Questions tagged [infinitives]
The infinitive is the base verb form, conveying no information about person, number, mood or tense.
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Do we follow “is” with a gerund or infinite?
Do we follow "is" with a gerund or infinite? For instance, should I say
"Our goal is to eliminate distractions?"
or
"Our goal is eliminating distractions?"
Thank you
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Helps plus infinitive or gerund
This equipment helps improving people's lives.
This equipment helps to improve people's lives.
Which one is correct?
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2answers
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a great technique to keep in mind
a. This is a great technique to keep in mind when arguing with narcissistic people.
Is that sentence slightly ambiguous?
Is it a great technique per se which is to be used when you are arguing with ...
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Infinitive usage with tense
Does infinitive conveys meaning according to the tenses
it will be the one of the causes for the transaction to fail.
it was the one of the causes for the transaction to fail.
Are those ...
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2answers
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I didn't go to sleep though I wanted to
If I want to say
I didn't go to sleep but I wanted to go
can I say
I didn't go to sleep but I wanted to (go) ?
I heard we had to still write this "to" showing that "wanted" was followed by a verb, ...
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2answers
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Why did he use “looking” word in this situation?
I was watching Sky news live and the journalist said:
"And now, it's time for looking the weather".
I would have said:
"And now, it's time for look the weather".
Using look in infinitive form.
...
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3answers
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“To <verb> a <noun>”
To kill a Mockingbird.
To catch a thief.
To catch a cheater.
Why is "to" used in this examples what does this phrases mean? I am unable to interpret any of these phrases.
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3answers
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Is the Infinitive Mood an actual Mood?
Some English help websites don't even mention it when they explain Moods. Grammar-Monster.com, for example, has it down as "the infinitive form of a verb" on a completely different page and does not ...
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1answer
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Using not to <verb> or to not <verb> [duplicate]
Which of these is the correct one, or are both correct?
I moved slowly, to not wake my parents. - Intended meaning
I moved slowly, not to wake
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1answer
38 views
whether + infinitive
I am not sure how the construction "whether + [infinitive verb]" is used. Examples:
I don't know whether to turn left or right. (= I don't know if I turn left or right ?)
I don't know whether to turn ...
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4answers
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Why is “I let him to sleep” incorrect (or is it)?
I am trying to explain to someone why the sentence "I let him to sleep" is wrong, but I fail to come up with a good explanation other than "it's wrong". And now I am even doubting myself. Is this ...
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1answer
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Putting to+infinitive at the beginning
My question is about the place of to+infinitive in some sentences.
For example,
1- Before I went on holiday for a week, I was really eager to study at mathematics.
I know this is correct.
How ...
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2answers
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Is “to infinitive” a myth?
Let us observe the following examples
I want to speak to you
I am looking forward to seeing you
I am interested to learn English
In the sentence 1 we say "to speak” is a to infinitive and to as a ...
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1answer
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Difference between “going to” and “not going to”
I wonder what is the difference between going to and not going to in the following sentences:
We're going to play football in my garden.
you're not going to play football in my garden.
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1answer
35 views
All I did today was hang around the house and watch TV
I saw this sentence yesterday and wonder why it uses the bare infinitive (hang/watch) instead of the to-infinitive (to hang/to watch).
All I did today was hang around the house and watch TV.
Any ...
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1answer
29 views
Can the structure “somebody doing” replace a clause?
Consider the situation. A soldier returns home safe and sound from war. And his mother says
It is such a blessing for him to come back safe!
It is grammatically correct to change this to
Him ...
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1answer
26 views
Right way to express a thought
I want to express that I would like to write a book before I turn 40.
I want to know which among the below listed is best way to express this thought and which among them are grammatically incorrect....
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1answer
23 views
When we should add “to” before verb?
I am a beginner in English. I read this sentence in an example: "If you work at a job you enjoy, you will probably do your job better than if you work at a job only to earn money.". Why do we use "to ...
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2answers
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using several to-infinitive subsequently
Can we say: "I want to learn to drive my car to go to my workplace to earn money"? Is it appropriate to use several infinitive with to subsequently?
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1answer
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find/discover + object + to infinitive / past participle
Examples from Quirk:
1. They found him worn out by travel and exertion.
2. They discovered him worn out by travel and exertion.
My remade sentences with "to be":
1a. They found him to be worn out ...
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1answer
33 views
“see someone doing something” or “see someone to do something”?
Tell me please what is the difference between the following sentences.
I saw him doing his homework.
I saw him to do his homework.
Not so long ago, I would have thought that the second ...
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votes
1answer
39 views
be better to do/ be better doing/
1- l'll get engaged like all the others. Get married. Maybe it's
better doing things the way everyone does. (original)
2- l'll get engaged like all the others. Get married. Maybe it's
better ...
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27 views
To complete or to be completed?
It took so long years to complete
It took so long years to be completed
Which is right? Both are okay?
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2answers
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To: complement or telling the purpose
This research contributes to filling a considerable gap in academic literature dissertating on the application of CSR(corporate social responsibility) policies to address negative publicity.
Does "to ...
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1answer
28 views
Negation after the to-infinitive
Do the following sentences mean the same?
He seems to have not eaten for ages.
He does not seem to have eaten for ages.
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2answers
38 views
Meaning of the sentence which begins with a verb in infinitive form
I cannot understand the following sentence because of its grammar.
To borrow a phrase from the old Star Treck series, the "prime directive" of the limbic brain is to ensure our survival as a ...
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2answers
37 views
Can the subject of an infinitive be omitted in passive voice?
The technicians were fired to reduce costs.
I have a doubt about whether this sentence is grammatically correct or not and whether I must add "for a noun" so as to make it clear what was to reduce ...
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2answers
35 views
to infinitive vs happen + to infinitive difference
Is there any difference between the following sentences, respectively?
“It so happens that today is my birthday.” -- Today is my birthday.
“I happen to have exactly what you need.” -- I have ...
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votes
3answers
208 views
“I am safe” vs. “He is safe”
(A) I am safe.
(B) He is safe.
How do I distinguish the meanings above in sentences with the verb "to report"? For example:
"I reported him to be safe."
Who is safe?
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1answer
48 views
have had problem
Police claimed to have had sent the file.
As have-had is used to connect past with present then how this sentence make any sense??
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1answer
29 views
“For + him/her/them + was + to+infinitive” vs “ was + for him/her/them to + infinitive”
The following sentence is from a book. [1]
Her dying wish was for him to hike the Ap. trail.
Why didn't the author write it as:
Her dying wish for him was to hike the Ap. trail.
Is there any ...
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2answers
57 views
Infinitive as adverbial modifier of purpose
I read this sentence in the Barron's practice exercises book (you should choose the incorrect usage):
The understanding (a) electricity (b) depends (c) on a knowledge of atoms and the subatomic ...
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1answer
39 views
Used to vs would structural difference
I have a doubt on the following question.
1) I ______________ want to be a practising doctor but now I'm more interested in research.
Options:
A. was used to
B. used to
c. would
I was ...
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Can {this/that/it} refer to “infinitive or gerund” when it is the object of “do”?
For example:
I just thought it would be very hard for her to move the desk on her own, so I did {that/it} for her.
("that/it" is referring to "to move the desk")
To me, moving the ...
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0answers
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Why “being stripped” was used in this example ? Why not “to be stripped”? [duplicate]
The warning from the European commission could lead to that country being stripped of its European rights.
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3answers
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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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1answer
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'Bare Infinitive' or 'to infinitive'?
I happened to come across a sentence in a school textbook as follows:
" All you need to do is keep that passion burning in you and never give up."
Why is the bare infinitive form "keep" used here?
...
2
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1answer
27 views
Voice in infinitive phrases?
I am confused by the voices used in these two sentences:
While there's a conceptual proposal on the table for a new Appleton
Public Library in a mixed-use development, there are still plenty ...
2
votes
1answer
46 views
It's kind of/for you to help me with this
Usually, we use the structure "for...to..." to indicate an infinitive with its own subject.
Anna will be happy for the children to help you. (The children will help you.)
My idea was for her ...
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1answer
37 views
Can “to-infinitive phrase” be used non-restrictively modifying its preceding noun?
for example,
My father, to die of lung cancer in 1992, was a good husband to my mother.
My father to die of lung caner in 1992 was a good husband to my mother.
(The situation is that I'm ...
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1answer
32 views
Pronoun object needed or not?
In this sentence:
She has too many students in the class to give them individual attention.
I wonder if the object 'them' is necessary to be inserted in the sentence as 'them' refers to 'many ...
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1answer
42 views
Can “was to do” denote “the result of the past situation”?
I've never come across "was to do" that is used to mean "the result of the past situation" as in
The football team was to win the trophy, defeating the opponent by
1-0 (meaning "the football ...
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0answers
25 views
A problem regarding infinitives
I was doing an exercise and I had to join two sentences using an infinitive.
The pair of sentences was--
I have no aptitude for business. I must speak it out frankly.
The answer was--
To speak ...
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1answer
58 views
Identifying the infinitive
I was doing an exercise and I had to find the infinitive and also its type.
And fools who came to scoff remained to pray.
I think here there are 2 infinitives to scoff and to pray.
But the answer ...
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1answer
45 views
I have never heard him to say it
I have never heard him to say it
Now, I realize that the "to" is not supposed to be there. But why? Grammatically "say" in this sentence is an infinitive. Or it is pretending to be one. I am using ...
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3answers
718 views
“… to apply for a visa” or “… and applied for a visa”?
Here are two sentences:
Once he got the passport, he went to the Chinese consulate in Toronto and applied for a visa.
Once he got the passport, he went to the Chinese consulate in Toronto to ...
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1answer
104 views
Can an infinitive phrase serve as an object complement noun?
Please help me understand. Can an infinitive phrase function as an object complement noun?
I.e. The teacher told her student to stop complaining.
What is the function of the words ‘her student to ...
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1answer
46 views
“I want to use my energy TO READ or FOR READING?”
Which of these sentences is correct?
1) I want to use my energy to read.
2) I want to use my energy for reading.
Thank you very much! Gerunds and infinitives confuse me.
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1answer
38 views
to infinitive : result or purpose?
He met Luis Suarez's cross at the far post, only for Chelsea keeper
Petr Cech to show brilliant reflexes to deflect his header on to the
bar. Carroll turned away to lead Liverpool's insistent ...
0
votes
1answer
11 views
To do it will be hard
I can say the sentence:
It will be hard to do it
But can I say it so?
To do it will be hard
