After the verb can ing or infinitive. Difference in meaning between the to-infinitive and the -ing form of the verb

Gerund and Infinitive

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Gerund.​

Gerund in English is an impersonal form of a verb with a suffix — ing. The syntactic functions of the gerund are close to the functions of the noun and verb. The gerund carries a connotation of the meaning of the process.

For example:

Our team leader encouragesworking overtime.
Our team leader approves of working overtime.

Do you likeskating ? Do you like ice skating?

There is no gerund form in Russian, so its meaning is conveyed either by a noun, or an infinitive, or a gerund, or a verb in the personal form and a subordinate clause.

For example:

Reading English books every day will improve your knowledge of the language.
Reading English books every day will improve your language skills.

I remember hearing this song in my childhood.
I remember hearing this song as a child.

Gerund is used:

1. As a noun.

Walking is a good exercise. Walking is good exercise

2. After I'm busy, It's no use, It's (no) good, It's (not) worth, can't help, there's no point (in), can't stand, have difficulty (in), in addition to, as well as, have trouble, have a hard/difficult time.

She had difficulty finding his way back.
She may have trouble finding her way back.

3. After prepositions.

He left the shop without paying so he was accused of stealing.
He left the store without paying, so he was accused of theft.

4. After spend/waste (time, money etc).

She spends her free time digging the garden.
She spends her time free time digging up the garden.

5. After certain verbs.

I enjoy reading.I like reading.

Infinitive in English.​

An infinitive is also an impersonal form of a verb in English, which is formed using the base form of the verb and a particle to.

I like Ann, but I think she tends to talk too much. I like Anne, but I think she talks too much.

They seem to have plenty of money. They seem to have a lot of money.

Infinitive is used:

1. To express purpose.

She went to university to become a doctor.
She went to university to becomedoctor.

2. After certain adjectives ( happy, glad, sorry etc).

He was happy to win the prize.
He was happy that he won the prize.

3. After I would like/would love/would prefer.

I would like to see the manager.
I'd like to see a manager.

4. After certain nouns.

What a surprise to see you here.
What a surprise to see you here.

5. After too/enough.

She is too young to have her own house.
She is too young to have her own home.

6. After certain verbs.

It was late, so I decided to take a taxi home.
It was too late, so I decided to take a taxi.

The infinitive and gerund in English can be used after certain verbs, but the meaning will change.​

Verb	Gerund	Infinitive
Forget	Iforgot meeting him. I forgot I met him.	Iforgot to meet him. I forgot to meet him.
Remember	She remembered visiting her grandmother. She remembered visiting her grandmother.	She remembered to visit her grandmother. She remembered that she needed to visit her grandmother.
Stop	Istopped calling you. I stopped calling you (maybe we had a fight).	Istopped to call you. I stopped to call you (with the purpose of calling).
Try	Itried opening the window. I tried to open the window (it was hot in the room, I tried to openwindow as an experiment,but that didn't help).	Itried to open the window. I tried (made an effort) to open the window (but couldn’t).
Regret	I regret promising to help you. I regret that I promised to help you.	Iregret to tell you that we can't help. I regret to tell you that we cannot help.
Quit	She quit working here. She stopped working here.	She quit to work here. She left her job to work here.

The infinitive and gerund can be used after certain verbs without losing their meaning.​

For example:

She can’t stand working the late shift.
She can’t stand to work the late shift.
She tolerate Not Maybe workVnight shift.

The use of -ing forms and infinitives after verbs is one of the difficult grammatical topics for Russian-speaking students.

Some cases of using gerunds and infinitives are discussed in.

Today I would like to give special attention cases when both the -ing form and the infinitive can be used after the verb, and the meaning of the verb changes.

Infinitive or -ing form?

After verbs, either the infinitive or the -ing form can be used.

We can divide verbs into 5 groups:

1. Verbs after which the -ing form is always used.

appreciate, avoid, contemplate, delay, deny, detest, dislike, endure, enjoy, escape, excuse, face, fancy, finish, involve, mention, mind, miss, postpone, practice, resent, risk, suggest

Jason won't mind lending you his car.

I"d like to help you, but I can"t risk losing my job.

Ing-form also always used after the following expressions:
it’s no good, it’s no use, feel like, spend time, waste time, it’s worth, there’s no point, can’t help

2. Verbs after which the infinitive with the particle to is always used.

can't afford, agree, appear, arrange, attempt, ask, choose, dare, decide, demand, deserve, expect, fail, grow, hasten, happen, hope, hurry, learn, long, manage, neglect, offer, pay , plan, pledge, pretend, promise, refuse, resolve, seek, seem, struggle, swear, threaten, vow, wish

She agreed to help me.

He promised to write to me every week.

3. Verbs followed by an infinitive without the particle to.

make, let, all modal verbs except ought to

You can't make me go.

You shouldn't be so angry with him.

4. Verbs after which either the -ing form or the infinitive can be used, but the meaning of the verb does NOT change.

hate, like, love, prefer, begin, continue, intend, plan, propose, start

This also includes expressions can ('t) bear And can (‘t) stand.

I love to eat/eating out on Saturdays evenings.

I can't bear to watch/watching horror movies.

5. Verbs after which both the -ing form and the infinitive can be used, while the meaning of the verb CHANGES.

forget, remember, try, go on, mean, stop, regret

Let's take a closer look at how the meaning of each of these verbs changes.

1. Remember.

remember to do smt - we are talking about something we have to do (remember to do something, we are talking about an obligation)

Did you remember to pay the bill? — Did you remember to pay the bill?

remember doing something - we are referring to a memory of a moment or event (remember something that happened in the past)

I will always remember meeing you for the first time. “I’ll never forget the first time I met you.”

2. Forget.

Using the -ing form and the infinitive with forget, very similar to the use of -ing form and infinitive with remember, but the meaning is reversed.

forget to do something = to not remember to do something (not remember, forget to do something)

You didn't forget to pay the bill, did you? — You didn’t forget to pay the bill, did you?

forget doing something = to be unable to remember a fact, something that happened, or how to do something (to forget about something that happened in the past)

I will never forget meeting you for the first time.“I will never forget the first time I met you.”

3. Stop.

stop to do something = to interrupt an activity in order to do something else (stop, interrupt one action for another action)

On the way to Edinburgh, we stopped to look at an old castle. — On the way to Edinburgh we stopped to look at the old castle.

stop doing something = to quit doing something (stop doing something, quit doing something)

What is the best way to stop smoking? — What is the best way to quit smoking?


4. Regret.

regret doing something = to feel sorry about a situation, especially something that you wish you had not done (regret, repent)

I regret not studying harder for my exams. “I regret that I didn’t prepare harder for the exams.”


regret to do something - used to say that you are sorry that you have to tell someone about a situation (within a formal context) (to regret that you need to tell bad news; used in a formal context)

We regret to inform you that your paper has not been accepted.— Unfortunately, your work was not accepted.

5. Try.

try to do something = to attempt to do something (try, try to do something; it means that you failed to do it)

I tried to open the window but couldn't. - I tried to open the window, but nothing worked.

try doing smt = to do, test, taste, etc (try, experience)

Why don't you try using a different shampoo? - Why don't you try a new shampoo?

Compare:

Last night I tried to sleep for hours, but I simply couldn’t. I was so desperate that I even tried counting sheep! “Last night I couldn’t sleep for several hours. So desperate that he even tried counting sheep!

6. Go on.

go on to do smt = to do something else in the future (go to something in the future)

go on doing something = to continue doing something (continue)

Compare:

After listening to me closely, Jim went on to read his email. Jim listened to me carefully and then continued reading the email.

J im wasn’t really listening to me, he simply went on reading his email. “Jim didn’t really listen to me, he just kept reading the email.”

7.Mean.

mean to do something = to intend to do something (intend, want to do something)

I didn't mean to hurt you. - I did not mean that.

something means doing something= something involves doing something else (it will be necessary to do something else)

Entering the competition will mean training at least twice a week. — If you decide to take part in the competition, you will have to train at least 2 times a week.

English grammar is fraught with many interesting surprises. Well, where else can you find a word that is able to fulfill several morphological roles without even changing a single letter? But in English there is a whole group of such unique words that can be different parts of speech. And this is due to the ing form of the verb in English. After all, with the ending –ing, a verb can turn into a noun or even an adjective. For us, such transformations are simply a gift - you only need to learn one word, and several of its contexts will become clear at once. Let's just learn to distinguish them.

Traditionally, verbs take the ending -ing in the Continuous and Perfect Continuous tenses. Actually, it is in this part of the word that the main meaning of these groups is hidden: to show the process of action, its duration, and not the fact of its occurrence. Therefore, when translating such words into Russian, imperfective verbs are used. Such predicates are used in sentences of all times and are adjacent to constructions tobe, havebeen.

Group	Present	Past	Future
Continuous	We are playing chess now. We let's play now in chess.	We were playing chess in that moment. We played at that moment in chess.	We will be playing chess in this time tomorrow. We are tomorrow at this time we'll play in chess.
Perfect Continuous	It has been raining for a week already. Rain coming for a week already.	It had been raining for a week already. Rainwalked alreadyweek.	Tomorrow it will have been raining for a week. Tomorrow will be a week already coming rain.

Also, the ing form of the verb is found in English in sentences using the combination Future in Past, if the phrase has a continuous form.

And the last case of using such an ending in a verb occurs in the stable phrase to be going to (plan, intend to do something). By the way, the first part of such a combination ( tobegoing) is translated by verbs of the imperfect form, and the second is already perfect:

• I am going to read this book – I I'm going to read it this book.
• Are you going to tell him the truth? –You are you going to tell tell him the truth?

Before forming the continuous tense, you need to memorize a few simple rules for composing such verbs. Their spelling contains the following grammatical features:

• Verbs with unreadable endings e they lose this letter, but leave with what they read: choos e – choosing, s ee – seeing.
• In words ending in ie, this ending changes to y:l ie–l y ing. If the ending of the verb y, then it remains: fl y–fl y
• After stressed endings, the consonants are doubled, but for unstressed endings, doubling does not occur: bese t – bese tt ing,drin k –drin k ing. If a word originally had two consonants, they are retained: befa ll –befa ll ing.

It remains to add that when reading and pronouncing this ending, we pronounce the nasal, i.e. it turns out that the sound g virtually inaudible.

Other parts of speech with ing endings

The ending ing in English can also apply to a noun, adjective, participle and gerund.

Noun

The verbal noun is closely related to the continuous tense, since it expresses the result of an action that took place, for example: tobecooking- prepare, cooking- cooking. Often, a noun is confused with a special grammatical category - a gerund, which has exactly the same ending. To distinguish between these parts of speech, you need to remember that:

• The gerund is used with the possessive case, but cannot have an article, a definition, plural and any numerals.
• A noun has the clauses listed above, but cannot control a direct object, so the preposition of is used.

The semantic meaning of these designs is also excellent. The gerund expresses processes, and the noun expresses the subject of activities.

Adjective

Adjectives with ing are also formed from a verb and mean attributes/qualities of people or objects that can make an impression: to amaze, surprise, interest, i.e. evoke a certain response.

• It is an amazing film!- This amazing movie!
• Your matter is very interesting. – YourscaseVeryinteresting .

They should not be confused with adjectives –ed, since they describe the opposite case, i.e. reaction of perception, and relate not to the object, but to the person on whom a certain action is exerted.

It is an interesting book. This is an interesting book.

I am interested in this book. I'm interested in this book.

Participle and gerund

Often such words are used in the form of participles, and even the official name of ing verbs: CommunionI or present participle, it is also the third form of the verb. A participle can refer to a predicate, which we studied in the first section, and also act as a definition of a noun or create participial/adverbial phrases.

In addition, the vocabulary of the English language has words that themselves contain the ending - ing: during, doping, casting, etc. Actually, they all retain the value of the duration of the action, the execution of the process.

This concludes our study of one of the most common endings. You will have to meet with him quite often, so if you have not mastered the material well enough, then it is better to work through it again. Good luck in English!

After six months of intensive learning of English, almost every student is faced with two unique concepts - “gerund” and “infinitive”. They are not in our language in this form, and the difficulty of their use lies in the similarity of translation and meaning, but in the difference in the structure and formation of the sentence. Neither the gerund nor the infinitive are most often the main members of the sentence; they are used as additions and explanations, carrying important information.

Both options are forms of verbs used in colloquial speech to complement the main predicates. Which option to choose in a particular case depends on the purpose of the story, and the rules of use: gerund or infinitive must be learned by heart. Over time, the revolutions will settle in your head and begin to be reproduced intuitively. Let's consider each of them separately, determine the similarities and differences, and analyze the rules for using them in sentences.

No smoking, or don't enter in a tuxedo! What is Gerund?

Important information - the gerund is a verb, but there is no similar form in the Russian language, so the question What? (in some cases What to do?) and the word is translated as a noun with a similar meaning.

It can be compared to an adverbial phrase. In sentences it acts as a subject or object. In structure, it is a verb + the suffix -ing, for example, reading, dancing. Moreover, in translation these words will sound like “reading” and “dancing”, respectively. Plural and singular look the same. The main thing to remember is:

All verbs in the Gerund form have the suffix –ing, or “ing” ending, but not all words ending in “ing” are gerunds.

• Her singing is not good - her singing is not very good.
• I have finished explaining the rule. – I finished explaining the rule.

The phrase can be translated in another way, then the wording will become more clear - “I finished explaining the rule.” Here the gerund acts as an addition to the verb and reveals the main action of the speaker. Moreover, what is happening relates to the present or past tense; for such an action, Infinitive is used in plans.

The gerund is used in 3 main cases

• In conjunction with some prepositions before, in, after, instead of, good at;
• In the expressions there is no point in, it’s no good, it’s no use;
• In conjunction with some main verbs, as an addition.
  If the gerund serves as the subject, then the sentence looks something like this:
  singing is very good for your mood - singing is good for your mood.
  smoking is prohibited - smoking is prohibited.

The gerund used with prepositions is already an object and is translated as follows:

• Before going out, please take your keys - before going out, please take your keys;
• She went to work instead of staying home and taking the medicine - she went to work instead of staying at home and taking medicine.

The gerund form is used here because the action happened in the past and has an effect on the present. You should use a similar design in the following cases:

1. The action is not tied to time: no smoking! (no smoking!).
2. Some action is planned: we think of going Moscow in next weekend - we are thinking about going to Moscow next weekend.
3. If both verbs used describe the action occurring at the moment of conversation: I’m surprised to hear it - I’m surprised to hear it.
4. The main action is a consequence of what is happening, indicated by the addition: I don’t remember doing it before - I don’t remember that I did it before.

Verbs followed by the form "gerund"

Separately, we should consider the situation when there is a bunch of two verbs, one of them should be in the form of an infinitive or gerund and complement the main one. There are options when you can use only one form, when both are suitable without changing the meaning, and when the form of the verb affects the translation of the sentence. There are examples where the gerund and the infinitive bring completely different meanings to the story.

If the sentence contains one of the following verbs, then we use a gerund:

A gerund will always be used with them, and the copula will be constructed as follows:

• V (verb) + v-ing.

How to recognize an infinitive?

The other side of the coin, or another form of the verb in a sentence, is the infinitive. It denotes an action that is shorter and shorter in duration than the gerund. As a rule, the infinitive suggests doing something in the future, it is aimed at planned things, in order to achieve them you need to take some action. For example:

• She asked me to protect her– She asked me to protect her.

The infinitive suggests more general actions, while the gerund specifies the situation. Therefore, in the sentence in the first version everything is limited to verbs, and in the second version they are often supplemented with explanations.

In structure, the infinitive is an indefinite, initial form of the verb and answers the questions What to do? and What to do? The word in this case is translated as action, and is used in a sentence with the particle “to”. Moreover, two infinitives in a row are separated by the preposition “and”, and the second is pronounced without “to”. In this case, it is called “bare infinitive”, or bare infinitive. Example:

• He went to the pool to swim and meet friends– he went to the pool to swim and meet with friends.

The infinitive is used in a sentence in the following cases:

1. After the adjectives glad, nice, good, happy and sorry: I’m glad to see you - I’m glad to see you.
2. To clarify the purpose of the action, when you can ask the question “Why?”: She told me a news to surprise me - She told me the news to surprise me.
3. After expressions with the word “would”, for example: I would like to read book - I would be glad to read a book.
4. After modal verbs can, should, must, as well as after make and let, the infinitive is used without the particle “to”: I can take your bag - I can take your bag.
5. After the list of verbs such as agree, beg, choose, the list will be provided below.

To understand the rules for using the infinitive form, you should know when it is used:

• To denote two actions occurring simultaneously, as well as if they occur sequentially in the near future;
  - in the case of denoting hopes, dreams, plans or desires;
• After modal verbs, or in conjunction with was and were, denoting incompleteness, imperfection of the process: you should have stayed at home - you should have stayed at home;
• To denote a long process preceding a statement in the present tense: I know that he played football for 3 years - I know him to play football for 3 years;

The infinitive is used in speech 2-3 times less often than the gerund. If you find it difficult to choose correct form in conversation, construct the phrase in such a way as to use a familiar construction. The advantages of the gerund and the infinitive are their interchangeability, depending on the situation and the placement of words in a sentence.

Verbs for the infinitive

For the infinitive form the following construction is used:

• V (list verb) + V/ to V.

Using this scheme, it is easy to create options with the following words:

Here are the main verbs used in colloquial speech; they are quite sufficient for full communication with native speakers.

Similarities between gerund and infinitive

There are verbs and expressions after which you can put either option without changing the meaning of the sentence. These include:

• To begin, to continue, to intend, to love, to start, to finish.

Examples of sentences with the following conditions:

• She began to cry/crying - She began to cry.
  - She continued to talk/talking – She continued to talk.
  - I love to dance/dancing – I love to dance.
  - We started to read/reading – We started reading.
  - They finished to discuss/discussing - They finished the discussion.

The main differences between the gerund and the infinitive

Despite the similarity of concepts and application, these two forms of the verb have several fundamental differences.

• Firstly, the infinitive explains a shorter action; a gerund is used to define a longer process.
• Secondly, in the prohibitions indicated on the tables, the gerund is used; it is more popular and is used almost 2 times more often.
• Thirdly, the infinitive indicates a predicted action planned in the future. A gerund indicates an event or process that is happening in the present or lasting in the past.

Each form has a list of verbs, with some you can use only the gerund, or only the infinitive, but there are words when both are applicable, but they carry different meanings.

For example, the verb “be anxious” can be translated as “to want very much” or “to be afraid of the consequences,” depending on whether the gerund or infinitive comes after.

• I’m anxious about leaving my son alone in the house- I'm afraid to leave my son at home alone.
• I'm anxious to hear your news– I really want to hear your news.

And the verb “forget” in a similar sentence has a radically different meaning, depending on the “neighborhood”.

• I forgot giving you my book– I forgot that I gave you the book (Past tense), or
• I forgot to give you my book- I forgot to give you my book.

These verbs also include:

Despite the volume of information about the forms of gerunds and infinitives, remembering them is quite simple, especially with a high level of preparation. Start analyzing the intricacies of their use at the intermediate level, not earlier, then all the rules will be easier to perceive and easier to remember.

The easiest way to learn foreign words

All methods of any school have basic methods quickly memorizing foreign words so that you can later use them in speech. Each teacher builds lessons from a set of basic memorization methods:

• Visual;
• Auditory (by hearing);
• Mechanical (writing);
• Associative.

• Working with educational materials – exercises, tasks, rules, diagrams;
• Maintaining a personal dictionary to record learned words and concepts and for repetition;
• Listen to songs and audio books in English, you can watch the news, listen to the radio or download material to your phone’s memory;

• Watching videos: films, cartoons, programs in English with or without subtitles;
• Conversation and communication with native speakers;
• Sharing knowledge on group classes or individually by a teacher.

With the right combination of methods, with regular training and repetition of the material covered, understanding and addiction will come within a couple of months. And you can start talking quite fluently within a year or a year and a half. The most effective way is always the most difficult - traveling for a long time to an English-speaking country without the opportunity to communicate with fellow countrymen. IN extreme conditions the brain is able to activate accumulated resources and in as soon as possible get a fairly good result.

As an afterword

To summarize the story about the peculiarities of English, I would like to outline the main points:

1. In classical English, Gerundium accounts for about 80% of situations, while Infinitve is slightly behind. But modern version language rules already speaks of the equal rights of these two forms; many schools recommend replacing the infinitive form with a gerund to simplify communication and understand the nuances.
2. For everyday communication, it is enough to remember the main verbs that precede each form, as well as the meaning they give. Some links will start to play automatically without thinking. And it will become much easier to translate without getting hung up on canons and rules.
3. Both the gerund and the infinitive carry important function to understand the sentence as a whole, using them incorrectly can mislead your interlocutor. Therefore, you need to train more, do exercises and communicate in English.

Some English verbs attach others as objects. Below are those that form a construction with an infinitive.

Table: Verbs in the Verb + TO construction

I want to live in the USA. I want to live in the USA.
We need to buy some food. We need to buy some food.
Randall refused to meet us. Randall refused to meet us.
I forgot to take my key when I went out. I forgot to take the key when I left.
My sister is learning to swim. My sister is learning to swim.
I promised to pass the exam but I couldn’t. I promised to pass the exam, but I couldn't.

2

A gerund is a non-finite form of a verb formed by adding the ending -ing to it (the same as the Present Participle). The following verbs form a construction with a gerund:

Table: Verbs in the construction Verb + -ING

Never put them with an infinitive, as in Russian. This is grammatically incorrect.

I enjoy traveling ( Wrong: I enjoy to travel). I love to travel.
I don't mind walking. I don't mind walking.
Has it stopped raining? Has the rain stopped?
Linda suggested going to the beach. Linda suggested going to the beach.

In its meaning, the gerund is very close to the noun. If translated literally, the sentences in English will sound something like this:

Linda suggested going to the beach. Linda suggested going to the beach.

3

Some verbs can be combined with both an infinitive and a gerund. There is practically no difference between these forms.

Table: Verbs in the construction Verb + TO or Verb + -ING

I like playing video games (= I like to play video games). I like to play video games.
We prefer traveling by air (= We prefer to travel by air). We prefer to travel by plane.
Helen loves singing (= Helen loves to sing). Helen loves to sing.
I hate being late (= I hate to be late). I hate being late.
The dog started barking (= The dog started to bark). The dog started barking.

4

The expressions would like, would prefer, would love and would hate in English are used exclusively with an infinitive.

Rachel would like to talk to you ( Wrong: would like talking). Rachel would like to talk to you.
I'd love to go to France. I would love to go to France.
I'd prefer to stay here. I'd rather stay here.
I would hate to be a doctor. I wouldn't really like to become a doctor.