Questions tagged [infinitive-vs-gerund]
For questions about the difference in meaning or grammaticality between using a gerund or an infinitive in a particular context.
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What's the difference between "I love singing" and "I love to sing"?
I would like to know what the difference is between "I love doing something" and "I love to do something".
For example:
“I love singing.”
and,
“I love to sing.”
When I was young, ...
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3
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Why is 'enjoy to [verb]' incorrect?
I can say:
I love to read. I hate to read.
But it must be:
I enjoy to read. I enjoy reading.
What is enjoy so different?
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5
answers
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'I have decided to purchase a jet for getting to NYC and back more quickly.'
Are the following sentences grammatical or not? If not, does substituting a to-infinite make them grammatical? (Optional: designate if the sentence expresses purpose, reason, aim, or function)
1 I ...
user6951
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votes
1
answer
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Using a verb as subject of a sentence
In Italian, when I write a sentence about an action (e.g. eating fish, playing), I would use the infinitive, such as mangiare pesce fa bene alla salute (which literally is "to eat fish is healthy"), ...
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2
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"look forward to meet you", or "to meeting you"? [duplicate]
Which one is correct?
I look forward to meet you during the coming festival.
or
I look forward to meeting you during the coming festival.
Please help me with explanation.
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votes
1
answer
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"remember visiting" vs. "remember to visit"
Remember is one of the verbs which we always put to + infinitive after it:
I always remember to do my homework.
But actually not always. This sentence is an exact example of what I mean:
Do you ...
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3
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How can I decide when to use “for” + “-ing” or “to” + [infinitive] in a sentence?
Example:
I have nothing to do for now.
Nothing for doing for now.
Another one:
I have some things to study.
I have some things for studying.
New Examples: (QUESTION UPDATED)
I don't ...
3
votes
1
answer
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When to use gerund or infinitive?
Is there a rule for using gerunds and infinitives instead of memorizing the verbs?
I mean when to use gerund or infinitive just by looking at the sentence.
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votes
2
answers
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I have no choice but verb(to / -ing or none)
Which one is correct?
I have no choice but to kill you.
I have no choice but killing you.
I have no choice but kill you.
or do they have different meanings?
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1
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"To do this" or "For doing this" to start explaining something?
Many questions have been asked and answered about "to + bare infinitive" vs "for + gerund" in the middle of a sentence.
However, when one wants to start explaining something, what is better? For ...
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1
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Difference between 'try to do' and 'try doing'
What is the difference between 'try to do' and 'try doing'?
My textbook says, that if you want to make suggestion, you must say 'try + doing':
A: Fred isn't answering his phone. What shall I do?
...
user102731
12
votes
3
answers
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views
'Thank you for taking your time writing' or 'Thank you for taking your time to write' ?
A person gave me an answer on English.SE and I commented:
Thank you for taking your time writing this wonderful answer!
Now, looking at the sentence in retrospect, even though I am not a native ...
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votes
1
answer
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What are the differences between "sorry to keep you waiting" and "sorry for keeping you waiting."?
What are the differences between "sorry to keep you waiting" and "sorry for keeping you waiting"?
It seems that a lot of native speakers do not distinguish "sorry to do" and "sorry for doing".
But ...
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6
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1
answer
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What's the difference between "continues doing" and "continues to do"?
I realized I don't really know. I've just been using them interchangeably.
If I were to guess, perhaps "continues doing" hints a bit more at a continuous process (continues hitting him for ten ...
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votes
1
answer
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'verb-ing' or 'to verb' after the verb 'continue'?
Which form of the verb is correct after the verb "continue"?
If police didn't arrest him, he would continue robbing.
If police didn't arrest him, he would continue to rob.
(These sentences are ...
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votes
1
answer
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"Used to" vs "Use to"
Is use to incorrect because we use present tense if we talk present habit?
What is the difference between the two sentences below?
I am used to GETTING up late in the morning.
I am used to GET up ...
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votes
2
answers
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Expressing a purpose with for + gerund?
The question is simple but I would like to understand the principle governing the choice of prepositions in the following examples.
I know it is not correct to say, for example
1) *I have come here ...
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votes
1
answer
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"to be" vs. "being" after adjective (and why)
Which sentence is correct, and why?
1) It's awesome being by the water.
2) It's awesome to be by the water.
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What's the diffence between "I want you to go to sleep" and "I want you going to sleep"
Are the following two sentences correct?
I want you to go to sleep.
and
I want you going to sleep.
If they are both correct, what's the difference?
roast_soul
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votes
2
answers
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he was seen *to break* the window
We have a situation: someone saw the boy break the window. Can I make this passive sentence?
The boy was seen to break the window.
I use Murphy's Grammar and this structure is never discussed.
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votes
2
answers
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Help understanding when to use an infinitive in this excercise
I was taking an English test and I haven't know which sentence is wrong. could you help me out?
a) The telephone is ringing. I will go to answer it.
b) I feel like going dancing tonight. Would you ...
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"approach to address" or "approach to addressing"?
Depending on our point of view, we offer different approaches to address(ing?) a same issue.
Should I use —ing in this context, and if yes, why?
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3
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"I want you succeeding" vs. "I want your succeeding"
I am happy seeing you succeed.
I am happy to see you succeed.
I want you to succeed.
I want you succeeding.
I want your succeeding.
Could you please explain the differences between them, and the ...
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votes
2
answers
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I like knowing / to know things in advance
There is a very small difference in meaning between the two forms. The -ing form emphasises the action or experience. The to-infinitive gives more emphasis to the results of the action or event. We ...
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vote
1
answer
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What is the difference between "to meet you" and "to meeting you"? [duplicate]
Why the below one is correct?
I look forward to meeting you.
And why this one is wrong?
I look forward to meet you.
I generally do these mistakes in letter writing.
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1
vote
3
answers
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Can we use "to be stripped" instead of "being stripped" in this sentence?
The warning from the European commission could lead to that country being stripped of its European rights.
(As far as l know we must use infinitive after nouns )
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1
answer
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"Let’s start speaking" or "Let’s start to speak"
Which one is correct and more common? is there better way?
Let’s start speaking English.
Let’s start to speak English.
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answer
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Can I replace "to fish" with "fishing" in the sentence "Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime"?
Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to
fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.
Would you tell me whether I can replace "to fish" with "fishing"?
Give a man a fish, and you ...
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votes
1
answer
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To infinitive as a subject [duplicate]
The following is taken from this book titled "Thoughtful Interaction Design: A Design Perspective on Information Technology" (Published in 2004):
An independent artist is probably the one who lives ...
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4
votes
2
answers
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Which is correct, "go to swim", "go to swimming", or "go swimming"? What are the differences?
I want to go to swim.
I want to go swimming.
I want to go to swimming.
I wonder which one is correct and how to tell the difference between them.
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votes
1
answer
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All they do is 'get/getting' groceries
This is going to be silly but I know some people who don't really leave the house for anything but groceries. It's impossible to hang out with them because they just sit around at home and the only ...
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1
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This period saw them ACCEPT expensive projects and SIGN an agreement
This authoritarian period saw the Maldives accept highly expensive infrastructure projects as part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative and even sign a free trade agreement with Beijing.
Is the above ...
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4
answers
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meaning of "make-up" (besides to compensate)
More accurately I'm asking about made up. Can it be used in the same way as ended up?
She made up looking wonderful after going to the hairdresser
Now I know it's kinda weird. There are simpler ...
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2
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like/love + to infinitive for habits and choices - shades in meaning
I have come across the following sentence (no context, the rubric of the task is to fill in the gaps with the words in capital letters, making all the necessary changes) in Macmillan Exam Skills for ...
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1
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When do we use keep + to inf and keep + ing?
When do we use keep + to inf and keep + ing?
I searched on the internet and did not find anything really accurate and precise on the topic.
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1
answer
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What does it mean + to-infinitive / gerund
I always come across with this form "What does it mean+ to-infinitive" . But I don't understand why we use to-infinitive instead of gerund after mean. As far as I know, mean + to-infinitive means "...
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1
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Is this grammatically correct - "I miss to swim"
I read this article and here it is mentioned that "I miss to swim" is grammatically incorrect. However, I do not see any issue with it.
Could some language expert please clarify.
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1
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"It means" + "to [infinitive]" or "[gerund]"?
In a sentence "Something means X", where X is a verb (i.e. an action), should I use the gerund or the form "to + infinitive"? Is there a difference between them?
Example:
Helping your mom means to ...
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vote
1
answer
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try + gerund/infinitive [duplicate]
Entrepreneurs try to delay taking money from investors as long as possible.
Entrepreneurs try delaying taking money from investors as long as possible.
Assuming (2) is correct, is there any ...
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vote
1
answer
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Can I use an infinitive with the verb 'recommend'?
According to this source the verb 'recommend' can be used only with a gerund, but I've found some examples with an infinitive:
1) We recommend you to update your browser
2) We recommend you to ...
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2
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Could you please explain how to use "preposition+ gerund" in a sentence?
I came across a sentence
With a view to creating a safe and secure environment for women an armed battalion of women police has been formed in Bihar.
Shall I write it as
With a view to create a ...
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Gerund vs Infinitive Form
I learnt that after a preposition, the rule is that the gerund form of the verb is used (instead of the infinitive form), as in "Thank you for coming".
In this sentence:
They joined forces to fight ...
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1
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What is the difference between 'want camping' and 'I want to camp'?
I want to learn the difference between 'I want camping' and 'I want to camp'.
Please, somebody tell me the difference~
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"Make easy" vs. "Make it easy"
I need to know which of these options is the correct one and why:
The Spanish cooking makes it easy to have a nice meal.
The Spanish cooking makes easy to have a nice meal.
I don't know if I need ...
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