Oxford English Grammar Course Basic

infinitives and -ing forms

section 9 infinitives and -ing forms

grammar summary
infinitives:

(to) go, (to) break, (to) see etc

-ing forms (also called gerunds): going, breaking, seeing etc

We can use both -ing forms and infinitives as subjects (but -ing forms are more common).
Smoking is bad for you. (More natural than To smoke is bad for you.)
We can use infinitives to say why we do things.
I got up early to catch the 7.15 train.
After some verbs we use infinitives; after others we use -ing forms.
I expect to pass my exams. (not I expect passing )
Ill finish studying in June. (not Ill finish to study )
We can use infinitives after some adjectives and nouns.
Shes ready to leave.
Im glad to see you.
Ive got work to do.
After prepositions we use -ing forms, not infinitives.
You cant live without eating. (not without to eat.)
I usually watch TV before going to bed. (not before to go to bed.)
Infinitives often have to before them; but not always.
I want to go home, but I cant go now.

How I stopped smoking

ill and smelling bad. And I realised that

it was stupid to spend so much money
on a ridiculous habit. So I tried to stop.
Hundreds of times. I kept on giving up. I
became an expert on giving up smoking.
Nothing worked: I always started again.
At last I had a piece of luck. I got
terrible bronchitis so bad that I simply
couldnt smoke. It lasted for months.
And when I finally recovered, I realised
that I had broken the habit. I didnt have
to start smoking again.
And I never did.

In some answers, both contracted forms (for example Im, dont) and full
forms (for example I am, do not) are possible. Normally both are correct.
Michael Swan and Catherine Walter 2015
09 CW GGB_Sn09 (3P).indd 119

started smoking when I was 16. I didnt

really want to smoke, but at that age its
important to imitate your friends. Once I
had started, of course, it was hard to stop.
And smoking gave me something to do
with my hands. Whenever I met strangers,
I couldnt help reaching for a cigarette to
give me confidence, to make me look
(I thought) cool and sophisticated.
Soon I couldnt get through a
day without smoking twenty or thirty
cigarettes. But smoking made me feel ill
and smell bad, and I was tired of feeling

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Level

Oxford English Grammar Course Basic

verb + ing I cant help feeling unhappy.

After some verbs we use -ing forms.
Some of these verbs are: keep (on) (= continue, not stop), finish, stop, give up (= stop, for habits), go,
cant help (= cant stop myself), spend (time), mind, suggest, practise, enjoy.
I cant help feeling unhappy.

Do you mind sharing a room?

Alex has gone swimming.

1 Complete the sentences with -ing forms. (For spelling rules, see page 23.)

1
2
3
4
5
6

We enjoy playing
tennis in the morning. (play)
Has Julia finished
her photos? (take)
Roberts given up
sweets. (eat)
Wheres Helen? Shes gone
(shop)
I have to practise
so I can pass my test. (drive)
Alec suggested
at the supermarket. (stop)
On Sunday I spent three hours
in the garden. (work)

2 Write sentences using the expressions in the box with -ing forms.
He cant help
She enjoys Theyve just finished Hes given up Theyre going
All that week, it kept Shes practising Shes suggesting Its just stopped

She enjoys skiing.

Shes suggesting
going to Rome.

134 INFINITIVES AND -ING FORMS

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09 CW GGB_Sn09 (3P).indd 134

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Oxford English Grammar Course Basic

Level

We use ing forms after love, like, (not) mind (= (not) dislike), dislike, hate.

3 Put in -ing forms of the verbs in the box.

cook

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

eat

get up play

shop

study

wash

watch

watch

wear

work

I hate getting up
in the winter before the sun is up.
George dislikes
dishes, so he often eats out.
I dont like playing baseball, but I like
it.
I dont mind
late if my boss asks me.
Joes two-year-old sister loves
with her toys in the bath.
Jenny and her sister like
each others clothes.
When I was at school, I hated
history.
I like
nature programmes on TV.
I hate
in supermarkets.
My father likes
, and we all like
, so we go well together.

4 Write about ten things you love/hate etc doing. Use expressions from the box or
write about other things.

cooking dinner for friends dancing until 1 a.m. eating out with friends getting up early
listening to loud music lying on a sunny beach
reading novels
swimming in the ocean
travelling to new places walking in the mountains
walking in the rain
watching old films

I love walking in the mountains.

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
After love, like and hate we can also use infinitives with to with the same meaning.
I love to sing. = I love singing.
Rachel likes to go out / going out with friends.
Mum hates to cook / cooking on an electric cooker.
(BUT NOT I dislike to listen to opera. AND NOT Do you mind to wait for a few minutes?)

In some answers, both contracted forms (for example Im, dont) and full
forms (for example I am, do not) are possible. Normally both are correct.
Michael Swan and Catherine Walter 2015
09 CW GGB_Sn09 (3P).indd 135

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