Gerund or infinitive (havo 3)

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• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 3

Gerund or infinitive

Gerund or Infinitive?

You can use a verb as a noun in English and there are two ways of doing that: gerund (verb+ing) or infinitive (to + whole verb)

Gerund (verb+ing)

•  If it is the subject of object of the sentence:
  Smoking is bad for you. (subject) I think smoking is bad. (object)
• After prepositions:
  She's proud of winning the competition.
• After some expressions (don't mind/it's worth/it's no use/look forward to /used to:
  It's worth trying to remove the stain.

Gerund or Infinitive

Like, hate, enjoy, love, remember, prefer, start, continue, keep, begin, stop.

Gerund (verb+ing) when it is something you often do (or just stopped doing).

I love working in the pet shop. I've been working there for years. (often)

I loved working in the pet shop. It was great when it lasted. (you stopped, but you did it often in the past.

Infinitive when it's a general statement:

I love to work in a pet shop. (not something you are doing, more a general statement)

Infinitive (to + verb)

In all other cases you will use the infinitive:

I want to watch TV right now.

I promise to do my homework for tomorrow.

He failed to see what he did wrong.

I need to talk to you soon.

!Exception!

Remember can be used in both ways, but the meaning changes:

I remember calling him about his injury. (talk about the past)

I must remember to call him about the injury. (talk about the future)

Noa's parents don't mind … (pay) his mobile phone charges.

My mom stopped … (download) the films, because the computer almost crashed.

Can you please remember … (record) that film for me?

I look forward to … (hear) from you soon.

It's a good idea … (take) notes while you are reading a book if you have a written exam about it.