PG 5
What is an Infinitive?
An infinitive is the base form of a verb, typically preceded by the word “to.” It can function as a noun, adjective, or adverb in a sentence. Here are some examples of infinitives:
- Noun:
- To dance is her passion.
- I love to travel and explore new places.
- His dream is to become a successful musician.
- Adjective:
- She has a book to read.
- We need a car to get there.
- He bought a pen to write with.
- Adverb:
- She woke up early to catch the train.
- He studies diligently to achieve good grades.
- They worked hard to finish the project on time.
- Verb phrase:
- She wants to learn how to play the guitar.
- He needs to complete the assignment by tomorrow.
- We decided to go on a vacation.
Note that: We use an infinitive without the word “to” in certain cases, such as after modal verbs like “can,” “will,” or “should.” For example:
- I can swim.
- She will dance.
Understanding how to use infinitives correctly in different contexts helps you convey meaning accurately and construct grammatically sound sentences.
Welcome to gerunds and infinitives
DRILL
Instructions: Listen read and repeat the following sentences
- Agree to: They agreed to sign the contract.
- Choose to: I chose to pursue a career in medicine.
- Decide to: We decided to take a vacation.
- Want to: She wants to learn how to play the piano.
- Need to: They need to finish their assignments.
- Plan to: He plans to start a new business.
- Intend to: We intend to visit our relatives next week.
- Hope to: I hope to meet my favorite author someday.
- Learn to: They are learning to speak French.
- Like to: She likes to read books in her free time.
- Love to: We love to go hiking on weekends.
- Prefer to: He prefers to eat at home rather than go to a restaurant.
- Tend to: They tend to arrive late for meetings.
- Try to: I will try to solve the problem.
- Refuse to: She refused to answer any more questions.
- Expect to: We expect to receive the results by tomorrow.
- Promise to: He promised to help with the project.
- Fail to: They failed to complete the assignment on time.
- Seem to: It seems to be raining outside.
- Deserve to: She deserves to be recognized for her achievements.
- Offer to: They offered to lend us their car.
- Ask to: He asked to borrow my laptop.
- Encourage to: The coach encouraged us to work harder.
- Allow to: They allowed him to enter the restricted area.
- Teach to: She taught me how to ride a bike.
- Request to: We requested him to attend the meeting.
- Beg to: He begged her to forgive him.
- Dare to: They dared to take the risk.
- Pretend to: She pretended to be surprised.
- Appear to: It appears to be a challenging task.
Welcome to gerunds and infinitives
