… AND INFINITIVE

We use gerunds:

 After certain verbs - I enjoy singing

 After prepositions - I drank a cup of coffee before leaving
 As the subject or object of a sentence
o Swimming is good exercise.
o I like swimming.
 Before a noun (as an adjective) – Swimming pool, working hours
 After certain verbal expressions
o Can’t help
o Can’t stand
o Would / don’t mind
o Be / get used to
o Feel like
o Fancy
o It’s no use
o Look forward to

We use ‘to’- infinitive:

 After certain verbs - We decided to leave

 After adjectives - It's difficult to get up early
 To show purpose - I came to London to study English

We use the infinitive without 'to':

 After modal verbs - I can meet you at six o'clock

 After 'let', 'make' and (sometimes) 'help' - The teacher let us leave early
 After some verbs of perception (see, watch, hear, notice, feel, sense)
o I watched her walk away

 After expressions with 'why' - why go out the night before an exam?
 After the indirect object with verbs such as:
o advise, invite, want, tell, warn, teach
He invited me to join the club.
Here are some of the most common verbs usually followed by the gerund:

 enjoy: I enjoyed living in France.

 fancy: I fancy seeing a film tonight.
 discuss: We discussed going on holiday together.
 dislike: I dislike waiting for buses.
 finish: We've finished preparing for the meeting.
 mind: I don't mind coming early.
 suggest: He suggested staying at the Grand Hotel.
 recommend: They recommended meeting earlier.
 keep: He kept working, although he felt ill.
 avoid: She avoided talking to her boss.
 miss: She misses living near the beach.
 appreciate: I appreciated her helping me.
 delay: He delayed doing his taxes.
 postpone: He postponed returning to Paris
 practise: She practised singing the song.
 consider: She considered moving to New York.
 can't stand: He can't stand her smoking in the office.
 can't help: He can't help talking so loudly.
 risk: He risked being caught.
 admit: He admitted cheating on the test.
 deny: He denied committing the crime.
 mention: He mentioned going to that college.
 imagine: He imagines working there one day.
 tolerate: I tolerated her talking.
 understand: I understand his quitting.
 involve: The job involves travelling to Japan once a month.
 complete: He completed renovating the house.
 report: He reported her stealing the money.
 anticipate: I anticipated arriving late.
 recall: Tom recalled using his credit card at the store.
 And here are some common verbs followed by to infinitive:

 agree: She agreed to give a presentation at the meeting.

 ask*: I asked to leave early / I asked him to leave early.
 decide: We decided to go out for dinner.
 help*: He helped to clean the kitchen / he helped his flatmate to
clean the kitchen.
 plan: She plans to buy a new flat next year.
 hope: I hope to pass the exam.
 learn: They are learning to sing.
 want*: I want to come to the party / I want him to come to the party.
 would like*: I would like to see her tonight / I would like you to see her
tonight.
 promise: We promised not to be late.
 can afford: We can't afford to go on holiday.
 manage: He managed to open the door without the key.
 prepare*: They prepared to take the test /
the teachers prepared the students to take the test.
 demand: He demanded to speak to Mr. Harris.
 choose: I chose to help.
 offer: Frank offered to drive us to the supermarket.
 wait: She waited to buy a movie ticket.
 would hate*: I'd hate to be late / I'd hate you to be late.
 would love*: I'd love to come / I'd love him to come.
 seem: Nancy seemed to be disappointed.
 expect*: They expect to arrive early / they expect Julie to arrive early
 intend: We intend to visit you next spring.
 pretend: The child pretended to be a monster.
 refuse: The guard refused to let them enter the building.
 tend: He tends to be a little shy.
 would prefer*: I'd prefer to do it / I'd prefer him to do it.
 deserve: He deserves to go to jail.
 appear: His health appeared to be better.
 arrange: Naomi arranged to stay with her cousin in Miami.
 claim: She claimed to be a princess.

*We can use an object before the infinitive with these verbs.

(Note that 'help' can also be followed by the infinitive without 'to' with no
difference in meaning: 'I helped to carry it' = 'I helped carry it'.)
 These verbs can be followed by either the gerund or the infinitive with a
change in meaning:

Remember + gerund

This is when you remember something that has happened in the past. You have
a memory of it, like being able to see a movie of it in your head.

 I remember going to the beach when I was a child. (= I have a memory of going
to the beach).
 He remembers closing the door. (= He has a memory of closing the door).

Remember + to + infinitive

This is when you think of something that you need to do. (And usually, you then
do the thing).

 I remembered to buy milk. (= I was walking home and the idea that I needed
milk came into my head, so I bought some).
 She remembered to send a card to her grandmother.

Forget + gerund

This is the opposite of remember + gerund. It's when you forget about a
memory, something that you've done in the past.

 Have we really studied this topic before? I forget reading about it.
 I told my brother that we'd spent Christmas at Granny's house in 1985, but he'd
forgotten going there.

Forget + to + infinitive

This is the opposite of remember + to + infinitive. It's when you want to do

something, but you forget about it.

 I forgot to call my mother. (= I wanted to call my mother, but when it was a

good time to call her, I forgot. I was thinking about something else, and the idea
to call my mother didn't come into my head).
 She keeps forgetting to bring his book back.
 Try + gerund

This is when you do something as an experiment. The thing you do is not

difficult, but you want to see if doing it will have the result that you want.

 I wanted to stop smoking, so I tried using nicotine patches. (= Using nicotine

patches was easy, but I wanted to know if it would help me stop smoking).
 She tried giving up chocolate, but it didn't help her lose weight. (It was easy for
her to give up chocolate. She gave it up to see if it would help her lose weight,
but it didn't).

Try + to + infinitive

This is when the thing you do itself is difficult. In the present tense or future
tense, this means you might not succeed in doing it. In the past tense, it means
that you made an effort to do the thing, but you did not succeed.

 I'll try to carry the suitcase, but it looks too heavy for me.
 She tried to catch the bus, but she couldn't run fast enough.

Look at the difference:

 I tried giving up chocolate (it was no problem to stop eating chocolate) but it
didn't make me feel more healthy.
 I tried to give up chocolate, but it was too hard. I always ate some when my
friends offered it to me.

 It was too hot in the room. I tried opening the window (it was easy to open the
window). It didn't help though, because it was very hot outside too.
 I tried to open the window, but I couldn't because it was stuck.

Stop + gerund

When we stop doing something it means the verb in the gerund is the thing that
we stop. It can mean 'stop forever' or 'stop at that moment'.

 I stopped working when I was expecting a baby. (Working is the thing I

stopped).
 My grandmother stopped driving when she was 85. (Driving is the thing she
stopped).

 My boss came into the room, so I stopped browsing the internet.

 There was a fire alarm, so I stopped eating and went outside.
 Stop + to + infinitive

In this case, we stop something else in order to do the verb in the infinitive.

 I stopped to eat lunch. (I stopped something else, maybe working or studying,

because I wanted to eat lunch.
 She was shopping and she stopped to get a cup of coffee. (She stopped shopping
because she wanted to get a cup of coffee).

Look at the difference:

 I stopped smoking. (I gave up cigarettes OR I threw away my cigarette at that

moment).
 I stopped to smoke. (I stopped doing something else because I wanted to have a
cigarette).

Regret + gerund

This is when you are sorry about something you did in the past and you wish
you hadn't done it.

 I regret going to bed so late. I'm really tired today.

 She regrets leaving school when she was sixteen. She wishes that she had
studied more and then gone to university.

Regret + to + infinitive

We use this construction when we are giving someone bad news, in quite a
formal way. The verb is almost always something like 'say' or 'tell' or 'inform'.

 I regret to tell you that the train has been delayed.

 The company regrets to inform employees that the London office will close next
year.

These verbs can be followed by either the gerund or the infinitive without a
change in meaning:

 Start - They started to answer / answering the emails.

 Propose
 Forbid
 Intend
 Begin
http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/gerunds-and-infinitives-
exercises.html
EXERCISES

Gerunds and Infinitives Part 1

Put the verb into the correct form:
1. I don’t fancy ______________ (go) out tonight.
2. She avoided ______________ (tell) him about her plans.
3. I would like ______________ (come) to the party with you.
4. He enjoys ______________ (have) a bath in the evening.
5. She kept ______________ (talk) during the film.
6. I am learning ______________ (speak) English.
7. Do you mind ______________ (give) me a hand?
8. She helped me ______________ (carry) my suitcases.
9. I’ve finished ______________ (cook). Come and eat!
10. He decided ______________ (study) Biology.
11. I dislike ______________ (wait).
12. He asked ______________ (come) with us.
13. I promise ______________ (help) you tomorrow.
14. We discussed ______________ (go) to the cinema, but in the end we
stayed at home.
15. She agreed ______________ (bring) the pudding.
16. I don’t recommend ______________ (take) the bus, it takes forever!
17. We hope ______________ (visit) Amsterdam next month.
18. She suggested ______________ (go) to the museum.
19. They plan ______________ (start) college in the autumn.
20. I don’t want ______________ (leave) yet.
Answers:
1. going
2. telling
3. to come
4. having
5. talking
6. to speak
7. giving
8. to carry
9. cooking
10. to study
11. waiting
12. to come
13. to help
14. going
15. to bring
16. taking
17. to visit
18. going
19. to start
20. to leave
Gerunds and Infinitives Part 2
Put the verb into the gerund or the infinitive with ‘to’:
1. She delayed ______________ (get) out of bed.
2. He demanded ______________ (speak) to the manager.
3. I offered ______________ (help).
4. I miss ______________ (go) to the beach.
5. We postponed ______________ (do) our homework.
6. I’d hate ______________ (arrive) too late.
7. She admitted ______________ (steal) the money.
8. I chose ______________ (work) here.
9. She waited ______________ (buy) a drink.
10. I really appreciate ______________ (be) on holiday.
11. I couldn’t help ______________ (laugh).
12. It seems ______________ (be) raining.
13. I considered ______________ (move) to Spain.
14. They practised ______________ (speak).
15. Finally I managed ______________ (finish) the work.
16. I really can’t stand ______________ (wait) for the bus.
17. Unfortunately, we can’t afford ______________ (buy) a new car this
year.
18. She risked ______________ (be) late.
19. I’d love ______________ (come) with you.
20. I prepared ______________ (go) on holiday.
Answers:
1. getting
2. to speak
3. to help
4. going
5. doing
6. to arrive
7. stealing
8. to work
9. to buy
10. being
11. laughing
12. to be
13. moving
14. speaking
15. to finish
16. waiting
17. to buy
18. being
19. to come
20. to go
Gerunds and Infinitives Part 3
Put the verb into the gerund or the infinitive with ‘to’:
1. It appears _________________ (be) raining.
2. We intend _________________ (go) to the countryside this weekend.
3. I pretended _________________ (be) sick so I didn’t have to go to work.
4. Can you imagine_________________ (live) without TV?
5. They tolerate_________________ (smoke) but they prefer people not to.
6. I anticipate _________________ (arrive) on Tuesday.
7. A wedding involves _________________ (negotiate) with everyone in the
family.
8. He denies _________________ (steal) the money.
9. He claims _________________ (be) a millionaire but I don’t believe him.
10. I expect _________________ (be) there about seven.
11. Julia reported _________________ (see) the boys to the police.
12. It tends _________________ (rain) a lot in Scotland.
13. Do you recall _________________ (meet) her at the party last week?
14. She mentioned _________________ (go) to the cinema, but I don’t know
what she decided to do in the end.
15. The teenager refused _________________ (go) on holiday with his
parents.
16. I understand _________________ (be) late once or twice, but every day
is too much!
17. I would prefer you _________________ (come) early if you can.
18. That criminal deserves _________________ (get) a long sentence.
19. She completed _________________ (paint) her flat.
20. We arranged _________________ (meet) at four but at four thirty she
still hadn’t arrived.
Answers:
1. to be
2. to go
3. to be
4. living
5. smoking
6. arriving
7. negotiating
8. stealing
9. to be
10. to be
11. seeing
12. to rain
13. meeting
14. going
15. to go
16. being
17. to come
18. to get
19. painting
20. to meet
Gerunds and Infinitives Part 4
Put the verb into the gerund or the infinitive with ‘to’:
1. I couldn’t sleep so I tried _____________ (drink) some hot milk.
2. She tried _____________ (reach) the book on the high shelf, but she was
too
small.
3. They tried _____________ (get) to the party on time but the bus was
delayed.
4. We tried _____________ (open) the window, but it was so hot outside it
didn’t help.
5. He tried _____________ (get) a job in a newspaper firm but they wouldn’t
hire him.
6. He tried _____________ (get) a job in a newspaper firm but he still wasn’t
satisfied.
7. You should stop _____________ (smoke), it’s not good for your health.
8. We stopped _____________ (study) because we were tired.
9. They will stop _____________ (have) lunch at twelve.
10. We stopped _____________ (have) a rest, because we were really sleepy.
11. Oh no! I forgot _____________ (buy) milk.
12. Please don’t forget _____________ (pick) up some juice on your way
home.
13. I forget _____________ (lock) the door, but I’m sure I must have locked
it.
14. Have we studied this before? I’ve forgotten _____________ (learn) it.
15. Please remember _____________ (bring) your homework.
16. I remember _____________ (go) to the beach as a child.
17. Finally I remembered _____________ (bring) your book! Here it is.
18. Do you remember _____________ (eat) steak in that little restaurant in
Rome?
19. I regret _____________ (tell) you that the train has been delayed.
20. I regret _____________ (tell) Julie my secret; now she has told everyone.
Answers:
1. drinking
2. to reach
3. to get
4. opening
5. to get
6. getting
7. smoking
8. studying
9. to have
10. to have
11. to buy
12. to pick up
13. locking
14. learning
15. to bring
16. going
17. to bring
18. eating
19. to tell
20. telling