is used when 'make' is in the passive voice:      -  I am made to sweep the floor every day.       -  She was made to eat fish even though she hated it.

AfterAfter 'had better''had better'::

- We had better take some warm clothing.- She had better ask him not to come.- You'd better not smile at a crocodile!- We had better reserve a room in the hotel.- You'd better give me your address.- They had better work harder on their grammar!

Function of infinitiveFunction of infinitiveThe most common uses of the infinitive are:~ As a subject/object – noun e.g. To err is human, to forgive is divine. ( S ) I saw a dog cross the road. ( O )

~ As an adjective e.g. Their offer to reduce your workload is quite attractive. ( acts as adjective to qualify “their offer” )

~ As an adverb e.g. I stop to buy a tape. (acts as adverb to qualify “stop” )

affordagree*aimappeararrange*bothercareclaim*condescendconsentdecide*demand*determine*

failguarantee*happen hastenhave (= be obliged)hesitatehope*learnlongmanageofferpreparepretend*proceed

promise*proposeprove (= turn out)refuse resolve*seekseem striveswear*tendthreaten*troubleundertakevolunteervow*

The to-infinitive is used after the verbs in this group,

without a preceding noun. ( * can also followed by “that-clause” )

accustomaid appointassistcausechallengecommand*defydirect*driveempowerenableencourageentice

entitleentreatforcegetimplore*inciteinduceinspireinstruct*inviteleadleave (make someone responsible)oblige

order*persuade*presspromptprovokeremind*require*stimulatesummonteachtelltempttrust*warn*

B. These are the most common of the verbs that are normally followed by a noun + infinitive.

Thank Thank you! you!