The "-ing form"

round / around to, object to, in addition to, prefer (doing smth to doing smth.)
– I object to working on Sundays.
– I hope to get around to answering your letter next week.
Verbs taking the to-infinitive or the –ing form without a change in meaning.


begin, start, continue, propose, bother, intend
We never have two -ing forms together.
– They started talking / to talk.
But: – It's beginning to get dark. (NOT: It’s beginning getting dark.)
– It's starting to get cold. (NOT: It's starting getting cold.)


advise, allow, permit, recommend, encourage take the to-infinitive when they are followed by
an object or when they are in the passive form. They take the -ing form when they are not followed by an object.
– They don't allow me to use the phone (object)
– We aren't allowed to park here. (passive)
– They don't allow using the phone. (no object)
need/require/want + - ing form
This construction often shows that it is necessary to repair or improve something. 'Need' can also
be followed by a passive infinitive.
– The window frame needs painting. – The window frame needs to be painted.
– This shirt needs washing. or – This shirt needs to be washed.
– The plants want watering daily. or – The plants want to be watered daily.
Verbs taking the to-infinitive or the –ing form with a change in meaning.
● forget + to - inf = not remember
– I'm sorry, I forgot to call you.
– I have to go out. I forgot to buy a newspaper.


forget + -ing form = not recall
– I'll never forget hearing this piece of music for the first time.
– I'll never forget travelling by plane for the first time.
– I'll never forget winning my first gold medal.

● remember + to - inf = not forget

– Remember to call Jack tonight. – Remember to call me when you arrive!
remember + -ing form = recall

– I don't remember seeing you here before.

– I can still vividly remember him teaching me to play cards.

● go on + to - inf = then

– He introduced himself and went on to talk about his trip to London.
– He welcomed us and went on to offer us some drinks.


go on + -ing form = continue – They went on talking for hours.
– 2 –

● mean + to - inf = intend to

– She means to open her own shop.
– She means to buy a new car soon.
– I'm feeling very guilty – I've been meaning to call my parents for days, but still haven't got
around to it.
– I'm sorry I hurt you. I didn't mean to.


mean + -ing form = involve
– Being a pilot means travelling a lot.
– She is determined to get a ticket for the concert even if it means paying a lot of money.

● regret + to - inf = be sorry to

– I regret to inform/to say/to tell you that you have failed the exam.


regret + -ing form = feel sorry about
– I regret making that mistake; I lost my job.
– I regret selling the house.

● try + to - inf = attempt, do one's best

– He tried to win the race.
– We tried to move the heavy couch to the side of the room.


try + -ing form = do sth as an experiment
– If you can't go to sleep, try drinking some milk.
– Try exercising, you may lose weight.

● stop + to - inf = stop briefly to do sth else

– He stopped to drink some tea and then continued working.


stop + -ing form = finish, give up
– He stopped eating junk food because it is unhealthy.

● be sorry + to - inf = apologise for a present action

– I'm sorry to interrupt, but can I ask you a question?


be sorry for + -ing form = apologise for an earlier action
– I'm sorry for shouting at you.

● like + to - inf = think that sth is good or right to do

– I like to pay my bills as soon as I get them.
– I like to exercise every day.


like + -ing form = enjoy (general preference)
– I like meeting new people.
– She likes swimming.
● be afraid + to - inf (the subject is unwilling to do sth)
– He is afraid to take the test in case he fails again.


be afraid of + -ing form = (the subject is afraid that what is described by the -ing form may
happen)
– She doesn't want to ride the horse. She is afraid of falling and hurting herself.
– 3 –
PARTICIPLES
The participles are:
a) present participles (playing, running, etc.),
b) past participles (played, written, etc.) and
c) perfect participles (having written, etc.).

● Present and past participles can be used as adjectives.

The present participle (-ing) describes what somebody or something is.
It answers the question 'What kind of …?'.
– It's a very tiring job. (What kind of job? Tiring.)


The past participle (-ed) describes how somebody feels.
It answers the question 'How do you feel?'
– He's very tired. (How does he feel? Tired.)

Participles can also be used:

● to express time.
– After doing / having done her homework, she watched TV.
– Having done her homework, she watched TV.
(=After she had done her homework, she watched TV.)

– He cut himself (while) cooking. (=He cut himself (while) he was cooking.)

● to express reason.

– Being late, I had to take a taxi. (= Because I was late, I had to take a taxi.)

– Having spent all his money, Jalol borrowed his friends..

(= Because he had spent all his money, Jalol borrowed his friends.)

● instead of a relative pronoun and full verb.

– The man standing at the door is my boss. (=The man who is standing at the door is my boss.)
– The man looking at the doctor is my friend. (The man who is looking at the doctor … .)

– The information presented in the article was invaluable.

(=The information which was presented in the article was invaluable.)
– The new book advertised on TV is very helpful. (The book which is advertised on TV … .)

● instead of the past simple in narratives when we describe actions happening immediately

one after the other.
– Seeing the shadow, he screamed. (= He saw the shadow and he screamed.)
– Hearing the news, she fainted. (= She heard the news and then fainted.)

● to avoid repeating the past continuous in the same sentence.

– She was climbing up a ladder carrying a bucket.
(=She was climbing up a ladder and she was carrying a bucket.)


TENSES of INFINITIVE
The infinitive has four tenses in the active and two in the passive.
Active
● present infinitive: refers to the present or future.
– I want to speak to her now. (Present)
– I want to buy a house next year. (Future)
– She expects to stay here for two days.

● present continuous infinitive: (to) be + -ing It describes an action happening now.

– He is believed to be succeeding in his studies.
– He seems to be working very hard. – 4 –
● perfect infinitive: (to) have + past participle
It refers to the past and shows that the action of the infinitive happened before the action of the
verb.
– She claims to have met Dave.
(First she met Dave, then she claimed that she had met him.)

● perfect continuous infinitive: (to) have + been + -ing

It refers to the past and emphasises the duration of the action of the infinitive, which happened
before the action of the verb.
– She is tired. She claims to have been working hard lately.
(We emphasise what she has been doing lately.)


The perfect infinitive is used with verbs such as seem, appear, believe, know, claim, presume = think, expect and the modal verbs.


Passive
● present infinitive: (to) be + past participle
– He hopes to be given a pay rise soon.
– He hopes to be offered a promotion.

● perfect infinitive: (to) have been + past participle

– He is said to have been injured in an accident.
– He is believed to have been kidnapped.

The verb tenses corresponding to the tenses of the infinitive are as follows:

Verb tenses (go, work, play, etc)		Infinitive
he goes / will go		To go
he is going / will be going		To be going
he went / has gone / had gone / will have gone		To have gone
he was going / has been going / had been going / will have been going	