Gerunds and Infinitives - Ejemplos y ejercicios

Introducción

In this lesson you will practise the use of gerunds (verb + -ing) and infinitives (to + verb) after verbs, adjectives and prepositions. There is no single rule that covers every verb, so the best strategy is to learn the main groups and to check the meaning when a verb accepts both forms.

Explicación

Remember the main groups:

• Verb + gerund: enjoy, finish, avoid, mind, suggest, deny, admit, consider, imagine, miss, risk, keep, postpone, give up, carry on, feel like, can't help, can't stand, look forward to. Example: "She avoids driving at night."
• Verb + to-infinitive: want, hope, decide, plan, agree, refuse, offer, promise, manage, afford, learn, pretend, seem, fail, arrange. Example: "They agreed to help us."
• Verb + object + to-infinitive: tell, ask, advise, allow, encourage, force, remind, warn, invite. Example: "My teacher advised me to read more."
• Preposition + gerund (always): "She is good at drawing." "He left without paying." Be careful with look forward to, be used to, get used to: here to is a preposition, so it is followed by -ing: "I'm looking forward to seeing you."
• Make and let + object + base form (no to): "My parents let me go to the concert." "The film made me cry."

Verbs that change meaning:

• remember / forget + -ing = a memory of something that already happened; remember / forget + to = something you have to do.
• stop + -ing = quit an activity; stop + to = stop one thing in order to do another.
• try + -ing = do something as an experiment; try + to = make an effort, often without success.
• regret + -ing = feel sorry about a past action; regret + to = formal way of giving bad news.

Ejemplo

Example 1. Choose the correct form: "I can't afford ___ (buy) a new laptop."

• Step 1: identify the verb before the gap: afford.
• Step 2: afford belongs to the group verb + to-infinitive.
• Answer: "I can't afford to buy a new laptop."

Example 2. "Would you mind ___ (close) the door?"

Mind is followed by the gerund: "Would you mind closing the door?"

Example 3. Same verb, different meaning.

• "He stopped eating sweets last year." = he no longer eats sweets.
• "He stopped to eat a sandwich." = he stopped what he was doing in order to eat.
• "I remember meeting her in 2020." = I have a memory of it.
• "Remember to send the email." = don't forget to do it.

Example 4. Find and correct the mistake: "I'm used to get up early."

Be used to ends in the preposition to, so it needs a gerund: "I'm used to getting up early."

Example 5. Rewrite: "Let's go to the beach," said Anna. (suggested)

Suggest is followed by the gerund (or by a that-clause), never by an object + infinitive: "Anna suggested going to the beach." NOT "Anna suggested us to go".

Example 6. Gerund as the subject of a sentence.

When an action is the subject, we normally use the gerund: "Swimming is good for your back." "Learning a language takes time." The infinitive is possible but sounds formal: "To err is human."

Example 7. Adjective + to-infinitive.

Many adjectives are followed by the infinitive: "It is difficult to understand this text." "I was happy to hear the news." "She is ready to start." But if the adjective is followed by a preposition, we use -ing: "I'm interested in studying medicine." "He is afraid of flying."

Example 8. Complete the text.

"Last year I decided ___ (join) a gym. At first I hated ___ (get up) early, but I kept ___ (go) and now I can't imagine ___ (live) without exercise. My friends have asked me ___ (help) them start too."

• decided + infinitive → to join
• hated accepts both forms with little difference → getting up / to get up
• kept + gerund → going
• imagine + gerund → living
• asked + object + infinitive → to help

Learning tip: make your own list with three columns (verb + -ing, verb + to, both) and add a personal example sentence for every verb. Sentences about your own life are much easier to remember than lists of verbs.

Ejercicios