Gerunds and Infinitives Learning to use gerunds and infinitives can be challenging, but it's essential to improve your English grammar. In this presentation, we'll explore the different ways to use them and when to use each form. Teacher: Solcireth Botello Gerunds 1 Definition 2 Gerunds are verb forms ending in -ing that Examples Running is good exercise. I like swimming. function as a noun. 3 Usage 4 Tip Gerunds can be used as subjects, objects, Remember to use a gerund after and complements. prepositions. Infinitives Definition Examples Usage Infinitives are verb forms that To swim in the ocean is my Infinitives can be used as begin with "to" and can function dream. I have a book to read. subjects, objects, and as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. complements. Gerunds: Subject and Object Subject Object Tip Using a gerund as the Gerunds can also be used Remember to use a subject of a sentence is as an object. For example, "I possessive pronoun before common in English. For enjoy swimming in the a gerund acting as the example, "Swimming is my ocean." object of a verb. favorite hobby." Difference between Gerunds and Infinitives Subject Object Gerunds are used to focus on an activity while Gerunds are used after prepositions and as objects infinitives focus on the goal or purpose of an action. while infinitives are used after main verbs or modals verbs and as subjects. Using Gerunds as the Subject of a Sentence 1 Example Skiing is not my idea of a fun vacation. 2 Usage Gerunds can be used as the subject of a sentence to talk about a general activity or idea. 3 Tip Gerunds can be replaced with a noun to create a similar sentence. For example, "Playing tennis is my favorite hobby." vs. "My favorite hobby is playing tennis." Using Infinitives as the Subject of a Sentence 1 Example To live is to learn. 2 Usage Infinitives can be used as the subject of a sentence to express a general idea or concept. 3 Tip Infinitives can be replaced with a noun to create a similar sentence. For example, "To travel the world is my dream." vs. "My dream is to travel the world." Verbs that Can be Followed by Gerunds or Infinitives Examples Usage Some verbs can take both forms. For When a verb is followed by a gerund or example, "I like swimming" or "I like to infinitive, the meaning of the sentence swim." can change. Tip Some verbs have a specific form that must be used after them. For example, "I remember swimming" is correct but "I remember to swim" is not correct. We use the Gerund or the Infinitive after the following verbs: begin Gerund and continue Infinitive (no difference in hate meaning) He began talking. He began to talk. They continue smoking. They continue to smoke. Do you hate working on Saturdays? Do you hate to work on Saturdays? like I like swimming. I like to swim. love She loves painting. She loves to paint. prefer Pat prefers walking home. Pat prefers to walk home. start They start singing. They start to sing. We use the Gerund or the Infinitive after the following verbs. There are two possible structures after these verbs. Gerund: verb + -ing Infinitive: verb + person + to-infinitive advise They advise walking to town. They advise us to walk to town. allow They do not allow smoking here. They do not allow us to smoke here. encourage They encourage doing the test. They encourage us to do the test. permit They do not permit smoking here. They do not permit us to smoke here. We use the following structures with the word recommend: recommend They recommend walking to town. They recommend that we walk to town. Some verbs have different meaning. (when used with Gerund or Infinitive) GERUND forget go on mean remember stop try He'll never forget spending so much money on his first computer. GERUND INFINITIVE Don't forget to spend money on the tickets. INFINITIVE Go on reading the text. Go on to read the text. GERUND INFINITIVE You have forgotten your homework again. That means phoning your mother. I meant to phone your mother, but my mobile didn't work. GERUND INFINITIVE I remember switching off the lights when I went on holiday. Remember to switch off the lights when you go on holiday. GERUND INFINITIVE Stop reading the text. Stop to read the text. GERUND INFINITIVE Why don't you try running after the dog? I tried to run after the dog, but I was too slow. GERUNDS / INFINITIVES EXERCISES: Put in the verbs in brackets in the Gerund or the to-infinitive. 1) I can't imagine Peter (go) by bike. 2) He agreed (buy) a new car. 3) The question is easy (answer). 4) The man asked me how (get) to the airport. 5) I look forward to (see) you at the weekend. 6) Are you thinking of (visit) London? 7) We decided (run) through the forest. 8) The teacher expected Sarah (study) hard. 9) She doesn't mind (work) the night shift. Answers: 1) I can't imagine Peter going by bike. 2) He agreed to buy a new car. 3) The question is easy to answer. 4) The man asked me how to get to the airport. 5) I look forward to seeing you at the weekend. 6) Are you thinking of visiting London? 7) We decided to run through the forest. 8) The teacher expected Sarah to study hard. 9) She doesn't mind working the night shift.
