1. Infinitives are formed with TO : to walk, to talk, to think, to listen Here is a brief review of the differences between gerunds and infinitives. Gerunds are formed with ING : walking, talking, thinking, listening

2. Both gerunds and infinitives can be the subject of a sentence: : Writing in English is difficult. To write in English is difficult. Both gerunds and infinitives can be the object of a verb: : I like writing in English. I like to write in English. Only gerunds can be the object of a preposition: : We are talking about writing in English. Gerunds and infinitives can do several jobs: But...

3. Verbs that are normally followed by the gerund form: acknowledge | admit | adore | anticipate | appreciate | avoid | celebrate | confess | contemplate delay | deny | describe | detest | discuss | dislike | dread | endure | enjoy fancy | finish | imagine | involve | keep | justify | mention | mind | miss | omit | postpone | practise quit | recall | recommend | regret | report | resent | resume | risk | suggest | tolerate | understand For example: I adore reading your books. They anticipated winning the election. I detest going to discos. We postponed making any decision in the meeting.

4. Verbs which are normally followed by the infinitive form: afford | agree | appear | arrange | ask | attempt | care | choose | claim | come | consent dare | decide | demand | deserve | determine | elect | endeavour | expect | fail | get | guarantee hate | help | hesitate | hope | hurry | incline | intend | learn | long | manage | mean | need offer | plan | prepare | pretend | promise | refuse | resolve | say | seem | tend | threaten | want | wish For example: I can't afford to go to the pub. He agreed to practise more. You should learn to express yourself. They managed to fix the problem.

5. We use the Gerund or the Infinitive after the following verbs: begin He began talking. He began to talk. continue They continue smoking. They continue to smoke. hate Do you hate working on Saturdays? Do you hate to work on Saturdays? like I like swimming. I like to swim. love She loves painting. She loves to paint. prefer Pat prefers walking home. Pat prefers to walk home. start They start singing. They start to sing. Gerund and Infinitive (no difference in meaning)

6. We use the Gerund or the Infinitive after the following verbs. There are two possible structures after these verbs. Gerund: verb + -ing Infinitive: verb + person + to-infinitive advise They advise walking to town. They advise us to walk to town. allow They do not allow smoking here. They do not allow us to smoke here. encourage They encourage doing the test. They encourage us to do the test. permit They do not permit smoking here. They do not permit us to smoke here. recommend They recommend walking to town. They recommend that we walk to town. We use the following structures with the word recommend:

7. GERUNDINFINITIVE forget He'll never forget spending so much money on his first computer. Don't forget to spend money on the tickets. GERUNDINFINITIVE go onGo on reading the text.Go on to read the text. GERUNDINFINITIVE mean You have forgotten your homework again. That means phoning your mother. I meant to phone your mother, but my mobile didn't work. GERUNDINFINITIVE remember I remember switching off the lights when I went on holiday. Remember to switch off the lights when you go on holiday. GERUNDINFINITIVE stopStop reading the text.Stop to read the text. GERUNDINFINITIVE try Why don't you try running after the dog? I tried to run after the dog, but I was too slow. Some verbs have different meaning. (when used with Gerund or Infinitive)

8. GERUNDS / INFINITIVES EXERCISES: Put in the verbs in brackets in the Gerund or the to-infinitive. 1) I can't imagine Peter (go) by bike. 2) He agreed (buy) a new car. 3) The question is easy (answer). 4) The man asked me how (get) to the airport. 5) I look forward to (see) you at the weekend. 6) Are you thinking of (visit) London? 7) We decided (run) through the forest. 8) The teacher expected Sarah (study) hard. 9) She doesn't mind (work) the night shift. 10) I learned (ride) the bike at the age of 5.

9. 1) I can't imagine Peter going by bike. 2) He agreed to buy a new car. 3) The question is easy to answer. 4) The man asked me how to get to the airport. 5) I look forward to seeing you at the weekend. 6) Are you thinking of visiting London? 7) We decided to run through the forest. 8) The teacher expected Sarah to study hard. 9) She doesn't mind working the night shift. 10) I learned to ride the bike at the age of 5. Answers: