The Infinitive (Инфинитив)

1. Инфинитив – это неличная форма глагола. Инфинитив имеет свойства глагола и существительного. (to write - писать)

Формальным признаком инфинитива является частица to.

I wanted to answer at once. – Я хотел ответить сразу.

В предложении инфинитив (или инфинитивный оборот, т.е. инфинитив с зависимым словом) может быть подлежащим;

To master a foreign language is not easy. – Овладеть иностранным языком - нелегко.

дополнением: He likes to read. – Он любит читать.

We remember to have been informed about the conference. – Мы помним, что нам сообщили о конференции.

определением (часто выражает долженствование, возможность или будущее время):

He spoke about the student to complete the work. – Он говорил о студенте, который закончит (должен закончить) работу.

именной частью составного именного сказуемого:

Our aim is to master English. – Наша цель – овладеть английским языком.

обстоятельством:

I have come here to help you. – Я пришел сюда (чтобы) помочь вам. (So as, in order to) To master the language one should work hard. – Чтобы овладеть языком, нужно работать упорно.

Here is a pen for you to write down the address. – Вот ручка, чтобы вы записали адрес.

Exercises

1. Переведите следующие предложения, обращая внимание на инфинитив.

1. They were glad to take part in our expedition. 2. She wanted to be answered at once. 3. He was happy to have been working for many years with the famous scientist. 4. Water may be used to drive dynamos which generate electricity. 5. Sputniks need no additional energy to move along their orbit. 6. Newton made use of the three laws of motion to explain the movement of the moon around the earth and of the planets around the sun. 7. This method was introduced at the factory to achieve better results. 8. To extend the main street they had to destroy some old buildings. 9. The workers will use powerful machinery to assemble these huge units. 10. The child wanted to be taken seriously. 11. Many people came there to discuss a problem of the land transport improvement. 12. This method is not good enough to be used everywhere. 13. People made many efforts to find a new source of energy 14. A new comfortable coach was developed to transport people over long distances. 15. He was saving money to travel about the country. 16. It did not take much time to pave the road again. 17. To settle the problem of the engine weight they improved some of its parts.

2. Переведите следующие предложения, дайте разные варианты перевода в тех случаях, где это возможно.

a) 1. The tables were difficult to read. 2. Radium is very expensive to be used in everyday life. 4. The ice was too thin to be crossed. 3. The velocity of light is too great to be measured in simple units. 4. The planets are too distant to be studied without telescope. 5. The problem is too complicated to solve in such a short period of time.

b) 1. A house is a building to live in. 2. A rest home is a place to rest at. 3. A library is a place to borrow books from. 4. A bookshelf is a shelf to keep books on. 5. A paperknife is a knife to cut paper with. 6. A sleeping car is a car to sleep in.

c) 1. Mendeleyev was the first to discover the Periodic Law. 2. Popov was the first to invent radio. 3. Lomonosov was the first to state that heat came from motion. 4. The dog was the first to feel danger. 5. Dalton's atomic theory was the first to make successful use of the old Greek theory of atoms in chemistry.

d) 1. The sun will cool in ages to come. 2. You should have a good rest in the days to follow the examinations. 3. He is the man to rely upon.