Gerunds and Infinitives
1. A gerund is a noun made from a verb by adding
"-ing." The gerund form of the verb "read" is
"reading." You can use a gerund as the subject, the complement,
or the object of a sentence.
Examples:
·
Reading helps you learn English. subject of sentence
·
Her favorite hobby
is reading. complement of sentence
·
I enjoy reading. object of sentence
Gerunds can be made
negative by adding "not."
Examples:
·
He enjoys not
working.
·
The best thing for your
health is not smoking.
2. Infinitives
are the "to" form of the verb. The infinitive form of
"learn" is "to learn." You can also use an infinitive as
the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.
Examples:
·
To
learn is important. subject of sentence
·
The most important thing
is to learn. complement of sentence
·
He wants to learn. object of sentence
Infinitives can be made
negative by adding "not."
Examples:
·
I decided not to
go.
·
The most important thing
is not to give up.
3. Both gerunds and
infinitives can be used as the subject or the complement of a sentence.
However, as subjects or complements.
·
Gerunds usually sound more like normal, spoken
English,
·
whereas infinitives sound more abstract. Infinitives
emphasize the possibility or potential for something and sound more
philosophical.
If this sounds confusing, just remember that 90% of the time, you
will use a gerund as the subject or complement of a sentence.
Examples:
·
Learning is important. normal subject
·
To
learn is important. abstract subject - less
common
·
The most important thing
is learning. normal complement
·
The most important thing
is to learn. abstract complement - less common
4. As the object of a sentence, it is more difficult to choose between a gerund or an infinitive. In such situations, gerunds and
infinitives are not normally interchangeable. Usually, the main verb in the
sentence determines whether you use a gerund or an infinitive.
Examples:
·
He enjoys swimming. "Enjoy" requires a gerund.
·
He wants to
swim. "Want"
requires an infinitive.
If you would like to see the verb tables i.e. verbs that take the gerund and verbs that take the infintive click the link below
DANIELLE, IT DOESN'T LET ME SEE THE DOC! I'VE REQUESTED PERMISSION! I'VE DONE THE CORRECTIONS, CHECK IT HERE: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vQzvBr7dFvMNMIsEx-W0dJrQqaHGOWqSVEo-OOol394/edit?hl=en_US !
ReplyDeleteTHANKS!!
MARINA
danielle!!! before the exam I asked u for permission too. Anyway, I think that you "might not have saved" the correcctions of my composition as when i open the doc there is nothing surlined...perhaps I don't have any mistake ;) If you want I can print it for u!!
ReplyDeletethanksss
MYRIAM
Thanks girls for letting me know! =) I have now shared the tables. Marina thanks for the correction and Myriam I am going to check the document now and see what has happened.
ReplyDeleteThanks
=)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VQi_NxztXmCBu0L7TWEisfi6X-0ZFSSroSlqXQ3SWcQ/edit?hl=en_US#
ReplyDeletethis are my correcctions!it didn't let me to post them on my blog, I don't know why....
thank u, it was all clear
myriam