Introduction
Sometimes, after certain verbs, we find the gerund (when acting as a noun) or the infinitive and the meaning of those verbs do not change.
Form
Certain verbs can have the gerund (when acting as a noun) or the infinitive without any change in meaning.
These formations have the same structures:
Subject + verb + gerund + object…
Subject + verb + to + verb + object…
The most commonly used verbs are: begin, continue, hate, like, love, start, …
Example
| Gerund | Infinitive | |
|---|---|---|
| Begin
Continue |
They begin digging the hole
She continued driving. |
They begin to dig the hole.
She continued to drive. |
| Hate | I hate listening to pop music | I hate to listen to pop music |
| Like | They like skydiving. | They like to skydive. |
| Love | Adriana loves painting. | Adriana loves to paint. |
| Start | We start playing guitar. | We start to play guitar. |
Use
Sometimes, after certain verbs, we can use both the gerund and the infinitive and the meaning of the sentence does not change.
Summary
After certain verbs, we find the gerund (when acting as a noun) or the infinitive and the meaning of those verbs do not change.
The most commonly used verbs are: begin, continue, hate, like, love, start.
These formations have the same structures:
- we start with the subject of the sentence followed by the verb, a gerund and the object of the senence;
- we start with the subject of the sentence followed by the verb, the preposition to, another verb, and the object of the senence.
For example:
— “She started singing” = “She started to sing.”
— “I like jogging in the morning.” = “I like to jog in the morning.”
Let’s revise this content within the {Form} section. Take a look at the {Example} section that shows its use within a context.