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Verb patterns: verb + infinitive or verb + -
ing?
- Verbs followed by a to -infinitive
Some verbs can be followed immediately by a to-infinitive:
afford demand like pretend agree fail love promise arrange forget manage refuse ask hate mean (= intend) remember begin help need start choose hope offer try continue intend plan want decide learn prefer
I can’t afford to go on holiday.
It began to rain.
She hopes to go to university next year.
My mother never learnt to swim.
Did you remember to ring Nigel?
-ing but not to-infinitive
Some verbs are normally followed by the -ing form, not the to-infinitive:
admit deny finish mind avoid dislike give up miss (can’t) help enjoy imagine practise (can’t) stand fancy involve put off consider feel like keep (on) risk
I always enjoy cooking.
Not: I always enjoy to cook.
We haven’t finished eating yet.
Not: We haven’t finished to eat.
She keeps changing her mind about the wedding.
Some of these verbs (e.g. can’t stand, dislike, imagine, involve, mind, miss, put off and risk) can be used with a new subject before the -ing form (underlined in the examples below). If the new subject is a pronoun, it is in the object form (me, him, her, us, them):
We just couldn’t imagine Gerry singing in public.
Do you mind me being here while you’re working?
I don’t want to risk him losing his job.
- Verbs followed by a to -infinitive or -ing
Hate, like, love, prefer
Hate, like, love and prefer can be followed either by -ing or a to-infinitive. The difference in meaning is often small. The -ing form emphasises the verb itself. The to- infinitive puts the emphasis more on the preference for, or the results of, the action.
Compare
-ing form to- infinitive I love cooking Indian food. (emphasis on the process itself and enjoyment of it)
I like to drink juice in the morning, and tea at lunchtime. (emphasis more on the preference or habit) She hates cleaning her room. (emphasis on the process itself and no enjoyment of it)
I hate to be the only person to disagree. (emphasis more on the result: I would prefer not to be in that situation.) Most people prefer watching a film at the cinema rather than on TV. (emphasis on the process itself and enjoyment of it)
We prefer to drive during the day whenever we can. (emphasis more on the result and on the habit or preference. The speaker doesn’t necessarily enjoy the process of driving at any
Let and make are followed by an infinitive without to in active voice sentences. They always have an object (underlined) before the infinitive:
Let me show you this DVD I’ve got.
They made us wait while they checked our documents.
Not: They made us to wait …
Help can be followed by an infinitive without to or a to-infinitive:
She helped me find a direction in life.
Everyone can help to reduce carbon emissions by using public transport.
See also:
- Help somebody (to) do
- Let , let’s
- Make
- (^) Verbs followed by -ing or an infinitive without to
A group of verbs connected with feeling, hearing and seeing can be used with -ing or with an infinitive without to:
feel notice see hear overhear watch
When they are used with -ing, these verbs emphasise the action or event in progress. When they are used with an infinitive without to, they emphasise the action or event seen as a whole, or as completed.
Compare
-ing infinitive without to She heard people shouting in the street below and looked out of the window. (emphasises that the shouting probably continued or was repeated)
I heard someone shout ‘Help!’, so I ran to the river.(emphasises the whole event: the person probably shouted only once)
A police officer saw him running along the street. (emphasises the running as it was
Emily saw Philip run out of Sandra’s office. (emphasises the whole event from
happening) start to finish)
- Verbs followed by a direct object and a to- infinitive
Some verbs are used with a direct object (underlined) followed by a to-infinitive. These verbs include:
advise hate like persuade request ask help love prefer teach challenge instruct need recommend tell choose intend order remind want forbid invite
I advised him to get a job as soon as possible.
Did Martin teach Gary to play squash?
They want me to go to Germany with them.
