GERUND and

INFINITIVE

GERUND
VERB..ing
+
The function is not a VERB

It is a NOUN

uses GERUND
As a noun, gerund can take the
position
- as Subject
- as Object : ..of a preposition
.. of a verb
- as Complement
- As noun in Possesive adjective
(Possesive with a gerund

Example

notes

Caring the patient is the job of

nurse.

Gerunds may replace

nouns or pronouns as
subject, objects, or
complements.

Object of a Most nurses are interested in

prepositio reporting the news accurately.
n

Where a verbs form is

used after a
preposition, it must
be the gerund form.

Object of a Reggie enjoys working for the

verb
evening paper.

In conversational
English, nouns or
object pronouns are
sometimes used with
gerunds instead of
possessives.

Subject

Compleme His job is researching stories.

nt
Possesive
with a
gerund

Reggies (His) reporting is

normally very aaccurate.

Formal: I dont like

Johns (his) saying
that. Conversational: I
dont like John (him)
saying that.

Negative

Many people complain about not

NOT is used before

Gerunds after
Preposition
Preposition is a word that together with object (called an object of a
preposition) describes a verb, noun, or adjective.
There are some common pharses with prepositions that are often
followed by gerunds. Note that an infinitive cannot be used after
them.
Common Phrases with Prepositions
Angry about
Bored with
(by)
Certain of
Concerned
about
Excited about
Happy about
Interested in
Nervous about
Satisfied with
Thrilled about (by)
Be accustomed to*

Believe in
Care about
Consist of
Depend on
Dream about
Insist on
Succeed in
Take care of
Think about
Work (hard)
At
Responsible
For

Example:
Lois was angry about losing her
job as a reporter.
Shes bored with living in a small
town.
A reporters job consists of
gathering information and writing
articles.

Infinitives
to Verb 1
+
functioning as a noun, adjective,
or adverb.

Example

Notes

Subject

To make a good
movie is not easy.

Infinitives may
replace nouns as
objects of verbs and
as subjects.

With IT

It is difficult to make
a good movie.

Infinitives often follow

the anticiatory IT as
the subject of a
sentence.

Object of a verb

Ive always wanted to

learn more about
films.

Infinitive of purpose

I am taking classes
(in order) to learn
more about film
making.
To begin, Ive
enrolled in three
classes.

For+noun or pronoun

Its difficult for me to FOR + a noun or

hold the camera
object pronoun is
steady.
often used with an

Infinitives can be
used to show the
purpose of an action.
In these cases, IN
ORDER is sometimes
used before the
infinitive

Verb Followed
by Gerunds or Infinitives
Some Gerunds and Infinitives may be used as object of
verbs. Either a gerund object or an infinitive may follow these
verbs with little or no difference in meaning.
Verbs
Begin
Cant stand
Continue
Dislike
Hate
Like
Love
Prefer
Start

Examples
Ive begun understanding (to
understand) most news stories.
I cant stand reading (to read) late at
night.
Ive continued reading (to read) several
papers.
He dislikes reading (to read) the paper.
I hate being (to be) uninformed.
All of us like spending (to spend) hours
with the sunday paper.
My brother loves reading (to read) the
comics first.
My sister prefers reading (to read) the
editorial page.

Verb often followed by

Infinitives
Verb + Infinitive

These verbs are followed directly by an infinitive.

Verbs
Agree
Be (able)
Decide
Fail
Forget
Have
Hope
Know how
Learn (how)
Manage
Offer
Plan
Seem
Wait

Examples
My friend agreed to take a film class with
me.
I was able to find several good film
classes.
I decided to take several classes.
My friend failed to enroll in time.
He forgot to enroll before the first of the
month.
All students had to enroll before the first
of the month.
My friend hopes to take a class next
semester.
I dont know how to use a movie camera.
Last night we learned (how) to load the
film.

 Verb + (Noun or Pronoun) + Infinitive

These verbs may be followed directly by an
infinitive, or they may use a (pro)noun object before
the infinitive.
Note: Verbs
FOR is not used in thisExamples
pattern.
Ask
Expect
Need
Promise
Want
Would like

I asked to enroll in the class.

I asked my friend to enroll in the class.
I expect to learn a great deal about early
films.
My teacher expects me to learn a great
deal.
I need to buy some film.
I need you to buy some film for me.
We promised to do all of the work.
We promised our teacher to do all of the
work.
I want to help.
I want you to help.
I would like to help.
I would like you to help.

 Verb + Noun or Pronoun + Infinitive

When these verbs are in the active voice, they are
not directly followed by an infinitive. A (pro)noun
object must come before the infinitive. When
they are in the passive voice, they may be directly
followed by an infinitive.
Note: Verbs
FOR is not used in this pattern
.
Examples
Advice
Convince
Encourage
Force
Invite
Remind
Teach
Tell

I advise you to take some classes.

A friend convinced me to enroll in three
classes.
A friend encouraged me to buy a new
camera.
My budget forced me to buy a used camera.
I invited my friend to attend a film class
with me.
The teacher reminded us to bring our
cameras.
The teacher taught us to focus carefully.
The teacher told us to adjust the lights.

Infinitive with TOO and (Not) ENOUGH

Adjectives or noun phrases + infinitives are often used in
expressions with TOO and (Not) ENOUGH.

OR + (pro)noun is often added for clarity.

Examples

Notes

Too

The movie was too

long (for us) to sit
through.

Too often implies a

negative result: The
movie was very long,
so we didnt sit
through it.

Enough

The film was good

enough (for me) to
watch five times.

Enough often implies a

positive result: The film
was good, so I
watched it five times.

Not enough

There werent enough

people in the
audiences to show the
movie.

Not enough often

implies a negative result:
There werent many
people, so they didnt
show the movie.

Infinitive of Purpose
Infinitives can be used to tell why an action is
performed. These infinitives may appear at
various points within a sentence.
Examples
(In order) To create the
illusion of blood, film makers
use chocolate syrup in black
and white films.
Chocolate syrup was used in
black and white films to create
the illusion of blood.

Meanings
These infinitive phrases often
begin with in order to.
However, in order is not
necessary to give this meaning.
Infinitives of purposes are often
used at the beginning of a
sentence or after the verb (and
direct object).

Causative and Structurally

Related Verbs
verb used to indicate that the
subject
is
not
directly
responsible for the actions
happened, but someone or
something else holding the
action
The verbs get, have, help, let, and
make are often called causatives.

(get, have, help, let, and make)

They are followed by a direct object and then an infinitive, a
simple form (the infinitive without TO), or a past participle.
Active
Sentences
Get

I got him to
wash the car.

Have

I had him wash

the car.

Passive
Sentences
I got the car
washed.
I had the car
washed.

Notes
GET and HAVE are
similar in meaning:
arrange for. Note
that get is followed
by an infinitive in the
active form.

Help

I helped him
wash the car
OR
I helped him to
wash the car.

HELP means aid or

assist. Note that
help can be followed
by the simple form or
the infinitive of a
second verb.

Let

I let him wash

the car.

LET means allow.