Gerunds and Infinitives Form and Uses Form • Gerund: you add –ing to a verb: – ie. Meet > Meeting • Infinitive: you add “to” before the base form of a verb: – ie. Meet > To meet Uses: the gerund • We use the gerund: – After some verbs: • Suggest, recommend, like/dislike/prefer, love/hate, enjoy, finish, miss, continue, – ie. I suggested going to the cinema (Propuse ir al cine) – In some expressions: • Feel like (Tener ganas de) • It´s no use (No merece la pena) • Get used to / Be used to (Estar acostumbrandose / Estar acostumbrado) • Can´t stand (No poder soportar) • Can´t help (No poder evitar) • Don´t mind (no importar) – ie. I don´t mind cleaning my room – As subject in a sentence when we talk about general actions • ie. Finding solutions to some problems is not easy (Encontrar soluciones a algunos problemas no es fácil) – After prepositions • ie. I´m interested in studying maths Uses: the infinitive • After some verbs, such as: – – – – – – – – – Want / wish / hope Agree Appear / seem Choose Decide Learn Plan Promise Refuse ie. I want to travel around the country next year – After some adjectives and adverbs • Happy to • Slowly to – ie. I´m happy to be here / He ran too slowly to win – After the indirect object of some verbs, such as: ADVISE, INVITE, TELL, WARN, TEACH, PERSUADE • ie. He advised me to go to the doctor (Me aconsejó que fuese al médico) • Verbs related to perception (HEAR, FEEL, SEE,…) and MAKE / LET are followed by infinitive without to – ie. I saw Eric leave the office / Their parents make them clean their room Verbs followed by either a gerund or an infinitive • • • • Begin Propose (proponer) Forbid Intend (tener la intención de) – ie.They started answering the letter / They started to answer the letter Verbs with a change of meaning • Stop gerund = dejar de hacer algo • Stop infinitive = interrumpir una acción para hacer otra cosa – ie. He stopped going out with Mary / He stopped to have a coffee • Remember gerund = se refiere algo pasado • Remember infinitive = se refiere al futuro – I remember meeting him at a party / I remembered to close the window • Forget gerund = indica que se nos ha olvidado que ocurrió algo • Forget infinitive = significa olvidarse de hacer algo – ie. I forgot seeing him at a party / I forgot to close the door