The infinitive as adverbial modifier of purpose

As an adverbial modifier of purpose the Infinitive is used to explain why people do things, their purposes: I went to London to learn English. Я поехал в Лондон, чтобы учить английский язык. Не stopped for a minute to rest. Он остановился на минуту, чтобы отдохнуть.

The same idea can be expressed by using the conjunctions in order to and so as: I got up early in order to have time to pack. Я встал рано, чтобы успеть упаковать вещи. I stopped for a minute in order to rest. Я остановился на минуту, чтобы отдохнуть.

After the verbs to come, to go, to hurry up, to stay, to stop and some other verbs instead of the to-Infinitive of purpose the same idea of purpose can be expressed by the conjunction and plus a bare Infinitive.

Would you go and tell the children not to be so loud. Сходи, пожалуйста, и скажи детям, чтобы они так не шумели.

They invited me to come and look at their new picture.Они пригласили меня прийти посмотреть (чтобы я посмотрел) на их новые картины.

This structure often occurs in imperative sentences where the bare Infinitive may look (or sound) ambiguous as it resembles in form the imperative mood verb:

Stay and have dinner. = Stay to have dinner.

Come and have a look at my pictures. = Come to have a look at my pictures.

Compare to the Russian where we also find a similar structure and where the idea of purpose may be implied either by an Infinitive following the imperative mood verb or by a second imperative mood verb:

приходи посмотреть (=чтобы посмотреть),

сходи и скажи (= чтобы сказать).

Exercise 80. Underline the Infinitive or the Infinitive phrase used as an adverbial modifier of purpose. Translate the sentences into Russian.

Model: We took a taxi (in order/so as) to arrive at the station in time. Мы взяли такси, чтобы вовремя приехать на вокзал.

1. Не came over here not to quarrel with you but just to warn you that they might do you harm. 2. To get the information you need you’d better go to the agency. 3. Sit still not to fall down. 4. To be a top student you’ll have to work hard. 5. Switch off the light not to wake the baby up. 6. She paused before the front door to watch the gardener trimming the bushes. 7. Calvin opened the window to air the room. 8. We were quiet and walked slowly not to frighten them. 9. We moved into that house to look after our grandma. 10. I left a message to tell her about his call. 11. Sylvia cried loudly so as to draw the man’s attention. 12. The guy stopped to light a cigarette and noticed that somebody followed him. 13. Jack looked straight into her eyes to understand whether she was lying. 14. He went into the kitchen to get himself some water. 15. Come to see us in July. 16. To cure himself of his fruitless desire he sometimes started working in the garden.

Exercise 81. Paraphrase the sentences using an Infinitive or an Infinitive phrase as adverbial modifier of purpose.

Model: She wanted to make a living and started giving private lessons. – To make a living she started giving private lessons.

1. Mother wanted to cook mushroom soup and for that she bought some mushrooms, carrots and onions at the greengrocer’s. 2. She has to write things down and use memo magnets or she may forget something. 3. His desire was to justify himself and he persuaded her to give evidence. 4. If you do not want to lag behind the group you’ll have to take all the exams before the academic year is over. 5. You should follow your boss’s instructions as it can prevent your going bankrupt. 6. You will make your idea clear if you illustrate each point. 7. It’s better to accept their proposal if you want to increase your income. 8. Try to show your good manners and don’t be so rude, otherwise you’ll seem impolite to your teacher. 9. She’d like to stay in good shape and she joined a sports club. 10. We should hurry up, or we’ll miss the 5.00 train. 11. His grandmother went to the hospital as she wants to be examined by a specialist. 12. He scraped up the money as he wanted to start a restaurant. 13. If you want to mimic Cockney speech you should know it quite well. 14. The spectators wanted to pay tribute to an outstanding performance and they rose to their feet.

Exercise 82. Match an Infinitive or an Infinitive phrase used as adverbial modifier of purpose with the rest of the sentence.

1. To cook cabbage soup 1. one has to see a doctor.

2. To get a job 2. one should relax.

3. To take a sick leave 3. you should go on a diet.

4. To get rid of the tension 4. one has to be interviewed.

5. To take away the pain 5. you need cabbage, carrots and potatoes.

6. To make money 6. one should take a medicine.

7. To have a tooth out 7. you have to get a good job.

8. To take off weight 8. one has to make an appointment with a

dentist.

Exercise 83. Match the utterances and the Infinitive phrases. Explain in what case we say that. Use an Infinitive or an Infinitive phrase as an adverbial modifier of purpose.

Model: «Stop crying. There’s no use crying over spilt milk». (to calm down) – We usually say it to calm down a person.

1. «Help! Help!» 1. to make one stop making noise

2. «Say «Cheese»!» 2. to attract people’s attention and get help

3. «Hush!» 3. to make a person smile when taking

his picture

4. «Shame on you!” 4. to show one that he is too lazy

5. «Such a cry-baby, aren’t you?» 5. to cheer up a person

6. «A lazy-bones, that’s what 6. to show that we are losing control and

you are!» are about to do something

7. «Come! Come!» 7. to show a child that he is ill-mannered

8. «Cheer up!» 8. to show a child that he cries too much

9. «One more word and I’ll ...» 9. to thank a person

10. «It’s very kind of you!» 10. to make one pull himself together

Exercise 84. Point out the sentences which contain an Infinitive or an Infinitive phrase used as adverbial modifier of purpose.

1. To make a long story short, they left without saying good-bye. 2. To spend a day off in the country gives you a good chance to relax. 3. To make them laugh I had to act as a clown. 4. To respect a man you don’t need to find any good qualities in him. 5. To tell the truth, I’ve never met such a worthy person as him. 6. To find the answer to your questions you need the encyclopedia. 7. To discuss your plan in details is absolutely necessary. 8. To grow oranges in this region one needs a hothouse. 9. To put it mildly, her father was furious. 10. Not to offend her is next to impossible as every critical remark seems to her very offensive.

Exercise 85. Answer the following questions using an Infinitive to show the purpose of the action.

Model: Why would you go to the travel agency? I’d go there to book a holiday.

Why would you go to the butcher’s? to the baker’s? to the supermarket? to the box office? to the optician? to the chemist’s? to the dentist? to the doctor? to the British Embassy? to a cafe? to a disco? to a concert?

Why do some people need or use these things: an alarm clock?

Model: Some people need an alarm clock to wake them up in the morning.

glasses; medicine; a walking stick; a hearing aid; sleeping pills; artificial sweeteners; make up; perfume; hair dye; high heeled shoes; a lipstick; a safe

Why do you think the following groups of people want/need to learn English? Use in order to/so as to ...

Model: journalists. Journalists need English in order to interview foreigners.

actors; pilots; diplomats; sportsmen; scientists; hotel receptionists; sailors; statesmen, civil servants; travel agents; engineers; customs officials; secretaries

Exercise 86. Translate the sentences into English. Pay attention to the Infinitive or the Infinitive phrase used as adverbial modifier of purpose.

1. Чтобы разобраться в этой истории, надо выслушать каждого свидетеля. 2. Чтобы стать хорошим врачом, необходима большая практика. 3. Для того, чтобы с ним сотрудничать, мы должны сначала удостовериться в его надежности. 4. Чтобы не попасть в беду, не надо рисковать. 5. Мы попросили наших друзей позвонить ей, чтобы лишний раз ей не надоедать. 6. Чтобы не опоздать на совещание, пришлось отложить кое-какие личные дела. 7. Для того, чтобы добиться успеха в спорте, необходимо тренироваться день и ночь. 8. Надо закупить немало кирпича, чтобы построить такой коттедж. 9. Для установки памятника потребовалось разрешение городской администрации. 10. Для поддержания формы одни женщины придерживаются диеты (to stick to a diet), а другие предпочитают заниматься спортом. 11. Чтобы познать истину, ее надо искать. 12. Не надо быть слишком умным, чтобы понять, что они влюблены. 13. Чтобы уйти незамеченным, он решил переждать до ночи. 14. Для того, чтобы позволить Вам сделать это, я должен забыть обо всех своих принципах. 15. Чтобы насладиться природой, надо побыть в каком-нибудь тихом, уединенном месте и ни с кем не общаться.

Unit 11