Gerunds & Infinitives - Grammar
Juan Francisco Morales Domínguez
GERUNDS & INFINITIVES 1
GERUNDS & INFINITIVES 2
GERUNDS & INFINITIVES
- Gerunds as Subjects
If a
sentence begins with a gerund then the verb must be singular.
Telling a
lie got him into a great deal of trouble.
Surfing is
a popular sport along coastal areas.
Taking good
photos is a good way to make extra money.
Eating
during depressed periods makes her feel better.
- Noun + Preposition Followed by a Gerund
choice of, intention
of, possibility
of, excuse for, method for
(of), reason for
He was
given the choice of staying after school or being expelled.
Stacey had
no intention of doing her homework.
Walter has
developed a special method of cleaning clothes.
There was
absolutely no reason for skipping class.
Our class
considered the possibility of getting out early.
Whenever a
preposition is followed directly by a verb, the verb will be in gerund form.
Molly felt
very sick after eating at the new restaurant.
Before
leaving the house, Mark had to feed the animals.
- Verbs Always Followed by a Gerund
Some verbs
are always followed by a gerund. Following is a list of the most common:
admit, discuss, miss, resent, appreciate, enjoy, postpone, resist, avoid, finish, practice, resume, consider, keep, quit, risk, delay, mention, recall
(remember), suggest, deny, mind, report
The thief
has admitted stealing the jewelry from the store.
You should
delay travelling until the weather clears up.
Did Jack
mention picking up the dry cleaning after work?
I don’t
recall telling her that.
John
suggested feeding the homeless on the weekends.
- Adjective + Preposition Followed by a Gerund
The adjectives
+ prepositions in the list below are commonly followed by a gerund:
accustomed
to, capable of, intent on, successful
in, afraid of, fond of, interest in, tired of
Darrell is
accustomed to going to the gym each day after class.
Both of my
sisters are afraid of being alone in the dark.
You are
capable of playing guitar much better.
Maggie is
quite fond of eating chocolate.
- Pronouns before a Gerund or Infinitive
Sometimes,
the infinitive is used as a complement after certain verbs. An indirect object
pronoun is required before the infinitive in these sentences.
subject +
verb + complement form + [pronoun OR noun] + to + verb . . .
Verbs
commonly followed by an infinitive which usually require an indirect object are
listed in the list below:
allow, expect, permit, remind, ask, instruct, persuade, urge, beg, invite, prepare, want, convince, order, promise
Jennifer
begged them to take her to the movies too.
The teacher
expected them to act differently.
Julie’s
mother prepared her to compete in the talent show.
Terry
wanted her to go to the dance with him.
However,
when a noun or pronoun precedes a gerund, it must be in the possessive form in
formal English. Informal English usually does not use the possessive form
before a gerund.
subject +
verb + [possessive noun form OR possessive adjective] + verb + ing (gerund)
They
resented his not telling the truth. FORMAL
They
resented him not telling the truth. INFORMAL
Our
neighbors complained about our playing loud music. FORMAL
Our
neighbors complained about us playing loud music. INFORMAL
She
couldn’t understand his not wanting to dance with her. FORMAL
She
couldn’t understand him not wanting to dance with her. INFORMAL
The
policeman didn’t like Michael’s arguing with him. FORMAL
The
policeman didn’t like Michael arguing with him. INFORMAL
We resented
the man’s telling us to leave the store. FORMAL
We resented
the man telling us to leave the store. INFORMAL
- Verbs Always Followed by an Infinitive
Some verbs
are always followed by an infinitive. Following is a list of some of the most
common:
agree to, desire to, hope to, seem to, attempt to, expect to, intend to, strive to, claim to, fail to, learn to, tend to, decide to, forget to, pretend to, want to, demand to, hesitate to, refuse to, wish to
Jordan
claims to be a relative of George Washington.
My parents
expect to retire this year.
Don’t
hesitate to throw the ball next time!
My little
brother pretends to fight dangerous dragons.
Mary
strives to receive straight A’s in school.
- Adjectives Followed by an Infinitive
Following
is a list of adjectives which can be immediately followed by an infinitive form
of the verb:
amazed to, eager to, motivated
to, sad to, anxious to, fortunate
to, pleased to, sorry to, ashamed to, glad to, prepared to, strange to, astonished
to, happy to, proud to, surprised
to, certain to, hard to, ready to, (un)usual
to, dangerous
to, hesitant to, relieved to, upset to, delighted
to , lucky to, reluctant
to, willing to
George was
anxious to begin the project.
Monica was
glad to discover she had passed the exam.
The
children were hesitant to enter the haunted house.
Betty’s
parents were relieved to learn that she wasn’t hurt in the accident.
I am
willing to help with feeding the poor on the weekends.
NOTE: Able
means the same as capable in most cases. However, able is always followed by a
infinitive while capable is followed by of + gerund.
Shelly is
able to play the violin much better than Andy.
Shelly is
capable of playing the violin much better than Andy.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Gerunds and Infinitives - All Things Grammar. (n.d.).
Retrieved December 5, 2017, from
https://www.allthingsgrammar.com/gerunds-and-infinitives.html
GMAT Grammar
Book: Gerunds and Infinitives : Verbal. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2017,
from
https://gmatclub.com/forum/gmat-grammar-book-gerunds-and-infinitives-98669.html
Seonaid.
(n.d.). Gerunds and Infinitives Exercise 4. Retrieved December 5, 2017, from
http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/gerunds-and-infinitives-exercise-4.html
GERUNDS & INFINITIVES 1
Gap-fill exercise
Fill in all the gaps, then press "Check" to check your answers. Use the "Hint" button to get a free letter if an answer is giving you trouble. You can also click on the "[?]" button to get a clue. Note that you will lose points if you ask for hints or clues!