Gerunds and Infinitives

Gerunds
- a gerund is the “-ing” form of a verb

- unlike present participles, which are used to form tenses or they function like adjectives,
gerunds have other functions in a sentence:
 because they can act like nouns, gerunds can be the subject of a sentence:
Swimming is my favourite sport.
Eating fruit gives you a lot of energy.
!!! We should be able to make the difference between gerunds and present participles.
Here are some examples of the latter:
I am drinking tea.
Singing in the shower, I forget the cake in the oven. (I was singing)
That crying baby is getting on my nerves!
 gerunds can also act as a subject complement (here, the term “complement”
refers to something which completes the clause), after the verb “be”:
John’s hobby is playing tennis.
The best thing in life is spending time with loved ones.
 Gerunds can also function like objects (complemente) of :
1. prepositions: After walking in the rain, she caught a cold.

He tries to improve his English by reading a lot of books.
2. verbs or phrasal verbs: I recommend reading this book.

I look forward to meeting you.
- examples of phrasal verbs: give up, put off, go on, keep on etc.
1
! There are verbs which can only be followed by gerunds: admit (to) (= a admite, a recunoaste)-
He finally admitted (to) cheating on the exam. , avoid, complete, consider (= a lua in
considerare, a se gandi sa)- She never considered going to England. , suggest, mind, delay (= a
intarzia, a amana)- We delayed moving to our new house, deny (= a nega), dislike, don’t mind,
can’t help (= a nu se putea abtine), enjoy, imagine- Can you imagine yourself living here?, keep-
They keep insisting on this idea!, mind- Do you mind turning the lights off?, practise- He
practises playing the guitar daily., suggest- I suggest not taking him too seriously.
 For certain verbs, gerunds can act as object complements (verb + somebody +
vb-ing):
My mother noticed the baby walking by himself.
She caught them napping.
I can’t imagine John riding a motorbike.
 Gerunds can also form compound nouns: running shoes, helping hand, washing
machine
!!! We should be able to make the difference between gerunds and present participles. Present
participles function like adjectives and they imply action:
That crying baby is getting on my nerves! (The baby was crying.)

The speeding car crashed into the tree. (The car was speeding.)
2
Infinitives
- infinitives are the basic form of the verbs; they can be short (read) or long (to read)
- they can function like nouns, adjectives (in adjective clauses) or adverbs
- to make the negative form of an infinitive, we should normally place the word “not”
before the infinitive (She said not to answer the phone). Sometimes, we put “not” after
“to” to put greater emphasis (She said to not answer the phone.)
- because infinitives can function like nouns, they can be:
 subjects: To study guitar with the best teacher was his ultimate dream.
To live in the city sometimes means wasting a lot of energy.
 Subject complements (predicate nouns), after the verb “be”:

All I want is to be happy.
 objects (*direct objects: Please, be quiet; I’m trying to study!/ Let me know if you decide
to leave early/ He demanded to talk to the manager/He promised to buy her a diamond
ring.) – the last two examples are examples of infinitives function like objects in
reported speech
*as object complements- certain verbs do not make sense with only a direct
object, especially when that direct object is a person:
I don’t expect you to approve of my decision.
I would like him to come to the party.
We need them to make the project.
He asked Mary to do the exercise.
 infinitives as adjectives, in adjective clauses:

This is a good place to rest.
Find a friend to help you study.
 infinitives as adverbs (in this case, they modify the verb)

I started running to improve my health.
3
! Here are some verbs/expressions which can only be followed by infinitives: want, expect, ask,
help, agree, arrange, begin, choose, claim, continue, decide, demand, expect, fail, forget,
happen, hate, hesitate, hope, need, neglect, offer, plan, promise, refuse regret, try, wait, wish,
would like, would prefer, can’t stand (= a nu suporta)
Gerunds vs. Infinitives
- certain verbs can take either gerunds or infinitives as direct objects; there are cases
when :
1. verbs can accept both gerunds or infinitives, with no difference in meaning (with
verbs such as: like, love, hate, prefer):
I like swimming.
I like to swim.
2. Verbs can accept both gerunds or infinitives, but the meaning changes (remember,
forget, try, stop):
I remembered to close the window. (Mi-am amintit sa inchid fereastra.)
I remember closing the window. (Imi amintesc ca am inchis fereastra.)

Gerunds and Infinitives

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Gerunds

- a gerund is the “-ing” form of a verb

 Gerunds can also function like objects (complemente) of :

1. prepositions: After walking in the rain, she caught a cold.

2. verbs or phrasal verbs: I recommend reading this book.

That crying baby is getting on my nerves! (The baby was crying.)

 Subject complements (predicate nouns), after the verb “be”:

 infinitives as adjectives, in adjective clauses:

 infinitives as adverbs (in this case, they modify the verb)

Gerunds vs. Infinitives

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