Gerunds and Infinitives Grammar Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering gerund and infinitive rules, verb complement patterns, meaning distinctions, and special structures from Unit 2.

Verb + (inf. + -ing)

Admit - Appreciate- avoid- consider-delay- deny- dislike- enjoy- fancy- finish- imagine-include- keep- mind -miss- practice- risk - suggest

Negative Gerund Pattern (not + inf. + -ing)

The structure used to negate verbs followed by a gerund by placing "not" immediately before the "-ing" form (e.g., "He suggested not going to the club and helping mom instead").

Verb + to + inf.

A grammatical pattern in which specific verbs—such as afford, agree, arrange, choose, decide, deserve, expect, fail, help, hope, intend, learn, manage, offer, plan, pretend, promise, seem, threaten, try, want, and wish—are followed by "to" plus the base form of the verb.

Negative Infinitive Pattern (not to + inf.)

The structure used to negate verbs followed by an infinitive by placing "not to" before the base verb (e.g., "He intended not to go to the club with us").

Verbs with No Difference in Meaning (to + inf. vs. -ing)

Verbs such as love, hate, like, prefer, start, begin, and continue that can take either "to + inf." or an "-ing form" without altering the meaning of the sentence.

Rule for "would" + Verbs of Liking / Preference

A grammatical rule stating that if "would" precedes verbs like love, like, hate, or prefer, they must be followed exclusively by "to + inf." (e.g., "I'd love to go", not "I'd love going").

Continuous Form Rule for starting / beginning

A rule specifying that when start or begin is used in the continuous form ("starting" or "beginning"), it can only be followed by "to + inf." to avoid repeating the "-ing" ending (e.g., "It was starting to rain", not "starting raining").

Stop + -ing vs. Stop + to + inf.

"Stop + -ing" means halting or quitting an action entirely, whereas "stop + to + inf." means pausing an activity in order to perform another action.

Remember + -ing vs. Remember + to + inf.

"Remember + -ing" refers to recalling an action done in the past, whereas "remember + to + inf." means remembering to do a task before doing it.

Forget + -ing vs. Forget + to + inf.

"Forget + -ing" means forgetting that one has already carried out an action, whereas "forget + to + inf." means failing to perform a required task.

Regret + -ing vs. Regret + to + inf.

"Regret + -ing" expresses sorrow or repentance over an action completed in the past, whereas "regret + to + inf." conveys reluctance or sadness before delivering bad news.

Try + to + inf. vs. Try + -ing

"Try + to + inf." means putting in effort or attempting to achieve something difficult, whereas "try + -ing" means experimenting with an action to see what happens.

Go on + to + inf. vs. Go on + -ing

"Go on + to + inf." means moving on to a different or next activity, whereas "go on + -ing" means continuing to do the exact same activity.

to = in order to = so as to

Conjunctional expressions of purpose meaning "in order to / for the sake of" that are always followed by the base infinitive form of a verb (e.g., "I study hard to get good marks").

Prepositional "to" + (inf. + -ing)

Fixed expressions in which "to" functions as a preposition rather than an infinitive marker—such as look forward to, be used to, become used to, get/grow/become used to, adapt to, apply… to, confess to, contribute to, lead to, object to, take to, be accustomed to, be opposed to, and devote… to—requiring an "-ing" form after "to".

Idiomatic Expressions Followed by -ing

Fixed English phrases—including be busy, be interested in, be worth, can't help, can't stand, feel like, "It's a waste of money", "It's a waste of time", "It's no good / It's no use", and prefer… to…—that are directly followed by a gerund.

Verb + Object + to + inf.

Verbs—such as advise, allow, ask, beg, challenge, choose, command, encourage, expect, force, help, hire, instruct, invite, motivate, order, permit, persuade, promise, remind, teach, tell, urge, want, warn, and would like—that take an object followed by "to + inf.".

Passive Pattern of "Verb + Object + to + inf."

The passive construction in which the object moves to the subject position and "to + inf." follows directly after the main verb (e.g., "Ola was advised to see a doctor").

Dual-Pattern Verbs (advise, allow, forbid, recommend, permit, encourage)

Verbs that take an "-ing" form directly when no object is mentioned, but require "object + to + inf." when a grammatical object is present (e.g., "We don't allow smoking" vs. "We don't allow anyone to smoke").

Perception Verbs (hear, see, notice, watch)

Verbs of perception that take a bare infinitive when the observer witnesses the entire complete action, or an "-ing form" when the observer witnesses only part of the ongoing action.