Gerund vs. Infinitive

Dora: Hi, James. Why are you so sad?

I’m bored.

Dora: Don’t you have any hobbies?

Er…I don’t know…I like swimming…

Dora: Me too! I like to swim very much.

Let’s go to the swimming pool then.

Dora: That’s great. But…I can’t swim.

swimming

to swim

swim

Look at these forms. Do you recognize them?

Swimming is a gerund

to swim is an infinitive

and swim is a bare infinitive.

In the lesson today you will do the following:

You will revise what “gerund” and “infinitive” are.

Then you’ll get to know the use of the infinitive and gerund after certain words and word combinations.

And finally you’ll practice their usage in the given sentences.

Gerund and Infinitive are non-finite forms of the verb.

A gerund (often known as an -ing word) is a noun formed from a verb by adding -ing.

Not all words formed with -ing are gerunds.

Participle

I cook listening to the radio. (present participles after verbs of movement, action, or position, to indicate parallel activity)

He is painting. (part of the continuous form of a verb)

We saw him swimming across the pond. (resent participles can be used after verbs of perception in the pattern verb + object + present participle)

Noun

Nouns are used with definite and indefinite articles.

The landing was not difficult.

have plural forms

Those modern buildings are huge.

and can be defined by pronouns or adjectives

Are these drawings by Goya?

Adjective

An adjective usually defines a noun.

Did you read that amazing book?

This movie is so exciting!

His economics class is boring.

Gerunds can be formed from most verbs (except modal verbs):

E.g. swim - swimming, catch - catching, see - seeing, do - doing, cycle - cycling, paint – painting.

Gerund has the following tense forms.

The Simple –ing form refers to the present or future.

The Perfect –ing form shows that the action of the –ing form happened before the action of the verb.

We can use the simple -ing form instead of the perfect -ing form with no difference in meaning.

He admitted to having stolen/stealing the car.

An infinitive is the basic form of the verb + to.

Examples: to buy, to fish, to run, to watch, to tell, and etc.

The most famous infinitive quote has to be:

The Infinitive has the following tense forms:

The Bare infinitive is the infinitive without to.

The bare infinitive is used:

after modal verbs (can, should, must, etc.).

You should apologize to your boss.

after the verbs let/ make/ see/ hear/ feel + object

My dad lets me use his laptop.

after had better (… лучше бы) and would rather (… бы, пожалуй), cannot but (не могу не …).

You had better see a doctor.

I can't but think about it.

He said he would rather stay at home.

The gerund is used in the following cases:

1. After certain verbs

They don't allow smoking here.

Imagine winning a valuable prize.

She tried running in the morning, but she didn't like it.

Do you mind me asking you one or two more questions?

2. After verbs that express likes/dislikes to express general preference: (like, dislike, enjoy, love, prefer, hate).

He loves singing.

Bob hates waiting for somebody.

He enjoys dancing.

3. After prepositions (after, before, besides, instead of, in spite of, on, without, by).

He ran five kilometers without stopping.

Bill went to the office in spite of being ill.

Before going to bed she locked the door.

4. After verbs followed by prepositions:

He was accused of having broken the law.

Who is to blame for starting the fire?

He was congratulated on getting a diploma.

5. After phrasal verbs:

give up

burst out,

go on

keep on

leave off

put off

She kept on making noise while I was working.

He gave up hunting two years ago.

6. After word combinations:

There’s no point in taking such a great risk.

I can’t stand making a choice.

The kid was surprised at getting many balloons.

I have difficulty in finding the exit.

He was guilty of stealing his idea.

Now let’s talk about the words and word combinations that can be followed by the infinitive.

1. After certain group of verbs:

He learnt to play the guitar when he was young.

She helped me to do the exercise.

2. After too and enough:

He’s too old to drive.

I’ve got enough money to live on.

3. After adjectives which:

a) describe feelings/ emotions (happy, glad, annoyed, angry, sorry, ashamed, shocked, amused)

b) express willingness/unwillingness (anxious, eager, willing, prepared, ready, interested)

c) refer to a person’s character (kind, clever, tolerate, grateful)

He is glad to be back home again.

She is afraid to go there alone.

We are ready to start.

4. After be + the first/second/next/last/best, etc.

He was the first to arrive.

There are some groups of verbs that take both the infinitive and gerund without a change in meaning.

begin, continue, start, intend.

She started talking. / She started to talk.

advise, allow, permit, recommend, encourage.

He advised us to turn off the heater. We advise turning off the heater.

It’s not allowed here to swim. It’s not allowed here swimming.

dislike, hate, prefer, neglect, cannot bare

Most people hate hearing about their faults. Most people hate to hear about their faults.

Now it’s time to check how well you’ve remembered the information about gerund and infinitive.

Read the sentences and define the part of speech of the underlined words (noun, adjective, participle or gerund).

I could work all day long without feeling tired. (gerund)

He was feeling more than friendship for her? (participle)

She had a pleasant feeling of excitement. (noun)

My office is in that small brick building. (noun)

They have been building that house for two years. (participle)

She started building a fire in the fireplace. (gerund)

They use the building sand for making concrete. (adjective)

Countries all over the world have superstitions which some people believe and others don’t.

Read a few of them and choose the proper word (to infinitive, bare infinitive or the –ing-form).

Many people say you must never put/to put up an umbrella inside the house or to place/place a pair of new shoes on the table.

Many people avoid meeting/to meet a black cat, while in many places it is considered to be/be a symbol of good luck.

Break/Breaking a mirror results in seven years of bad luck and if you spill salt you’d better to throw/throw a pinch of it over your left shoulder immediately.

Some people are sure of losing their money if the right palm itches, while an itchy left palm is a sign of getting/to get a big sum of money. If both palms itch, you should go/to go to a doctor for that.

The fear of the number 13 is so real to many people, that many architects refused designing/to design stairs that ended with 13 steps or buildings that ended with a 13th floor.

Some people believe in order bringing/to bring good luck and to keep/keeping nightmares away, you must hang/to hang a horseshoe in the bedroom or on a door knob with its ends pointing upwards.

Do you know any more?

Hopefully the information of the lesson was useful to you, guys!

Practise your grammar skills, because practice makes perfect!