6. Infinitive constructions

The Objective-with-the Infinitive Construction

noun or

Subject + predicate + pronoun in + infinitive

the Objective case

I want you to help me.

After the verbs of sense perception (hear, see, watch, feel, observe, notice, feel, smell, etc.) and let, make and have (meaning permission or causation) bare infinitive is used:

I haven’t heard anyone call me.

It is used after the verbs of sense perception, mental activity (think, consider, expect, know, believe, prefer, imagine, find, etc.), declaring (declare, pronounce, report, etc.), wish and intention (wish, want, desire, dis/like, intend, mean, choose, hate, etc.), feeling and emotion, permission (allow, permit, let, suffer, have, forbid), order and compulsion (order, bid, tell, make, get, have, induce, cause, force, bring, set, urge, etc.).

Ex. 1 Insert to before the infinitive where required.

1. We should allow them … come next week.

2. Most people supposed him … be innocent.

3. I saw my friend … get off a bus.

4. Did anyone hear John … leave the house?

5. They made me … do it.

6. We can’t let the matter … rest here.

7. He ordered the car … come at five o’clock.

8. You won’t have me … do that, will you?

9. We all thought the plan … be unwise.

10. These events caused him … leave the country.

11. At last they got him … write the letter to his old nurse.

12. We can’t allow them … behave so badly.

13. I’ll have you all … speak fluent English within a year.

Ex. 2 Translate into English.

1. Я бачив, як Браун увійшов у кімнату.

2. Я бачив, як пожежники погасили пожежу.

3. Я знаю, що він чесна людина.

4. Я вважаю, що він дуже дружній.

5. Лікар виявив, що його серце зупинилося.

6. Я хочу, щоб ти прийшов і пообідав зі мною.

7. Я хотів, щоб ці книги повернули сьогодні.

8. Я не мав на увазі, щоб ви вивчили вірша напам’ять.

9. Він мав намір, щоб я поїхала з ним в Індію.

10. Вона дуже хотіла, щоб я пішла з нею.

11. Я не люблю, коли ви так кажете.

12. Я ненавиджу, коли ви говорите про це.

13. Вона наказала, щоб хлопчика поклали спати.

14. Мама неохоче дозволила мені піти на вечірку.

15. Її кроки примусили його повернути голову.

16. Від шуму вона прокинулась.

17. Я не можу добитися, щоб він зробив домашнє завдання.

18. Мері дозволила мені подзвонити по телефону.

19. Я люблю слухати, як вона співає.

20. Ти помітив, щоб хто-небудь заходив до кімнати?

21. Дайте мені пройти!

22. Вони примусили мене повірити в це.

23. Ти вважаєш, що це небезпечна справа?

24. Я гадаю, що він буде близько п‘ятої.

25. Він ненавидів, коли люди сперечаються з-за дрібниць.

26. Я хочу, щоб ти вивчив цього вірша напам‘ять.

27. Вони умовили гостя зіграти на піаніно.

28. Його родичі припускають, що він поїхав надовго.

29. Ми не потерпимо, щоб ви так погано поводилися з книгами.

30. Вчитель примусив нас переписати цю роботу.

The Subjective Infinitive Construction

Subject + predicate + infinitive

Edith is said to resemble me.

Is used with the verbs of sense perception, mental activity, order, request, permission, declaring, compulsion (make) – in the Passive Voice; seem, appear, happen, prove, turn out, chance, word-groups to be likely, to be sure, to be un/certain – in the Active Voice. After the verbs to seem, to appear, to prove the link-verb to be is often omitted:

He seems clever.

Ex. 1 Paraphrase the following so as to use a complex subject.

1. Nobody ever knew him to lose his temper.

2. The doctor didn’t allow us to visit the patient.

3. He by chance knew the answer to the quiz.

4. It seems that it is improbable.

5. Probably he will be here.

6. We made him withdraw his order.

7. It so happened that I was out of town at the time.

8. He apparently enjoyed the concert.

9. We were there by accident.

10. It so chanced that we were out when he called.

11. We are sure that everything will turn out all right.

12. They allowed the secret to leak out.

13. I didn’t mean you to hear this.

14. Seemingly they didn’t notice it.

Ex. 2. Paraphrase the following with the help of the verbs in brackets so as to use a complex subject.

1. The public do not walk on the grass. (to expect)

2. It is a mistake. (to believe)

3. The boy is a liar. (to know)

4. We don’t play tennis in winter. (to suppose)

5. He is a good singer. (to say)

6. You are very punctual. (to expect)

7. The plane reached the Crimea on time. (to report)

8. The actor is very talented. (to believe)

9. The theatre will go abroad next summer. (to announce)

10. He rewrote the article once more. (to make)

Ex. 3 Translate into English using complex subject.

1. Було чутно, як вона сміється.

2. Було видно, як вершник зник вдалені.

3. Його вважали чесною і доброю людиною.

4. Мого батька вважають великою людиною.

5. Відомо, що він гарний студент.

6. Пітера примусили перевдягнутися.

7. Він без сумніву одружиться з нею.

8. Він обов’язково прийде.

9. Вчора ми випадково зустріли Тесс.

10. Всі вони виявилися гарними акторами.

11. Пітер навряд чи повернеться сьогодні.

12. Вальтер Скотт вважається засновником історичного роману.

13. Повідомляють, що делегація прибула до Києва.

14. Навряд чи він одержить гарну оцінку.

15. Я випадково знаю номер його телефону.

16. Він виявився гарним спортсменом.

17. Співачку примусили повторити пісню.

18. Його книга, без сумніву, буде надрукована.

19. Кажуть, що ці будинки були зведені у ХV столітті.

20. Відомо, що він написав багато книг з історії нашої країни.

21. Повідомлялося, що прем‘єра спектаклю відбудеться 9 грудня.

22. Очікується, що він приїде до нашого міста на Новий рік.

23. Вважається, що це взуття гарне за будь-якої погоди.

24. Йому дозволили піти в кіно, але примусили перш зробити уроки.

25. Виявлено, що стародавні племена мали гарно розвинені діалекти.

26. Я випадково зустріла його на виставці.

27. Він, здається, дуже мила людина.

28. Відомо, що творами Достоєвського захоплюється весь світ.

29. Припускають, що він повернеться в кінці липня.

30. Бачили, що він кілька разів проходив по цій вулиці.

31. Вони неодмінно прийдуть.

The for-to-Infinitive Construction

For pronoun / noun in objective case + infinitive

Can be used as:

-a subject: For me to ask him is impossible.

-a predicate: That was for him to do this.

- a complex object: He waited for Mary to come.

- an attribute: The best thing for you to do is to keep silence.

- an adverbial modifier: It was too late for him to make excuses.

Ex. 1 Paraphrase, using “for-phrases” with infinitives.

1. She held out the telegram so that I might see it.

2. It’s quite natural that you should think so.

3. The first thing he must do is to ring them up.

4. Let us wait till they settle this matter.

5. This is a problem you should solve all by yourself.

6. I shall bring you the article that you may read.

7. I gave an umbrella to the children lest they should get wet through.

8. I’ve put on weight. I can’t wear this dress any longer.

9. It is unbelievable that a man should go so far beyond his limit.

10. He spoke loudly so that everyone might hear him.

11. There is nothing that I may add.

12. It is very unusual that he should have said such a thing.

13. It’s high time you knew Grammar well.

14. This is a boy you can play with.

Ex. 2 Translate into English using “for-phrases” with infinitives.

1. Це він повинен був з’ясувати все.

2. Він чекав коли вона заговорить.

3. Він попросив принести папери.

4. Дивно, що незнайома людина розмовляє з нею.

5. Найкраще, що ви можете зробити, це почекати тут.

6. Йому нічого не залишалося зробити, як піти.

7. Тут немає нікого, з ким він міг би поговорити.

8. Він відійшов у бік, щоб я могла пройти.

9. Для нього було дуже піздно вчитися водити машину.

10. Він говорив досить голосно, щоб ви його чули.

11. Перше, що ми повинні зробити, це замовити квитки.

12. Питання було дуже несподіваним, щоб я міг відповісти на нього.

13. Ось речення, щоб ви їх переклали.

14. Цей текст досить простий, щоб ви могли прочитати його без словника.

15. Зробити це повинен був він.

16. Найкраще, що ви можете зробити - це поїхати у відпустку.

17. Він відчував, що йому залишається тільки забути про все.

18. Мені необхідно побачитися з тобою.

'- ING' FORM

The '-ing' form of the verb may be a present participle or a gerund.

The form is identical, the difference is in the function, or the job the word does in the sentence.

The present participle: This is most commonly used:

• as part of the continuous form of a verb he is painting; she has been waiting

• after verbs of movement/position in the pattern: verb + present participle, She sat looking at the sea

• after verbs of perception in the pattern: verb + object + present participle, We saw him swimming

• as an adjective, e.g. amazing, worrying, exciting, boring

Forms of the present participle:

Voice:	Active	Passive
Non-Perfect	taking	being taken
Perfect	having taken	having been taken

The gerund: This always has the same function as a noun (although it looks like a verb), so it can be used:

• as the subject of the sentence: Eating people is wrong.

• after prepositions: Can you sneeze without opening your mouth? She is good at painting

• after certain verbs, e.g. like, hate, admit, imagine

• in compound nouns, e.g. a driving lesson, a swimming pool, bird-watching, train-spotting

Forms of the Gerund:

Voice:	Active	Passive
Non-Perfect	taking	being taken
Perfect	having taken	having been taken

GERUND OR INFINITIVE?

A. Verbs where there is little or no difference in meaning:

allow deserve neglect

attempt fear* omit

begin hate* permit

bother intend* prefer*

cease like recommend*

continue love start

Notes:

1. Allow is used in these two patterns:

a. Allow + object + to-infinitive: Her parents allowed her to go to the party. b. Allow + gerund: Her parents don't allow smoking in the house.

2. Deserve + gerund is not very common, but is mainly used with passive constructions or where there is a passive meaning:

a. Your proposals deserve being considered in detail. b. These ideas deserve discussing. (= to be discussed).

3. The verbs hate, love, like, prefer are usually followed by a gerund when the meaning is general, and by a to-infinitive when they refer to a particular time or situation. You must always use the to-infinitive with the expressions 'would love to', 'would hate to', etc.

Compare:

• I hate to tell you, but Uncle Jim is coming this weekend.

• I hate looking after elderly relatives!

• I love dancing.

• I would love to dance with you.

B. Verbs where there is a clear difference in meaning: come forget* go on mean* regret* remember* stop try Notes:

Come:

Come + gerund is like other verbs of movement followed by the gerund, and means that the subject is doing something as they move:

• She came running across the field.

Come + to-infinitive means that something happens or develops, perhaps outside the subject's control:

• At first I thought he was crazy, but I've come to appreciate his sense of humour.

• How did you come to be outside the wrong house?

• This word has come to mean something quite different.

Forget, regret and remember:

When these verbs are followed by a gerund, the gerund refers to an action that happened earlier:

• I remember locking the door (= I remember now, I locked the door earlier)

• He regretted speaking so rudely. (= he regretted at some time in the past, he had spoken rudely at some earlier time in the past.)

Forget is frequently used with 'never' in the simple future form:

• I'll never forget meeting the Queen.

When these verbs are followed by a to-infinitive, the infinitive refers to an action happening at the same time, or later:

• I remembered to lock the door (= I thought about it, then I did it.)

• Don't forget to buy some eggs! (= Please think about it and then do it.)

• We regret to announce the late arrival of the 12.45 from Paddington. (= We feel sorry before we tell you this bad news.)

Go on:

Go on + gerund means to continue with an action:

• He went on speaking for two hours.

• I can't go on working like this - I'm exhausted.

Go on + to-infinitive means to do the next action, which is often the next stage in a process:

• After introducing her proposal, she went on to explain the benefits for the company.

• John Smith worked in local government for five years, then went on to become a Member of Parliament.

Mean:

Mean + gerund expresses what the result of an action will be, or what will be necessary:

• If you take that job in London it will mean travelling for two hours every day.

• We could take the ferry to France, but that will mean spending a night in a hotel.

Mean + to-infinitive expresses an intention or a plan:

• Did you mean to dial this number?

• I mean to finish this job by the end of the week!

• Sorry - I didn't mean to hurt you.

Stop:

Stop + gerund means to finish an action in progress:

• I stopped working for them because the wages were so low. Stop tickling me!

Stop + to-infinitive means to interrupt an activity in order to do something else, so the infinitive is used to express a purpose:

• I stopped to have lunch. (= I was working, or travelling, and I interrupted what I was doing in order to eat.)

• It's difficult to concentrate on what you are doing if you have to stop to answer the phone every five minutes.

Try:

Try + gerund means to experiment with an action that might be a solution to your problem.

• If you have problems sleeping, you could try doing some yoga before you go to bed, or you could try drinking some warm milk.

• 'I can't get in touch with Carl.' 'Have you tried e-mailing him?'

Try + to-infinitive means to make an effort to do something. It may be something very difficult or even impossible:

• The surgeons tried to save his life but he died on the operating table.

• We'll try to phone at 6 o'clock, but it might be hard to find a public telephone.

• Elephants and mice have to try to live together in harmony.

С. Verbs followed by the Gerund.

The gerund is used after certain verbs.

The most important of these verbs are shown below. Those marked * can also be followed by a that-clause

acknowledge* detest involve recall*

admit* dislike keep recollect*

anticipate* dread loathe remember

appreciate* enjoy mean(=have as result)* report*

avoid entail mention* resent

celebrate escape mind resist

consider excuse miss risk

contemplate fancy (=imagine)* pardon save (=prevent the wasted effort) defer finish postpone suggest*

delay forgive prevent understand*

deny* imagine* propose*

Notes:

Appreciate is followed by a possessive adjective and the gerund when the gerund does not refer to the subject. Compare : I appreciate having some time off work. (I'm having the time...) I appreciate your giving me some time off work. (You're giving me the time...)

Excuse, forgive, pardon can be followed by an object and the gerund or for + object and the gerund (both common in spoken English), or a possessive adjective + gerund (more formal and less likely to be said): Excuse me interrupting. Excuse me for interrupting. Excuse my interrupting.

Suggest can be used in a number of ways, but BE CAREFUL. It is important not to confuse these patterns:

suggest/suggested (+ possessive adjective) + gerund: He suggests going to Glastonbury He suggested going to Glastonbury He suggested/suggests my going to Glastonbury

suggest/suggested + that-clause (where both that and should may be omitted): He suggests that I should go to Glastonbury He suggested that I should go to Glastonbury He suggested/suggests I should go to Glastonbury He suggested/suggests I go to Glastonbury He suggested I went to Glastonbury.

suggest/suggested + question word + infinitive: He suggested where to go.

Propose is followed by the gerund when it means 'suggest': John proposed going to the debate but by the infinitive when it means 'intend': The Government proposes bringing in new laws..

Dread is followed by the infinitive when used with 'think', in the expression 'I dread to think': I dread to think what she'll do next.

Prevent is followed

EITHER by a possessive adjective + gerund: You can't prevent my leaving. OR by an object + from + gerund: You can't prevent me from leaving.

Examples:

• Normally, a mouse wouldn't contemplate marrying an elephant.

• Most mice dread meeting elephants.

• We can't risk getting wet - we haven't got any dry clothes.

• If you take that job it will mean getting home late every night.

• I can't imagine living in that big house.

• If you buy some petrol now, it will save you stopping on the way to London.

• She couldn't resist eating the plum she found in the fridge.

• They decided to postpone painting the house until the weather improved.

Predicative constructions with the Participle.

In modern English we find the following predicative constructions with the participle:

• the Objective Participial Construction

noun in the common case Participle I or

pronoun in the objective case (object) Participle II

She could hear her mother singing.

Usually used after verbs of sense perception (to see, to hear, to feel, to find), mental activity (to consider, to understand), wish (only Participle II), to have and to get (only Participle II, the action expressed by participle is performed by another person).

• the Subjective Participial Construction

noun in the common case mostly Participle I

pronoun in the nominative case (subject)

They were heard talking together.

Chiefly used after verbs of sense perception.

• the Nominative Absolute Participial Construction

noun in the common case Participle I or

pronoun in the nominative case (is not a subject) ParticipleII

The door and window of the vacant room being open, we looked in.

Used in the function of adverbial modifier, especially in fiction and scientific literature.

The Nominative Absolute Construction – the participle is omitted. Mind the difference in meaning with the participial construction.

Breakfast over, he went to his room.

He was alone, his heart full of fear.

There he stood, his face to the east.

He started out, bag and overcoat in hand, to get his cup of coffee.

• the Prepositional Absolute Participial Construction

with noun in the common case Participle I or

pronoun in the objective case Participle II

They were walking on again, with Hugh singing loudly.

The daughter sat quiet, with her eyes fixed on the ground.