Gerunds and Infinitives

Gerund

(+) verbing

(-) not verbing

We use the gerund (verb + ing)

  1. After prepositions and phrasal verbs
  2. As the subject of the sentence
  3. After some verbs:

admit, avoid, deny, dislike, enjoy, feel like, finish, hate, keep, like, love, mind, miss, practice, prefer, recommend, spend time/money, stop, suggest, give up, go on, etc.

The infinitive (to + base form)

(+) to + verb

(-) not to + verb

We use the infinitive

  1. After adjectives
  2. To express a reason or purpose
  3. after some verbs:

(can’t) afford, agree, decide, expect, forget, help, hope, learn, need, offer, plan, pretend, promise, refuse, remember, seem, try, want, would like, etc.

More verbs take the infinitive than the gerund.

The base form

We use the base form

  1. after most modal verbs and auxiliary verbs
  2. After make and let

Watch the following video for examples

 Grammar Review

Level of difficulty: ⭐

 Grammar Practice

Complete the sentences using the correct form of the verb

Flip the tile to check your answer.

Quiz

 Speaking Practice

Level of difficulty: ⭐⭐

Ask and answer the following questions

3 thoughts on “Gerunds and Infinitives

  1. It was definitely a useful video. I was able to grasp some of the topic’s rules, and I promise to do my best to follow them

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