Gerunds and Infinitives

Gerunds and infinitives can function as:

NOUNS(subjects, objects, subject complements)

To form gerunds, use the base form + ing

I enjoy watching American series

To form negative gerunds, use not + gerund

Not speaking English can be a problem in the show business

world.

Verbs that take only GerundsAppreciateAvoidDelayDenyDiscussDislikeEnjoyExcuseFinishUnderstand

KeepMentionMindMissPostponeQuitRecallRecommendResent Suggest

Verb + ing

Gerunds used as object of the preposition

I am thinking about taking the children to Mexico.

Common preposition combinations followed by gerunds

be excited aboutcomplain about, talk about, think about, worry aboutbelieve in, interested in, succeed ininsist on count onconcentrate on

apologize for, blame for, famous fortake care of instead of be accused ofkeep from prevent from profit fromin addition to look forward to be used to

Verb + ing

o

by + gerund

You get good grades by studying hard.

go + gerundRecreational activities: camping, dancing, sightseeing, swimming, skiing, fishing, jogging,

I will go fishing with you tomorrow.

Some expressions are used with gerunds

be busy, can’t help, have fun,

it’s no use, it’s not worth

It’s no use telling him to behave!He doesn’t listen.

Summing up

Gerunds can be used as

–Nouns–After some verbs (LIST)–After some expressions –After prepositions

INFINITIVE

To form infinitives useto + base form of the verb

I want to dance

To form negative infinitives useNot + infinitive

He decided not to go to the party.

Verbs that take infinitives

Verb + infinitives – agree, ask, appear, beg, decide, choose, expect, hope, intend, learn, need, offer, plan, , promise, seem, tend, wait, want, can afford, would like.

Verb + sm + infinitive – cause, convince, force, invite, order, persuade, remind, tell, trust, warn, advise, encourage

Adjectives followed by infinitives

afraid, amazed, anxious, ashamed, careful, delighted,

eager, fortunate, glad, happy, lucky, pleased, ready, sad, sorry,

Infinitive of purpose

In order to / so as to / to…I came here to help you.

Infinitive with too and enough

She is too young to vote.They are old enough to vote.

Summing up

Infinitives can be used as

–Subjects–After some verbs (LIST)–After adjectives –To show purpose

Some verbs can be followed by both gerund or infinitive with no change in meaning.

begin, hate, like,start, love, prefer, continue

WOULD LIKE + INFINITIVE

I like cooking.I like to cook when I have some freetime .

She started losing weight. She started to lose weight.

Some verbs although they can be used after both gerunds and infinitives have a difference in

meaning.

rememberforgetregretstoptry

He stopped smoking.He stopped to smoke.

She regretted having hurt his feelings.She regretted to hurt his feelings but she had to say the truth.

PAST

FUTURE

Different meanings

She tried to lose weight but she couldn’t.Why don’t you try exercising more often?

Used to (past memories)Be used to / Get used to

(habits)

Used to + infinitiveMy granny used to tell me

stories.

Be used to + gerundGet used to + gerund

I am used to getting up early.I can’t get used to wearing glasses all the time

Sense-perception verbs:hear, listen tofeel, smell, see

watch, observe, notice

are followed by either a bare infinitive (without to) or –ing

form with only a slight difference in meaning.

Verbs of perception:Infinitives: from start to finishGerunds: in progress

She said she saw a man climbing up the fence. She said she saw the police arrive, park the car and enter the building.