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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Looking forward to see you vs Looking forward to seeing you?
When learning grammar in school, I was taught that any verb after the word "to" should be in present tense and no participles.
i.e. To play instead of to playing, or to sleep instead of to sleeping ...
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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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'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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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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Looking forward to talk to you or looking forward to talking to you. Which is correct?
I always use Looking forward to talk to you. But I kind of have the feeling it is not correct.
Which of the following is the correct way to use?
Looking forward to talk to you
or
Looking ...
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6
answers
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Why does this sentence use "to writing" instead of "to write"?
This is a quote by Hemingway.
Don't get discouraged because there’s a lot of mechanical work to writing.
Should not the sentence be the following one?
Don't get discouraged because there’s a lot of ...
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1
answer
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"get used to cycle" or "get used to cycling"
I tried to pass an exam at www.newschool.co.uk site.
One of the questions was to choose correct variant among phrases:
A: I just can’t get used to cycle on the left-hand side of the road!
B: I just ...
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5
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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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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 ...
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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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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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2
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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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1
answer
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Is it correct to say "She taught me drawing" and "She taught me to draw"?
When "teach" means to give lessons, we say "teach somebody something", for example, “He teaches them English”.
However, when “teach” means to show people how to do something, we ...
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1
answer
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What is difference between 'to publish' and 'publishing'?
Apart from a small chain of retail outlets, __________ non-fiction is the source of Baxter Books' revenues.
a. publisher
b. publishes
c. publishing
d. to publish
The answer is 'c'. Why not 'd'? ...
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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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4
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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
7
votes
2
answers
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views
Difference between late getting back and late to get back
I have a question about the following sentence -
"I'm sorry I was so late getting back to you."
Is it possible to say that -
"I'm sorry I was so late to get back to you."
About the first ...
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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
3
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have or having after preposition with two objects
I'm doubtful whether to use the gerund form or the base form of have in the following sentence:
He's afraid of being debunked in public and have/having his reputation ruined.
I would choose having ...
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to afford *doing* something
1) They can't afford to go out very often.
2) They can't afford going out very often.
A native speaker has said that the second usage can be heard in a colloquial speech, but it is incorrect. Is ...
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votes
2
answers
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Using past continuous to refer to past habits with adverbials of frequency?
Can we use past continuous tense to refer a past habit with adverbs of frequency words? For example:
He was going for a morning walk every day.
What is the difference between these two phrases?
...
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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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2
answers
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to+infinitive vs. for+ing to express purpose [duplicate]
Is it correct to use either "to+infinitive" or "for+ing" in sentences like the following:
He has all the tools to become/for becoming a great actor.
I think "for +ing" sounds better in these types ...
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it ~ to vs it ~ ing
When I first learned English, I was taught to use only "it ~ to" form as opposed to "it ~ ing" form, so I always thought the latter one is not grammatical.
But I heard a lot of native speakers ...
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2
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sway to or sway into
Can I use the 2nd sentence instead of the first one:
I was swayed by her rhetoric into donating all my savings to the charity.
I was swayed by her rhetoric to donate all my saving to the charity
5
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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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prefer doing vs prefer to do
Just saw this: "prefer ~ing" / "prefer to infinitive"
and I am wondering if there are any differences between "prefer doing" and "prefer to do".
I have read a book about grammar ...
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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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views
Chicken out followed by an infinitive
Is it possible to use "infinitive" after chicken out?
She chickened out to go there by herself.
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2
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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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Why is it v-ing after looking forward to?
I took an English grammar test and one question was:
Chen's looking forward ... his new job next week.
There were four choices: to starting / to start / starting / in starting.
My answer was "to ...
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1
answer
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Which one is correct. I oppose to taking a drug or I'm opposed to taking a drug?
Which is the correct sentence?
1)I oppose to taking a drug.
2)I'm opposed to taking a drug.
I have a problem in understanding the 2nd one.
"I'm opposed" makes sense when there is another subject ...
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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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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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To have or having(Infinitive Or Gerund) [duplicate]
She likes ________(to have/having) the birds is as an expensive hobby.
What should we use here ? Infinitive or Gerund? Why?
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"Hearing this makes me sad." vs "To hear this makes me sad."
I hope you see the intended meaning of both of those sentences.(I dont actually know if both of these are valid, I just made them up)
I know gerunds assume the role of a noun but would you really ...
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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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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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Is there a particular reason to use the -ing form of "ending" in this sentence?
Abolishing debt-based currency isn’t a new idea, but it could hold the
secret to ending our economies’ environmentally damaging addiction to
growth
Is "ing" used in order to make "ending" a noun? ...
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When to use "-ing"?
I'm preparing an answer to an email and struggle with this phrase:
I appreciate the opportunity to join your team
It sounds correct to me, but I've got the feeling that this might be even better:
...
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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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meaning of a sentence which formed with to-infinitive or gerund
I saw a whole lot of feet and shoes beginning to enter the room.
Do this sentence mean a lot of feet and shoes not yet enter the room, and will enter the room or are ready to enter the room?
Could ...
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How to use "Having to + VERB"
I know "have to" expresses 'obligations to do something' and I know how to use it in the sentences. For example:
People have to leave their rural areas.
But I have seen ‘having to’ being used as ...
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Active verbs with passive meaning when followed by 'gerund' or 'to-infinitive'
One of my friends told me that some verbs have passive meanings when they are followed by a gerund, and they have both active and passive meanings when they are followed by to-infinitive. I asked him ...
user17969
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3
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"He was too busy to work at a factory" - Is this sentence correct in grammar?
I know this sentence is correct.He was too busy working at a factory.
but I wonder whether this sentence is correct and natural. (specially in grammar)
He was too busy to work at a factory.
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"Don't go breaking my heart" versus "Don't go break my heart"
What is the difference between:
Don't go breaking my heart
and
Don't go break my heart
I can only think "breaking" to me might be speaking to a pattern of behavior - and so the ongoing ...
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2
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"Spending more time TRYING....." and "Spending more time TO TRY....."
Is there any difference in meaning between "Spending more time trying to....." and "Spending more time to try to....."?
Below is the headline of an online news article I just read ...
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"For example" and "such as"
when we use "for example" or "such as" in writing, do we have to use a specific tense?
All websites talk about the punctuation,but want to know about the suitable tense or grammar.
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"I did my best to do something" or "I did my best doing something"?
I wonder which case the gerund or infinitive is (more) appropriate here: "I did my best to do something" or "I did my best doing something"?
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The difference between "go to shop" and " go shopping"
I've been stuck thinking this for a while. Would anyone explain me the difference between "go to shop" and "go shopping".
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