When to Use Gerunds and Infinitives:

How do you know when to use an infinitive and when to use a gerund? some simple rules are sure to help! Let’s
start with explaining what infinitives and gerunds are.

Gerunds are actually verb forms used as nouns formed by adding “-ing” to the verb: “sleeping,”
“drawing,” “swimming.”

You may say:

“I enjoy drawing.”

You may also say:

“Yesterday, I decided to draw.”

Both sentences are correct, but one has an infinitive as the object and the other has a gerund as the object.

Rule 1: Infinitives should be used after adjectives.

Here are three sample sentences that will help to illustrate this rule:

It is not easy to graduate from university.

It is necessary to speak English to work in a hotel.
It is wonderful to have close friends.

Using gerunds here would be incorrect.

But remember! If you want to make that object into a subject , a gerund should be used:

Graduating from university is not easy.

Speaking English is necessary to work in a hotel.
Having close friends is wonderful.

How else do you know if an adjective should be followed by an infinitive? The construct “too +
[adjective]” is another way to tell!
For example:
This dress is too big to wear.
This car is too expensive to buy.
And the same is true about “[adjective] + enough”:
My child is not tall enough to ride this rollercoaster.
The course was detailed enough to widen his knowledge base.
This rule is useful enough to understand the usage of infinitives!

Rule 2: Only infinitives are used after indirect object referring to a person.
“We asked her not to go.
In this sentence, “we” is the subject, “asked” is the verb and “her” is the objective form of the pronoun
“she.” You must use an infinitive (“to go”), never a gerund, after indirect object referring to people.
To remember this rule, Start with these examples. The objects (nouns and pronouns) are underlined.
 Notice how the underlined objects are all followed by infinitives.

 ask: Can I ask you to help me with something?

 expect: I never expected him to become famous.
 hire (give a job to someone): Did the company hire you just to sit in your office?
 invite: I invited a friend to attend the ceremony.
 order: She ordered the child to stay at home.
 remind: Please remind me to wash the dishes.
 require: The test required him to concentrate fully.
 teach: That will teach you to follow the rules!
 tell: Who told you to come here?
 urge: They urged me to continue my research.
 warn: I am warning you not to do this!

Rule 3: Only gerunds are used after prepositions (with one exception).

Consider this sentence:

I talked him out of taking that job.

Here, the gerund “taking” follows the preposition “of.”

In the examples below, the prepositions are underlined, followed by the gerunds in bold.

I am wary of going alone.

My mom is scared of flying.
Novels about growing up are popular among teenagers.
I have an interest in becoming a painter.
I forgive you for not telling the truth.
She is thinking about trying martial arts.
He looks forward to meeting his cousins.

The exception

“But” is a short word that connects two clauses of a sentence together. It is called a conjunction.
Sometimes, “but” can also play a role of a preposition. When “but” is used as a preposition, it is the same
in meaning as “except.”

If “but” or “except” are used like this, they need to be followed by an infinitive:

I had no choice but to follow her. (I had to follow her.)

Mary made no stops on the way except to get gas. (Mary only stopped to get gas.)
There is nothing left for me to do but to collect my money and go.
(I only have to collect my money and go.)

You may not see “but” and “except” used this way often. Just follow the rule of gerunds after
prepositions, and you will get it right all the time!
Gerunds and infinitives may be confusing, It is very useful to study them and practice using
them correctly. The more you notice gerunds and infinitives in your study of the English
language, the easier it will get!

Practicing is how you become more fluent. It is important to practice.

1. 1. Alan can’t stand _________ on trains. (riding/ to ride)

2. Mr. Harris enjoys _________ people out to dinner. (inviting / to invite)

3. In the old days, gentlemen challenged their rivals _______. (fighting / to fight)

4. As the famous saying goes, there’s no use ______ over spilt milk. (crying / to cry)

5. Jim stopped _________ his shoelace. Wait for him. (tying / to tie)

6. My wife always volunteers ___________ cakes PTA meetings. (baking / to bake)

7. Don’t waste my time ___________ about your salary. (complaining/ to complain)

8. Eva is having trouble _________ on the exam. (concentrating / to concentrate)

9. Please allow me ____________ your Facebook page. (joining / to join)

10. You won’t forget _________milk on your way home, will you? (picking up /to pick up)

11.I often go (dance) ___ on a Saturday night.

12. When I finish (write) ___ this letter, I'll come and help you.

13. I am planning (buy) ___ a new laptop soon.

14. I need (sleep) ___ at least eight hours a night.

15. I want (move) ___ to London next year.

16. Would you consider (give) ___ the speech at our anniversary party?

17. She avoids (walk) ___ in the rain.

18. Emily promised (eat) ___ all her vegetables.

19. I don't mind (call) ___ them if you don't want to.

20. You need to practise (listen) ___.

21. Did anyone volunteer (work) ___ on Saturday?

22. He refuses (talk) ___ to me.

23. I enjoy (watch) ___ romantic movies.

24. We can't afford (rent) ___ this flat anymore.

25. I managed (get) ___ there on time.

 Answers:

1. riding
2. inviting
3. to fight
4. crying
5. to tie
6. to bake
7. complaining
8. concentrating
9. to join
10. to pick up

Here are a few examples of verbs that need to be followed by an infinitive:

 agree: I agreed to go to a party with my friend.

 decide: The president decided not to participate in the discussions.
 deserve: Everyone deserves to be respected.
 expect: I expect to know my exam grade by tomorrow.
 hope: We were hoping to avoid traffic by leaving early.
 learn: He learned not to trust anyone.
 need: She needs to learn how to cook.
 offer: I offered to help my brother with homework.
 plan: We are planning to watch a movie tonight.
 promise: My friend promised to find the time to help me move.
 seem: We seem to be lost.
 wait: I cannot wait to see my family.
 want: I don’t want to go to bed yet.

There are lots of verbs that require an infinitive after. You will learn them naturally, as you progress in
your English studies.

And here are a few examples of verbs that need to be followed by a gerund:
 admit: They admitted changing the schedule.
 advise: I advise proceeding (moving forward) with caution.
 avoid: She avoided looking me in the eye.
 consider (think about): I considered staying silent, but I had to tell her.
 deny: I denied knowing about his secret.
 involve: The course involved writing three tests.
 mention (say something): She mentioned seeing my brother at a baseball game.
 recommend: I recommend practicing gerunds and infinitives.
 risk: Don’t risk losing your job!
 suggest: I suggest reading more English short stories.

TRY to Remember just 10 verb followed by gerund and 10 followed by infinitive

Don’t read the below mentioned verbs leave them as it is & try them only after completing all parts of speech

Some common verbs followed by a gerund (note that phrasal

verbs, marked here with *, always fall into this category):

acknowledge She acknowledged receiving assistance.

* accuse of He was accused of smuggling contraband goods.

admit They admitted falsifying the data.

advise The author advises undertaking further study.

anticipate He anticipates having trouble with his supervisor.

appreciate I appreciated having a chance to read your draft.

avoid He avoided answering my question.

complete I finally completed writing my thesis.

consider They will consider granting you money.

defer She deferred writing her report.

delay We delayed reporting the results until we were sure.

deny They denied copying the information.

discuss They discussed running the experiments again.

entail This review procedure entails repeating the test.

* look after He will look after mailing the tickets.

* insist on He insisted on proofreading the article again.

involve This procedure involves testing each sample twice.

justify My results justify taking drastic action.

mention The author mentions seeing this event.

* plan on They had planned on attending the conference.

postpone The committee has postponed writing the report.

recall I cannot recall getting those results before.

resent He resented spending so much time on the project.

recommend She recommends reading Marx.

resist The writer resists giving any easy answers.

risk She risks losing her viewing time.

sanction They will not sanction copying without permission.

suggest I suggest repeating the experiment.

* take care of He will take care of sending it to you.

tolerate She can’t tolerate waiting for results.

Some common verbs followed by an infinitive:

afford We cannot afford to hesitate.

agree The professors agreed to disagree.

appear The results appear to support your theory.

arrange They had arranged to meet at noon.

beg I beg to differ with you.

care Would you care to respond?

claim She claims to have new data.

consent Will you consent to run for office?

decide When did he decide to withdraw?

demand I demand to see the results of the survey.

deserve She deserves to have a fair hearing.

expect The committee expects to decide by tomorrow.

fail The trial failed to confirm his hypothesis.

hesitate I hesitate to try the experiment again.

hope What do you hope to accomplish?

learn We have learned to proceed with caution.

manage How did she manage to find the solution?

neglect The author neglected to provide an index.

need Do we need to find new subjects?

offer We could offer to change the time of the meeting.

plan They had planned to attend the conference.

prepare He was not prepared to give a lecture.

pretend I do not pretend to know the answer.

promise They promise to demonstrate the new equipment.

refuse She refused to cooperate any longer.

seem Something seems to be wrong with your design.

struggle We struggled to understand her point of view.

swear He swears to tell the truth.

threaten The team threatened to stop their research.

Volunteer Will you volunteer to lead the group?

Wait We could not wait to hear the outcome.

Want She did not want to go first.

Wish Do you wish to participate?

Gerund and Infinitive exercise is on next page but remember if you got 0/40 then
still no issue, It only mean that you just started ……keep moving forward.
1. I don’t fancy ______________ (go) out tonight.

2. She avoided ______________ (tell) him about her plans.

3. I would like ______________ (come) to the party with you.

4. He enjoys ______________ (have) a bath in the evening.

5. She kept ______________ (talk) during the film.

6. I am learning ______________ (speak) English.

7. Do you mind ______________ (give) me a hand?

8. She helped me ______________ (carry) my suitcases.

9. I’ve finished ______________ (cook). Come and eat!

10. He decided ______________ (study) Biology.

11. I dislike ______________ (wait).

12. He asked ______________ (come) with us.

13. I promise ______________ (help) you tomorrow.

14. We discussed ______________ (go) to the cinema, but in the end we stayed at home.

15. She agreed ______________ (bring) the pudding.

16. I don’t recommend ______________ (take) the bus, it takes forever!

17. We hope ______________ (visit) Amsterdam next month.

18. She suggested ______________ (go) to the museum.

19. They plan ______________ (start) college in the autumn.

20. I don’t want ______________ (leave) yet.

21. She delayed ______________ (get) out of bed.

22. He demanded ______________ (speak) to the manager.

23. I offered ______________ (help).

24. I miss ______________ (go) to the beach.

25. We postponed ______________ (do) our homework.

26. I’d hate ______________ (arrive) too late.

27. She admitted ______________ (steal) the money.

28. I chose ______________ (work) here.

29. She waited ______________ (buy) a drink.

30. I really appreciate ______________ (be) on holiday.

31. I couldn’t help ______________ (laugh).

32. It seems ______________ (be) raining.

33. I considered ______________ (move) to Spain.

34. They practised ______________ (speak).

35. Finally I managed ______________ (finish) the work.

36. I really can’t stand ______________ (wait) for the bus.

37. Unfortunately, we can’t afford ______________ (buy) a new car this year.

38. She risked ______________ (be) late.

39. I’d love ______________ (come) with you.

40. I prepared ______________ (go) on holiday.

Answers:
1. going
2. telling
3. to come
4. having
5. talking
6. to speak
7. giving
8. to carry
9. cooking
10. to study
11. waiting
12. to come
13. to help
14. going
15. to bring
16. taking
17. to visit
18. going
19. to start
20. to leave
1. It appears _________________ (be) raining.

2. We intend _________________ (go) to the countryside this weekend.

3. I pretended _________________ (be) sick so I didn’t have to go to work.

4. Can you imagine_________________ (live) without TV?

5. They tolerate_________________ (smoke) but they prefer people not to.

6. I anticipate _________________ (arrive) on Tuesday.

7. A wedding involves _________________ (negotiate) with everyone in the family.

8. He denies _________________ (steal) the money.

9. He claims _________________ (be) a millionaire but I don’t believe him.

10. I expect _________________ (be) there about seven.

11. Julia reported _________________ (see) the boys to the police.

12. It tends _________________ (rain) a lot in Scotland.

13. Do you recall _________________ (meet) her at the party last week?

14. She mentioned _________________ (go) to the cinema.

15. The teenager refused _________________ (go) on holiday with his parents.

16. I understand _________________ (be) late once or twice, but every day is too much!

17. I would prefer you _________________ (come) early if you can.

18. That criminal deserves _________________ (get) a long sentence.

19. She completed _________________ (paint) her flat.

20. We arranged _________________ (meet) at four but at four thirty she still hadn’t arrived.

21. I couldn’t sleep so I tried _____________ (drink) some hot milk.

22. She tried _____________ (reach) the book on the high shelf, but she was too small.

23. They tried _____________ (get) to the party on time but the bus was delayed.

24. We tried _____________ (open) the window, but it was so hot outside it didn’t help.

25. He tried _____________ (get) a job in a newspaper firm but they wouldn’t hire him.

26. He tried _____________ (get) a job in a newspaper firm but he still wasn’t satisfied.

27. You should stop _____________ (smoke), it’s not good for your health.

28. We stopped _____________ (study) because we were tired.

29. They will stop _____________ (have) lunch at twelve.

30. We stopped _____________ (have) a rest, because we were really sleepy.

31. Oh no! I forgot _____________ (buy) milk.

32. Please don’t forget _____________ (pick) up some juice on your way home.

33. I forget _____________ (lock) the door, but I’m sure I must have locked it.

34. Have we studied this before? I’ve forgotten _____________ (learn) it.

35. Please remember _____________ (bring) your homework.

36. I remember _____________ (go) to the beach as a child.

37. Finally I remembered _____________ (bring) your book! Here it is.

38. Do you remember _____________ (eat) steak in that little restaurant in Rome?

39. I regret _____________ (tell) you that the train has been delayed.

40. I regret _____________ (tell) Julie my secret; now she has told everyone.

Answers: 1. getting
2. to speak
3. to help
4. going
5. doing
6. to arrive
7. stealing
8. to work
9. to buy
10. being
11. laughing
12. to be
13. moving
14. speaking
15. to finish
16. waiting
17. to buy
18. being
19. to come
20. to go

For more exercise on Gerund and infinitive https://www.englishpage.com/gerunds/