The Infinitive as Subjective Predicative

§ 192. The infinitive as subjective predicative is always preced
ed by to. It is lexically dependent — it follows a number of transi-
tive verbs used in the passive. The most frequently occurring of
these verbs are: to advise, to allow, to ask, to authorize, to be
lieve, to command, to compel, to consider, to direct, to expect, to
feel, to find, to force, to hear, to impel, to instruct, to intend,
to invite, to know, to leave, to let, to make, to mean, to order,
to permit, to persuade, to presume, to report, to request, to re
quire, to rumour, to say, to schedule, to see, to sentence, to show,
to suppose, to teach, to tell, to tempt, to think, to trust, to under
stand, to watch and some others.

e.g. I have been advised to rest.

He had been heard to discuss the possibility.

I believe they have been instructed to report to you by October.

Douglas was invited to have a drink with a Cabinet Minister.

No doubt no one could be persuaded to give her a job.

The public are requested not to walk on the grass.

He is said to be a good chap.

Note. When the verb to know is used in the Passive and is followed by an in
finitive it may have two meanings — 'to be aware' and 'to experience'. In the
former case the verb to know is found only in the Present or Past Indefinite and is
followed by the infinitive to be.

 

e.g. You are known to be a preposterously unselfish friend.

Mr Dinis, who was known to be interested in the case, made it clear that he
would proceed with it.

In the latter case the verb to know is found only in the Present and Past Per-
fect and can be followed by other infinitives as well.

e.g. He has been known to drop a hint.

He's been known to take part in the work of different committees.

In the function of subjective predicative the infinitive is often
used in its different analytical forms.

e.g. He was believed to be preparing a report on the incident.

Some professors are known to have disagreed with the au-
thorities on students' demands.

The new system is intended to be applied in a month.
The victim is believed to have been poisoned.

(For comparison with the ing-form see §§ 221 and 240.)

The Infinitive as Objective Predicative

§ 193. The infinitive as objective predicative is lexically depen-
dent — it is used after a number of transitive verbs in the active
followed by an object which is expressed by a noun or a pronoun.
Most of these verbs require an infinitive with to. The most fre-
quently occurring of them are: to advise, to allow, to ask, to as-
sume, to authorize, to beg, to believe, to cause, to challenge, to
command, to compel, to consider, to enable, to encourage, to ex
pect, to find, to forbid, to force, to get, to guess, to hate, to imag-
ine, to impel, to implore, to induce, to inspire, to instruct, to in-
tend, to invite, to know, to lead, to like, to love, to mean, to
observe, to order, to permit, to persuade, to prefer, to press, to re-
alize, to recommend, to request, to require, to suppose, to suspect,
to take (= to understand), to teach, to tell, to tempt, to think, to
trust, to understand, to urge, to want, to warn, to wish and some
others.

e-g. Why did he advise me to visit Westminster Abbey?
I must ask you to ring him up tonight.
You've encouraged people to believe that.
We can't force you to stay here.

Why don't you get my wife to explain it to you?
He ordered the door to be thrown open.
Did he urge you to reconsider your decision?

Note that after verbs expressing opinion or perception by far
the most common infinitive is the verb to be which is a link-verb
in this case.

e.g. No one could expect her to be happy.

I hope you'll find the new method to be of considerable inter-
est.

I never took him to be a Norwegian.
I always believed him to be a brute.
He didn't mean this to be a long meeting.

There are a few verbs in English after which the infinitive as
objective predicative is used without the particle to. They are: to
feel, to have (=to get, to make), to hear, to know (=to experience),
to let, to make, to notice, to see, to watch.

e.g. I felt Margaret's hand tighten in mine.

I had not heard him speak before, and now I realized that he
was a good speaker.

What makes you think you have any talent?

In the library I noticed Diana talk for a moment with her sis-
ter alone.

She struggled for self-control, and I saw her hands clench
and unclench spasmodically.

I've watched you grow for many years, from when you were
a little baby.

She was not quite so naive as she would have had me think.

Note. The verb to know in the meaning 'to be aware' is generally used in the
Present or Past Indefinite and followed only by the infinitive to be with the par-
ticle to.

e.g. We all know it to be impossible.

I knew that to be true.

In the meaning to experience', the verb to know is generally used in the
Present or Past Perfect and may be followed by the infinitive of any verb. The in
finitive is used without to in this case.

e.g. She is worried; I've never known her lose her nerve before.
1 had never known Hector behave like this.

 

The infinitive after the verb to help may be used with or with-
out the particle to.

e.g. He said he would have helped me move in.

I was helping him to win as thoroughly as if my happiness
were at stake.

Note. To let somebody know is a set phrase,
e.g. Why didn't you let me know you were coining?
The subject of the infinitive in the function of objective pred-
icative is the noun or pronoun which serves as the object to the
predicate verb (see the examples above). There are instances when
the object of the predicate verb is a reflexive pronoun. Then it in-
dicates that the subject of the infinitive is the same person or
thing as denoted by the subject of the sentence.

e.g. Roger had made himself seem friendly again.

Note. Note the set phrases can't bring oneself to do something and to set one-
self to do something which always require reflexive pronouns as objects.

e.g. But I still can't bring myself to feel the way he does about things.
I had set myself to tell the absolute truth.

§ 194. The infinitive as objective predicative is also used after
a few verbs taking a prepositional object. The most regularly oc-
curring of them are: to appeal to, to call upon, to listen to, to
long for, to look for, to nod to, to rely on, to wait for, to watch
for. After these verbs the infinitive is used with to except for the
verb to listen to which takes an infinitive without to.

e.g. He was looking for someone to help him.

But later, I'd lie awake, watching for the light to come

through the little window.

Her whole life had been spent listening to other people talk.
He nodded to the mechanics to remove the block.
They appealed to him to give up the idea.
They were waiting for dinner to be announced.

Occasionally, the infinitive as objective predicative may be
found after a few verbs which do not regularly require preposition-
al objects. Here belong, for example, such verbs as to arrange, to

ask, to beckon, to cry, to manage, to plan, to provide, to shout, to
sign, to telegraph, to wire and some others. The most commonly used
preposition is for, but occasionally we may also find with or to.
e.g. Then she looked at me and beckoned for me to come over.

By the way, I must arrange for you to meet the old man some

time.

I arranged with the concierge to make my coffee in the morn-
ing and keep the place clean.

I know that she telegraphed to Julia to come and bring me

with her.
They drove up to the verandah steps and shouted to me to

come down.

The subject of the infinitive is always the person or thing de-
noted by the prepositional object (see the examples above).
(For comparison with the ing-form see §§ 222 and 241.)

The Infinitive as Adverbial Modifier
§ 195. The infinitive may serve as an adverbial modifier of a

verb. In this function it is used to express purpose, consequence,

comparison, condition and exception.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted

by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166.

§ 196. The infinitive as adverbial modifier of purpose is al-
ways used with the particle to.

The number of verbs followed by an infinitive of purpose is not
restricted and their lexical character may be quite different. But
they are all alike in one respect — they all express actions deliber-
ately carried out with a definite aim in view. In other words, these
actions are aimed at the realization of the action denoted by the
infinitive. The action of the infinitive follows that of the predi-
cate verb and is unaccomplished as yet.
e.g. I dressed and went out to buy the morning paper.

I came in to see if I could help you pack, Alison.

I did my best to stop her.

He put his head out of the window to get some fresh air.

 

The infinitive of purpose may occasionally be preceded by the
modifiers in order and so as which emphasize the idea of purpose.

e.g. I was silent for a moment in order to give greater force to

my next remark.

Next we slid into the river and had a swim, so as to freshen
up and cool off.

So as is quite common with a negative infinitive of purpose,
however.

e.g. We had gone into the middle of Hyde Park so as not to be

overheard.
She hurried so as not to give him time for reflexion.

The infinitive may also be preceded by other modifiers. Unlike
in order and so as, which only make the idea of purpose more
prominent, the other modifiers serve to add their own specific
shades of meaning.

e.g. He opened his mouth wide as if to speak.

Christine smiled mockingly and turned away, as though to

go out of the room.
He gave me a little smile as much as to say, "You see, I

don't mean any harm."
"He had never cared for that room, hardly going into it from

one year's end to another except to take cigars.
They were waiting in there just to see him.
He told his joke merely to gain time.

The infinitive of purpose generally follows the predicate verb
(see the examples above). But if special stress is laid on the infini-
tive of purpose, it may be placed at the head of the sentence. How-
ever, it is not often found in this position,

e.g. To relieve my feelings I wrote a letter to Robert.

I forgive you. To prove it I'll drop in at your lab some time.

Occasionally the infinitive of purpose is placed between the
subject and the predicate.

e.g. Ann, to pass the time, had left her kitchen to see whether
Mr Faber was all right.

§ 197- The infinitive as adverbial modifier of consequence is
used with the particle to. It is structurally dependent — we find
it in a peculiar sentence pattern the first part of which is (he)
had only to... or (he) had but to... .

e.g. I had only to look at Mother to know the answer.

He had only to open the door to find them anxiously waiting

for him.
Here was romance and it seemed that you had but to stretch

out your hand to touch it.

In this sentence pattern the action of the infinitive is the con-
sequence of the action expressed by the predicate verb — it is suf-
ficient to perform the first action for the second action to follow.
A similar pattern in Russian usually begins with стоило только ... ,

The use of the infinitive of consequence is infrequent.

§ 198. The infinitive as adverbial modifier of comparison is

also structurally dependent. It is preceded by than and modifies a
predicate group containing the comparative degree of an adjective
or adverb. The infinitive is generally used with the particle to,
though sometimes it may be found without it.

e.g. She seemed more anxious to listen to the troubles of others
than to discuss her own.

I should have known better than to expect to find it.

Damn it, I've got more important things to do than look at
the sea.

This function is not of frequent occurrence.

§ 199. The infinitive (with to) may serve as an adverbial modi-
fier of condition. In this case it expresses a condition under which
the action of the predicate verb can be realized. The predicate
verb is, as a rule, used in the form of the Conditional Mood.

e.g. To hear him talk, you would think he was a celebrity.

"He is a popular singer," Monica said. "You wouldn't believe

it, to look at him," remarked Teddy.
The infinitive in this function is not frequent either.

 

§ 200. The infinitive as adverbial modifier of exception denotes
the only possible action that can be performed under the circum-
stances. The use of this infinitive is structurally dependent — it is
preceded by except or but and is generally used in negative or in-
terrogative sentences (after nothing could be done..., he could do
nothing..., what could he do..., he could not help... and the like).
The infinitive is, as a rule, used without to.

e.g. We care for each other and there is nothing to be done about

it, except tell you the truth.
There was nothing to do but escape.
At nineteen minutes to six — I could not help but watch the

clock — the telephone buzzed.
What could he do but smile?

The use of the particle to is an exception.

e.g. Daniel held out his arm to her. She had no choice but to obey.
The infinitive of exception is infrequent.

§ 201. The infinitive may also serve as adverbial modifier of
an adjective. In this case it is always an adverbial modifier of
consequence. The infinitive here has the particle to.

The infinitive of consequence is not lexically dependent — it
can modify any adjective. But it is dependent structurally as it
can be used only in the following cases:

1) With adjectives modified by enough, which are, as a rule,
predicatives in the sentence.

e.g. He was old enough to be her father.

I can't think who'd be stupid enough to side with you.

I hope he's sensible enough to agree to their proposal.

I had known him as a doctor, but was not old enough to have

known him as a friend.
I was young enough for the children not to feel shy and they

chattered merrily about one thing and another.

As is seen from the above examples, the action of the in-
finitive is made possible owing to the sufficient degree of the
Quality expressed by the adjective.

Note. The infinitive can also serve as an adverbial modifier of consequence of
an adverb modified by enough.
e.g. I wish I knew him well enough to judge.

2) With adjectives in the sentence pattern containing the cor-
relative conjunction so ... as.

e.g. He was so fortunate as to escape.

If you are so stupid as to lend him your car you must expect

it to be damaged.

It should be noted that sentences of the following kind have be-
come polite formulas to express requests:

e.g. Would you be so good as to answer the telephone if it rings?
Would you be so kind as to send us your catalogues?
The infinitive in the sentence pattern with the correlative con-
junction so ... as is not of frequent occurrence.

3) With adjectives preceded by too. The adjectives are generally
predicatives in the sentence,
e.g. Everyone seemed to be talking, but I was too shy to take part

in the conversation.

You're too young to start giving up your plans.
She told me she was too tired to go out.
He was too embarrassed for us to ask him about anything.

The action of the infinitive is made impossible owing to the
excessive degree of the quality expressed by the adjective.

Note. The infinitive can also serve as an adverbial modifier of consequence of
an adverb preceded by too.
e.g. He liked her too much to cause her any trouble.

(For comparison with the ing-form see §§ 223-225.)

§ 202. The subject of the infinitive in all the above described
adverbial functions is the same person or thing as denoted by the
subject of the sentence (see the examples above). But the infinitive
may also have a subject of its own with which it forms the so-
called absolute construction.

The absolute construction with the infinitive is introduced by
the preposition with. The infinitive is used with the particle to.

 

The absolute construction has the function of adverbial modi-
fier of attending circumstances in the sentence.

e.g. It was a quiet house now, with only his secretary to see to

his meals and to take care of his business affairs.
Miss Heythorp is below, Sir, with a carriage to take you home.

As is seen from the above examples, there are two parallel ac-
tions in this sentence pattern: one of them is expressed by the
predicate verb, the other by the infinitive. Each action has its own
subject.

The infinitive absolute construction is infrequent and found
only in literary style.

(For comparison with the ing-form see § 226.)

The Infinitive as Attribute

§ 203. The infinitive in the function of attribute immediately
follows its head-noun and is used with the particle to.

e.g. There is only one way to do it.
You are just the man to do it.
He gave her permission to leave.
Have you any complaint to make against her?
He was touched by the man's desire to help him.
Whether you want to do that or not is a matter for you to
decide.

Note 1. The infinitive to come undergoes change of meaning — it means 'буду-
щий, предстоящий'.

e.g. He looked happy, as if he were dreaming of pleasures to come.
She did not realize it for months to come.

 

 Note 2. If the infinitive is placed before a noun, it is part of a combination
which tends to become a set phrase. The number of such phrases is limited, e.g.
what-to-do advice, this never-to-be-forgotten day, a much-to-be-longed-for place, an
ev er-to-be remembered occasion and the like.
Although the infinitive mainly serves as an attribute of nouns
proper, it is also freely used with certain noun equivalents. Thus it
is typical of the infinitive to modify the indefinite pronouns some-
bo dy, nobody, anybody, everybody, someone, no one, anyone, every-
on e, something, nothing, anything, everything as well as the in-
terrogative pronouns what and who.

e.g. "Have you got anything to eat?" Katherine asked-
The sergeant said they had nothing to do there.
It's been wonderful having someone to help.
"I haven't finished yet." "What is there to finish?"

The infinitive is also freely combined with ordinal numerals
(mainly with the first) and the substantivized adjective the last
which always have the function of the predicative in the sentence,
e.g. He was always the first to enter the dining-room and the last

to leave.
Andrew was the third to be interviewed.

The infinitive also serves as an attribute to nouns which are
preceded by ordinal numerals or the adjective last.
e.g. He was the first man ever to discuss the philosophy of sci-
ence with Erik.
The film star Ann Wilson is the 34th actress to play this

part on the London stage.
Dear Steve, your last letter to reach me was two months old.

The infinitive may also serve as an attribute of pronouns and
pronominal expressions of quantity such as much, little, enough,
no more, little more, a great deal, a lot, plenty, etc.

e.g. I've got a lot to be thankful for.

I thought you had quite enough to do looking after the house

and so forth.

You are leaving me very little to say.
You've got so much to learn.

Occasionally the infinitive is used to modify the prop-word one.
e.g. If you, boys, want to go on I'm not the one to spoil the game.
He wasn't an easy one to make friends with.

§ 204. The infinitive in the function of attribute is char-
acterized by specific meanings. They are determined by the rela-
tion between the head-word and the infinitive. These relations may

be of two kinds:

1) The head-word may be either the subject or the object of
the action expressed by the infinitive. When the head-word serves

 

as the subject of the infinitive it may be either active or passive,
depending on the active (a) or passive (b) form of the infinitive.

e.g. a) He was not the man to draw back when his dignity was
concerned.

She pitied the poor young man for having no one to look

after him.

b) Remember, Roger is a man to be watched.
There is nothing to be gained by pretending.

The head-word of an active infinitive may also be an object of
the action expressed by this infinitive.

e.g. Love? It's a funny word to use.

Except in little things, he was the hardest man to influence.
There was really nothing to fear.

In all the above examples we find the infinitive of verbs re-
quiring a direct object. If a verb requires a prepositional object,
the preposition follows the verb.

e.g. I'm not a very easy man to get on with.
I had nothing to worry about.

He realized that he didn't know anyone here to talk to except

Max.

If the infinitive is a link-verb followed by an adjective which
requires a prepositional object, the preposition is placed after the
adjective.

e.g. We have, all of us here, a good deal to be thankful for,
I'm sure you have nothing to be afraid of.
I'm afraid I haven't much to be proud of.

If the head-word is the subject, active or passive, or the object
of the action denoted by the infinitive, the latter acquires modal
meaning. Depending on the context, it may denote either possibil-
ity (a) or necessity (b).

e-g. a) Marion was not the type to put on weight.
He was not the man to do rash things.

There was nothing to be seen or heard, not even a barking
dog.

I had nobody to talk to.

Is there a place to get something to eat near here?
b) Whenever there is any packing to be done, my wife doesn't

feel well.

I've got something dreadful to tell you.
There was a quarter of an hour to kill, so we walked down

the river.

There is always a question or two to be considered.
I've got enough to do without bothering about you.

Note that the infinitive is not lexically dependent here. It can
modify practically any noun, concrete or abstract, as well as noun
equivalents (see the examples above).

Note. There is, however, one exception to the rule — the ordinal numerals and
the last (or nouns modified by them) always serve as the subject of the infinitive
but the infinitive does not acquire the additional modal meanings of possibility or
necessity in this case.

e.g. He was the first to speak.

2) The head-noun may be neither the subject nor the object of
the action expressed by the infinitive as attribute. In this case it
acquires appositive meaning, i.e. it serves to explain the meaning
of its head-noun. That is why it can modify only those abstract
nouns that admit of or sometimes even require an explanation of
their meaning. So the use of the infinitive with appositive mean-
ing is lexically dependent.

The number of nouns with which it is used is quite conside-
rable. The most commonly occurring of them are: ability, advice,
attempt, authority (= right), capacity, chance, command, compul
sion, decision, demand, desire, determination, duty, eagerness, ef-
fort, excuse, failure, freedom, impulse, inclination, instruction,
intention, invitation, keenness, license, longing, matter, motion
(= proposal), necessity, need, obligation, occasion, offer, opportuni
ty, option, order, patience, permission, possibility, power (= right),
precaution, promise, proposal, readiness, recommendation, refusal,
reluctance, resistance, resolution, right, sign, suggestion, tempta
tion, tendency, urge, way, will, willingness, wish and some others.

e.g. He had a keen desire to learn.
He had an impulse to run away.
He made an effort to collect himself.

 

He accepted willingly my invitation to remain for a few days

in my apartment.

He's given me permission to talk to you myself.
You've no right to ask those questions.
Her eyes had a tendency to shift from point to point about

the room.

He bit back the urge to tell a lie.
Ralph was glad of a chance to change the subject.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166. (For comparison with the ing-
iorm see §§ 227-230, 242.)

§ 205. When the head-noun is neither the subject nor the ob-
ject of the action expressed by the infinitive in the attributive
function, the latter may acquire the meaning of consequence.
This is found in certain sentence patterns or when the head-noun
has special modifiers.

1) In the sentence pattern "have (get, possess, lack) + the +
noun +■ infinitive".

e.g. He had the courage to tell them what he thought of them.
She had the nerve to tell me a lie!

The action of the infinitive is made possible owing to the qual-
ity expressed by the head-noun.

The infinitive is lexically dependent in this sentence pattern —
it modifies a number of nouns that denote mental or moral quali-
ties. The most commonly occurring of them are: assurance, audac-
ity, authority, cheek, courage, cruelty, decency, energy, experi
ence, foolishness, good (bad) taste, guts, heart (= courage),
humility, ignorance, imagination, impertinence, ingenuity, intelli-
gence, knowledge, nerve, patience, power, presence of mind, sense,
spirit, strength, stupidity, tolerance, vanity, willingness, will pow-
er, wit(s) and some others.

e.g. They had the cheek to run away.

Why haven't you got the wit to invent something?
She lacks the knowledge to do it the way it should be done.
I can't think how you can have the impertinence to remain here.
She possessed the will power to achieve her aim.

The subject of the infinitive in this function is the same as
that of the predicate verb.

2) When the infinitive serves as an attribute of a noun modi-
fied by enough. The noun can have different functions in the sen-
tence. The infinitive is not lexically dependent here.

e.g. There wasn't enough air to stir the leaves of the lime trees.
He isn't fool enough to believe that sort of thing.
We need every man who has got enough spirit to say what he

really thinks.
I noticed her curious trick of throwing questions at me when I

could not have enough knowledge to answer.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166.

3) When the inifinitive serves as an attribute of a noun pred-
icative modified by an adjective that is preceded by too. The infin-
itive is not lexically dependent here. (For the place of the article
see "Articles", § 66.)

e.g. He was too clever a man to be bluffed.

This is too serious a business to be trifled with.

The action of the infinitive is made impossible owing to the
excessive degree of the quality expressed by the adjective that
modifies the head-noun.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted

by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166.

4) In a sentence pattern where we find the correlative conjunc-
tion such ... as.

e.g. He can't have been such a fool as to give them a definite an-
swer right away.

The use of the infinitive of consequence in the last three sen-
tence patterns is not of frequent occurrence.

§ 206. The infinitive may be used as attribute in a special sen-
tence pattern with a formal it as subject. The infinitive is lexical-
ly dependent here — it can modify a more or less limited number
of nouns. Among them we find such se-mantically "pale" nouns as
action, business, experience, idea, matter, problem, question, stuff

 

task, thing, way. As a rule, these nouns are modified by adjectives
which are semantically more important than the nouns them-
selves. The most frequently occurring other nouns are: achieve-
ment, (dis)advantage, comfort, consolation, cruelty, custom, de
light, desire, dream, duty, embarrassment, encouragement, error,
folly, frustration, fun, habit, hell, honour, intention, job, joy, luxu-
ry, madness, miracle, misfortune, mistake, nonsense, outrage, pity,
plan, pleasure, privilege, relief, rule, shame, surprise, torture, treat,
triumph, trouble, wonder and some others. The infinitive has ap-
positive meaning in this sentence pattern.

e.g. It's a good idea to use both methods.

It's our job to worry about that, isn't it?

It was a mistake to deny it.

But it was a surprise to hear him insisting on it.

It was utter nonsense to suggest that he was lying.

It was my intention to show her how greatly she had underes-
timated me.

"It must be a terrible thing to have received a classical edu-
cation," she said soberly.

It's a great disadvantage to be held back by middle-class mo-
rality.

It was a bitter experience for Philip to learn that his best
friend had let him down.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166.

(For comparison with the ing-form see §§ 231 and 243.)

§ 207. The infinitive is also used as attribute in a sentence
pattern with it as a formal object of a verb. It is mainly found af-
ter the verbs to find, to make and to think.

e.g. I think Helena finds it rather a lot of work to clean the place.
Everyone now called him Reggie, but he still found it an ef-
fort to get used to it.

He thought it great fun to be out boating.
He made it a point to call her by her first name.
He had made it a rule to get up at sunrise.
He found it a good idea to send them a telegram.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the infinitive see "Verbs", § 166.

The construction is not of frequent use in English though it is

not restricted to any style.

(For comparison with the ing-form see § 232.)

The Infinitive as Parenthesis

§ 208. The infinitive as parenthesis is used with to. It is gener-
ally a set phrase, such as so to speak, strange (needless) to say, to
be quite frank, to make matters worse, to put it mildly (crudely),
to say the least, to tell the truth and some others.

The infinitive phrase as parenthesis serves either to show the
speaker's attitude towards the situation described in the sentence
or to attract attention to some fact or to sum up an idea, and, last
but not least, it may serve as some sort of reservation on the part
of the speaker.

e.g. To tell the truth, I'm sick and tired of this nonsense.
To put it mildly, she is just a bit inquisitive.
To make matters worse, it began to rain and soon we got wet

to the skin.

When they found out I was not one of them, so to speak, they
politely turned from me and ignored me.

The place of the parenthetic phrase in the sentence is not
fixed though it is actually often found at the head of the sen-
tence. In writing it is marked off by a comma.

The Use of the ing-form

The ing-form as Subject

§ 209. The ing-form in the function of subject usually express-
es permanent or recurrent actions simultaneous with the action
expressed by the predicate verb,
e.g. Looking after one man is really enough, but two is rather an

undertaking.
Passing a law about equal rights doesn't necessarily mean

that women get them.

 

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

Sentences with the ing-form as subject have certain structural
peculiarities:

1) We find the ing-form as subject only in declarative sentenc-
es. It is never used in interrogative sentences.

2) The ing-form as subject is always placed at the head of the
sentence. It is never preceded by any secondary parts.

3) The ing-form as subject is occasionally found in sentences
beginning with there is, but its use is restricted to negative sen-
tences where it is usually preceded by no. This pattern is common
in spoken English.

e.g. There was no arguing with her about it when she had made

up her mind.

Well, there is no avoiding him now.
Of course, I am scared to hell. There's no denying that.

On the whole, however, the use of the ing-form as subject is
mainly found in literary English but even here it is not of fre-
quent occurrence.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 181 and 235.)

The ing-form as Predicative

§ 210. The ing-form as predicative is usually used after the
link-verbs to be, to mean and to look and has appositive meaning.

e.g. The important part is helping people so that they can live

normal lives.

I can't ask him for help. That would mean telling him every-
thing about you and myself.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

The ing-form as predicative is often preceded by like. It also
has appositive meaning here, but the explanation is made by way
of comparison.

e.g. To read his novels was like swimming in a lake so clear that
you could see the bottom.

At the time their quarrel looked like going on for ever.
Andrew looked like a small boy being teased.

Instances of the ing-form as predicative are scarce.
Note. The ing-form as predicative is sometimes adjectivized.

e.g. That must be enormously exciting.

The journey was slow, rough and tiring and took us eleven days.

Hugh's tone got more and more insulting.

If the ing-form, were not adjectivized it would be taken for a continuous form.
e.g. The quarrel ought to be stopped. They are insulting each other.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 182 and 236.)

The ing-form as Predicate
§ 211. The ing-iorm, as predicate is restricted to two sentence

patterns:

1) interrogative sentences beginning with what about and how

about and implying suggestion,

e.g. What about going to London?

How about seeing what they are doing now?

2) exclamatory sentences expressing indignation,
e.g. But letting him do it!

Sentences of both kinds are quite common in spoken English.
(For comparison with the infinitive see § 183.)

The ing-form as Part of a Compound Verbal Predicate
§ 212. The ing form is lexically dependent in this function —
it is used after a number of verbs denoting motion or position.
They are: to come, to disappear, to go, to go out (round, around,
about), to lie, to sit, to sit around (round), to stand, to stand
around (round).

e.g. They came rushing in, laughing.

They had often gone fishing in those days.
Are we going out dancing tonight?

 

He went about sniffing the air but there was no trace of gas.

They all sat around feeling very proud.

"I'm ready," he said to Maurice and stood waiting.

Next morning I woke early and lay listening to the clatter of

dishes in the kitchen.
He disappeared walking, there was no noise, nothing.

The two verbs of the combination form a close sense-unit. The
first component has a weakened meaning and mainly serves as a fi-
nite verb, while the meaning of the ing-form is quite prominent
and determines the meaning of the whole combination.

e.g. In that mood I entered the bedroom, where Sheila was lying

reading, her book near the bedside lamp.

Sometimes she fell into despondency and sat doing nothing at
all, neither reading nor sewing for half an hour at a time.

Note. Note the following set phrases:

e.g. I burst out laughing, and the others followed.
All at once she burst out crying.

(For comparison with the infinitive see § 184.)

The ing-form as a Second Action Accompanying

the astion of the predicate verb.  the Action of the Predicate Verb

§ 213. The ing-form may express a second action accom-
anying the action expressed by the predicate verb. The subject of
the ing-form is the same as the subject of the sentence.
The ing-form in this function refers not to the predicate verb
alone but to the whole predicate group. It does not form any close
sense-unit with the predicate verb and can be found with verbal
as well as with nominal predicates.
The ing-form is not lexically dependent in this function.

e.g. They ran up the stairs brimming with excitement.

ou can't just sit there being talked about.
I felt uneasy being alone with him in that large house.
Martha was upstairs getting ready.
When I looked up he was still there waiting for me.
She was sitting in the doorway of the tent reading.

As a rule, the ing-form follows the predicate group (see the
examples above). But it may also be placed at the head of the sen-
tence or between the subject and the predicate,
e.g. Coming into my office one evening in the autumn, he said

shyly: "Doing anything tonight?"
Watching them with bold, excited eyes, Simon discussed their

characters.

I made to go out, but Roger, frowning, shook his head.
In the taxi going home, Margaret, holding my hand against

her cheek, said: "You made a mistake, you know."

Note 1. When the ing-form is used to denote a second action, it is often sepa-
rated by a comma from the rest of the sentence.

Note 2. The ing-forms of certain verbs have come to be used as prepositions or
conjunctions. Care should be taken to distinguish them from the real ing forms.

e.g. Several officials, including me, had been invited.

He says he will be at the meeting place for three nights running next week

beginning on Monday.
Well, considering that Hector's a politician, you can't say that he's altogether

a fool.

Presuming the old man gets better and comes back to the job, then what?

Supposing you sold the land, what could you get for it?

"That will be all right, barring accidents" I told him at once.

Note 3. Note that taking all things into consideration (account) has become a
set phrase,
e.g. Taking all things into consideration, I decided to tear my letter up.

In the vast majority of sentences we find a simple ing-iorm
which expresses an action simultaneous with that of the predicate
verb (see the examples above). Yet if both the predicate verb and
the ing-form are expressed by terminative verbs, the action of the
ing-form precedes that of the predicate verb. The ing-form in this
case is placed before the predicate,
e.g. Turning to his hostess, he remarked: "It's been a nice day."

(=He first turned to his hostess and then remarked.)
Recovering from his excitement, he became practical again.
Smith, turning to him, gave a serious contented smile.
The use of the perfect ing-form, though quite possible, is not
of frequent occurrence. It shows that the action of the ing-form

 

 

precedes that of the predicate verb. The Perfect ing-form is often
placed before the predicate verb.
e.g. Having duly arrived in Scotland, he took a train the next day
to Manchester.

Having cut her dirty bandage, John started tying her hand.

Having gradually wasted his small fortune, he preferred to
live on the generosity of others rather than work.
Francis was there before me, having come by the morning
train.

Norman, having looked at his watch, slapped the play-script
shut and put it on his chair.

As has been said, the subject of the ing form is usually the
person or thing denoted by the subject of the sentence (see the ex-
amples above). Occasionally, however, we come across instances of
the ing form whose subject is expressed elsewhere, for instance,
by one of the secondary parts of the sentence.

e.g. Walking beside his friend, it seemed to Norman that life was
not so bad after all.

But back in his office, looking down at his desk, his sense of
well-being left him.

I love you like hell, Bridget. And, loving you like hell, you
can't expect me to enjoy seeing you get married to a pot-
bellied, pompous little peer who loses his temper when he
doesn't win at tennis.

But searching for i's not dotted, t's uncrossed in his letter,
it came to him that all he had written were lies, big lies
poured over the paper like a thick syrup.

The above use of the ing-form is not common. Since usually
the subject of the ing-form is the same person or thing as the sub-
ject of the sentence, it is not easy to identify the subject of the
ing-form in sentences of the above kind. Hence, the term dangling
o r unattached is applied to this ing-form in grammar.

The ing-form denoting a second action in the kind of sentences
illustrated above is typical of literary style where its use is quite
extensive, but it is hardly ever used in spoken English.

However, the ing-form denoting a second action is quite com-
mon in spoken English after certain predicate groups. Here belong

the verbs to spend and to waste when they are followed by the
noun time or some other expressions of time, and also after to
have a good (hard, jolly, etc.,) time, to have difficulty, to have
trouble and some others,
e.g. She did little typing herself, but spent her time correcting the

work of the four girls she employed.
Are you going to spend your life saying "ought", like the

rest of our moralists?
She told me that she would often spend a whole morning

working upon a single page.
Well, I'm sure I don't know why I waste time cooking a big

meal for this family if no one wants to eat it.
He had a good time dancing at the club.
They had difficulty finding his address.

In spoken English there is another sentence pattern in which
the ing-form denoting a second action is also quite common. The
sentence pattern includes the verb to be followed by an indication
of place: to be here (there), to be in, to be in the room (kitchen,
garden, office, etc.,), to be out, to be upstairs (downstairs) and the
like.

e.g. Mother is out shopping.

Pat is downstairs talking to Father.
Miss Smith was in her office typing.

(For comparison with the infinitive see § 185.)

The ing-form as Object

§ 214. The ing-form may be used as a direct object of a verb.
It is lexically dependent in this function and found after the fol-
lowing verbs: to admit, to avoid, to begin, to cease, to consider, to
continue, to delay, to deny, to endure, to enjoy, to escape, to fin-
ish, to forget, to give up, to go on, to hate, to intend, to keep, to
keep on, to leave off, to like, to love, to mention, to mind (in neg-
ative and interrogative sentences), to neglect, to postpone, to pre
fer, to propose (= to suggest), to put off, to quit, to recall, to rec-
ollect, to regret, to remember, to resent, to resume, to risk, to
start, to stop, to suggest, to try and some others.

 

e.g. English grammar is very difficult and few writers have

avoided making mistakes in it.
The rest of us had finished eating, but Cave had cut himself

another slice of cheese.

Roger went on speaking with energy, calculation and warmth.
He kept on smiling at her and speaking.
He drank his beer and resumed reading his paper.
I was in low spirits and even considered going away.
David Rubin did not much like being" called Professor.

In addition to the verbs mentioned in the list above, the ing-
iorm as object is used after certain modal phrases in the negative
form: can't bear, can't face, can't fancy, can't imagine, can't re
sist, can't stand and can't help.

e.g. They can't bear being humiliated.

He could not face being talked about.

Later in the day she couldn't resist calling Mrs Spark to find

out the details of the tragedy.
He couldn't help asking me: "Isn't there anything else you

can do for Roger?"

Besides, the ing-form is also used after the set phrase to feel
like.

e.g. He felt like giving up the whole affair.

I didn't feel like talking to him after what had happened.

The subject of the ing-form in this function is the same as
that of the predicate verb.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 186 and 237.)

§ 215. The ing-form may also serve as a direct object of an ad-
jective. It is lexically dependent in this case and found only after
two adjectives — busy and worth.

e.g. The foreman was busy shouting orders and instructions.

The children were busy doing all the things they had been

told not to do.

He thought my idea was worth trying.
It was not a witticism worth repeating.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 187 and 238.)

§ 216. As a prepositional object of a verb, the ing-form is also
lexically dependent. It is found after verbs that take a preposition-
al object. These verbs may be divided into three groups:

1) verbs followed by one prepositional object,

2) verbs followed by a non-prepositional object and a preposi-
tional object,

3) verbs followed by two prepositional objects.

I. The verbs of the first group are closely connected with a
preposition whose meaning is often weakened. The following is
the list of the most commonly used verbs: to admit to, to agree to,
to aim at, to apologize for, to approve of, to believe in, to bother
about, to care for, to come of, to come round to, to complain of, to
confess to, to consist of/in, to count on, to despair of, to dream of,
to end in, to forget about, to feel up to, to get to, to get down to, to
go back to, to grumble about, to hesitate about, to insist on, to lead
to, to long for, to mean by, to persist in, to plan on, to reckon on,
to refrain from, to return to, to result in/from, to save from, to
succeed in, to take to, to talk of, to tell of, to think of/about, to
threaten with, to worry about and some others.

e.g. What did she mean by boasting like that?

I didn't think twice about telling her: we had no secrets.
It does not seem impossible that the biologist will in the fu-
ture succeed in creating life in his laboratory.
The readers of a book insist on knowing the reasons of action.
Let's get down to signing the papers.
Towards the end of the summer, they visited me together

several times, and then Norman took to coming alone.
I had never been on an aeroplane and worried about being

strapped down.
I must apologize for having interrupted a conference.

Here also belong certain set phrases, such as: to find excuses for,
to have no doubt about, to look forward to, to lose time in, to make a
point of, to plead guilty to, to take pride in and some others.
e.g. I took pride in making my lodgings pretty and comfortable.
He was taking risks in speaking in that tone to them.
I expect you are looking forward to seeing your fiance again-
Special attention should be given to set phrases with the verb
to be which are treated as verb equivalents.

 

e.g. Would you be up to playing with us this afternoon?

She was just on the point of going away when Betty Vane
came in.

"Would you be in favour of investigating the matter?" Mon-
ty asked.

The subject of the action expressed by the ing-form is generally
the person denoted by the subject of the sentence (see the examples
above). But occasionally we find an ing-complex (see "Verbs", §66).

e.g. I don't in the least object to your playing practical jokes on

other people.
She complained about the porridge being lumpy.

The use of an ing-complex seems to be generally required by
the verbs to approve of, to disapprove of, to grumble about and
some others. (We usually approve of or grumble about some other
people's actions — hence the agent of the ing-form is expected to
be a person or thing other than the one denoted by the subject of
the sentence.)

e.g. He could not approve of Guy's hiding himself away.
We can't grumble about things being dull, can we?

II. Verbs requiring a non-prepositional and prepositional object
are in general less numerous. Besides, not all of them take an ing-
form as their prepositional object (e.g. to explain something to
somebody, to dictate something to somebody, etc.).

Of the verbs taking a non-prepositional and prepositional object
expressed by an ing form, the most commonly occurring are: to ac-
cuse somebody of, to amuse somebody with, to ask somebody about,
to charge somebody with, to coax somebody into, to give something
to, to give something for, to invite somebody into, to keep some
body from, to mutter something about, to persuade somebody into,
to remind somebody of, to restrict oneself to, to save somebody
from, to say something about, to stop somebody from, to suspect
somebody of, to talk somebody into/out of, to tell something about
and some others.

e.g- I am prepared for anyone to accuse me of being cowardly.

It had been easy to coax Margaret into inviting the Morgans
to stay with us for a week.

Did she suspect them of trying to cheat her?

I hope you won't let Peg talk you out of joining me?

It is lack of imagination that prevents people from seeing

things from any point of view but their own.
Will you be able to keep those fellows from making any more

fuss?

Of all the prepositions there is one that acquires particular
importance in this construction as it may be found with a consid-
erable number of verbs and is, consequently, of frequent occur-
rence. It is the preposition for. It generally serves to indicate the
cause of the action denoted by the predicate verb.

For is found after the following verbs: to blame somebody, to
excuse somebody, to forgive somebody, to hate somebody, to like
somebody, to love somebody, to pay somebody, to reprimand some
body, to reproach somebody, to scold somebody, to thank somebody
and some others.

e.g. I thought you had just been blaming me for being neutral.
I'm not going to reproach you for interrupting the rehearsal.
I was going to thank you for looking after him till I came.
The major reprimanded him for being late.
He scolded me for not having let him know.
The subject of the ing-form in this sentence pattern is the per-
son denoted by the direct object, as in She tried to talk him into
doing it (see also the examples above).

After verbs of speaking we often find an ing-complex.

e.g. I told them about Gustav's wanting to come with me.

I said something about Jane being in love with him, but he

would not talk about her.
I muttered something about its being a pity.

III. The number of verbs requiring two prepositional objects of
which the second is an ing-form is limited. The ing-form is also in-
troduced by the preposition for, as with some verbs above,
e.g. I entered the classroom and apologized to the teacher for be-
ing late.
I should have been vexed with you for thinking me such a

fool.

 

§ 217. The ing-form as a prepositional object is also found af-
ter various kinds of adjectives — adjectives proper, predicative

adjectives and adjectivized participles. The most commonly occur-

ring of them are: absorbed in, (un)accustomed to, afraid of,
amused at, angry with, annoyed at, ashamed of, aware of, (in)capable

of, careful about/in, careless of, certain of, clever at, (un)conscious
of, content with, delighted at, different from, embarrassed at, ex
cited about, far from, fond of, fortunate in, frightened of, furious
at, given to, good (better) at, grateful for, happy in/at, interested
in, irritated at, keen on, miserable at, nice about, pleased at, proud

of, responsible for, right in, scared at/of, set against, set on, sick
of, skilled in/at, slow in, sorry for, successful in/at, sure of, sur-
prised at, thankful for, tired of, touched at, upset at, (un)used to,
worried about, wrong in, etc.

e.g. If only I were capable of doing that!

We were never very careful about taking precautions.

"You look for trouble, don't you?" "Only because I'm pretty

certain of finding it.

" I was fairly content with letting things go as they were.
Somehow I wasn't too interested in trying to get back into

that work.

I was tired of doing much the same thing every day.
"I'm sorry for giving you so much trouble," she said.
I felt that he was excited about showing me his new car.
He was unconscious of Anna standing beside him.

For means of expressing the subject of the action denoted by
the ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 187 and 238.)

§ 218. The ing-form may serve as object of a verb in a special
sentence pattern with it as a formal subject. The use of the ing-
form in this sentence pattern is found after a very limited number
of verbs and set phrases (which are verb equivalents) but it is
typical of spoken English.

e.g- He said to his wife: "It doesn't matter much being liked, for

this kind of life."

When it comes down to getting a job with a living wage at-
tached to it, he's prepared to put his theories in his pocket.

She was, as her colleagues said, "good on paper", but when it
came to speaking in committees she was so apprehensive
that she spent sleepless hours the night before.
For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the ing-form see § 166.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 189 and 239.)

§ 219. The ing-form may be used as a direct object of an adjec-
tive in a sentence pattern with if as a formal subject. This kind of
object is also lexically dependent — it regularly occurs after it is
worth.

e.g. It is worth remembering that he has once been a boxer.
It is worth finding it out.

Sometimes the ing-form is found after a number of other ad-
jectives such as amusing, banal, comfortable, difficult, dreary,
easy, great, hopeless, lovely, nice, odd, pleasant, strange, tough,
useless, wonderful, etc.

e.g. It was difficult getting him to do it.

It won't be easy finding our way back. There's not much moon.
It will be rather nice seeing him again.
It was useless arguing with Jane.

But the ing-form occurs after these adjectives only in spoken
English, and such sentences are often emotionally coloured. As a
general rule, we find an infinitive here (see "Verbs", § 190).

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the ing-form see § 166.

§ 220. The ing-form is sometimes found in a sentence pattern
with it as a formal object of the verbs to find, to make and to
think. The formal it in this case is followed by an adjective.

e.g. He found it worth reminding her of her promise.
He thought it very odd my leaving when I did.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denote
by the ing-form see § 166.

(For comparison with the infinitive see § 191.)

 

The ing-form as Subjective Predicative

§ 221. The ing-form as subjective predicative is lexically de-
pendent. It is found after a limited number of verbs in the pas-
sive. These verbs are: to catch, to find, to hear, to leave, to no-
tice, to report, to see, to set, to show, to watch.

e.g. I felt I had been caught boasting.

The baby was found sitting on the floor.

The old woman was heard shrieking in short bursts like a
ship in the fog.

When the door closed, Monty and I were left looking at each
other.

About that time a hurricane was reported moving out of the
Caribbean in our direction.

Here also belong a few verbs after which the ing-form is intro-
duced by as. They are: to accept, to consider, to explain, to guaran-
tee, to mention, to regard, to take, to treat, to understand, Here
also belong the verbs to speak of and to think of which retain
their prepositions in this sentence pattern.

e.g. The Browns did not entertain and were spoken of in the dis-
trict as being "poor as church mice".

Janet and I became very friendly, and at school we were con-
sidered as going together.

The use of the ing-form as subjective predicative is not of fre-
quent occurrence.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 192 and 240.)

The ing-form as Objective Predicative

§ 222. The ing-form as objective predicative is lexically depen-
dent — it is used after a number of transitive verbs in the active
followed by an object which is expressed by a noun or a pronoun.
The following are the most frequently used verbs taking a direct
object: to call, to catch, to discover, to feel, to find, to hear, to get,
to imagine, to keep, to leave, to (dis)like, to notice, to picture, to
see to send, to set, to stop, to watch, to want.

e.g. I felt him looking at me now and again.

When he arrived he found me reading Tom Jones.

Just as I got to the end of the corridor, I heard my telephone

ringing again.

Ellen had noticed me talking with the landlady.
He saw me watching him.
One afternoon in August I saw something that surprised me

and set me thinking.

This construction is also found after two verbs taking a prepo-
sitional object — to listen to and to look at.
e.g. We opened the door for a moment and looked out at the

windy night and listened to the trees groaning.
He looked at Jane wiping her tear-wet face.
Here also belong a few verbs after which the ing-form is intro-
duced by as: to accept, to consider, to explain, to guarantee, to
mention, to regard, to speak of, to take, to think of, to treat, to un
derstand.
e.g. You took his statement as being quite in order.

He has spoken of your relatives as though he would never ac-
cept them as being his.
We always thought of him as being "promising."

With all the above verbs, the object that precedes the ing-iorm
is expressed by a noun in the common case or by a personal pro-
noun in the objective case, and serves as subject of the action de-
noted by the ing form. But there are a number of other verbs after
which the object may be expressed either in the above described
way or by a noun in the genitive case or a possessive pronoun.
These verbs are: to appreciate, to dread, to excuse, to fancy, to for-
get, to forgive, to hate, to have, to imagine, to mind, to miss, to par-
don, to prevent, to recall, to remember, to resent, to (mis)understand
and also can't bear, can't help and to catch sight of.
e.g. Forgive my (me) interrupting you, Mr Passant, but with a
school record like yours I'm puzzled why you don't try for
a university scholarship?

I appreciate your (you) coming to my defense.
Do you recall Bayard's (Bayard) doing that?
(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 193 and 241.)

 

The ing-form as Adverbial Modifier

§ 223. The ing-form can serve as an adverbial modifier of a
verb. In this case it is preceded by a conjunction or a preposition
which lend it adverbial meanings, such as time, concession, condi-
tion, attending circumstances, manner, cause and some others.
The adverbial meaning of the ing-form is determined by the mean-
ing of the preceding conjunction or preposition. The ing-form is
not lexically dependent here — it may be used after any verb. For
the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted by the
ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

§224. The ing-form may be preceded by the conjunctions
while, when, once, if, as though, as if, though, than, as well as
and the correlative conjunctions as...as and not so...as.

While and when lend the ing-form the adverbial meaning of
time, emphasizing the idea of simultaneousness of its action with
that of the predicate verb. While shows that both actions are tak-
ing place at a given moment or period of time (a); when usually
serves to express recurrent actions simultaneous with the action
of the predicate verb (b).

e.g. a) He continued to speak while walking down the path.

The photograph showed himself, shielding his eyes against

the sun while sitting on a swing.

b) She picked up Butler's heavy spectacles which she em-
ployed always when reading and put them on.
Often, when boasting of his deceits, he sounded childlike
and innocent.

The conjunctions as though and as if serve to show that the
person denoted by the subject of the sentence appears to be per-
forming the action indicated by the ing-iorm: there is something
in the manner or in the behaviour of the person that gives the im-
pression that the action is being performed by him/her.

e.g. Lena gave me a very long look indeed as though seeing me

for the first time.
Much of the afternoon I looked out of the window, as though

thinking, but not really thinking.
He listened as though brooding.
She stopped speaking as if waiting for him to speak.

The use of the other conjunctions is infrequent.

e.g. Himself a man of little or no education, though possessing

remarkable shrewdness, he placed little value on what he

called book knowledge.

He always dropped in if passing by their house on a wet night.
I've got a comfortable home to take you to, and you'll be your

own mistress, which is much better than being in service.
Mary brought in the coffee and when she had gone he inhaled

the steam of it. It was as good as drinking it.
Nothing is so dangerous as being too modern.

The use of the ing-form in this function is found mainly in lit-
erary style and even there it is not frequent.

Note. The ing-form may acquire adverbial meaning even when it is not preced-
ed by a conjunction. But this use of the ing-form is still less frequent. For example,
in the sentences below the ing-form has the following meanings:

cause — Seeing their uneasiness Mrs Norris softened and smiled.

Knowing he could not go to Alice he tried to telephone her.
time — I know we shall break our necks one night walking across the field,
manner — They walked by the lake holding hands.

concession — But why did he marry her, feeling as he did about everything?
condition — Oh, do go upstairs, Lizzy! You'll only catch a cold, hanging
around the passage.

§ 225. The ing-form may be preceded by the prepositions after,
before, besides, by, except for, for fear of, for the sake of, from, in,
instead of, on, on the verge of, through, without and some others
The most frequently used of them is without showing that an ac-
tion which may be logically expected to accompany the action of
the predicate verb does not take place.

e.g. The bus passed us without stopping.

In a mutter he thanked her without raising his eyes.
I watched her for a little while without being seen.
Then he left us without saying good-bye.

As is seen from the above examples, the ing-form is placed af-
ter the predicate verb. Its position at the beginning of the sentence
or between the subject and predicate, though possible, is unusual.

e.g. Slowly, without turning his head, he pulled himself to a half-
sitting position.

 

Roger, without turning to me, said in a curt, flat and even
tone, "There may possibly be trouble."

A synonymous construction with not preceding an ing-iorm
does not imply the idea that the action is logically expected. Like
any other ing-iorm, it simply denotes a second action. Only in this
case it is in the negative form (see "Verbs", § 213).

e.g. I returned to the drawing-room, and stood preoccupied, not
noticing acquaintances about the room, with my back to
the fire.

We had both sat for a long time, not speaking; in the quiet I
knew she was not reading.

The ing-form preceded by not is typical of literary style,
whereas the ing-form preceded by without is in common use in lit-
erary as well as in spoken English.

Another frequently occurring preposition which may precede
the ing-form is by. In this case the action denoted by the ing-iorm
expresses a means or a method of performing the action of the
predicate verb. It may also indicate the manner in which the action
of the predicate verb is carried out.

e.g. You begin learning a language by listening to the new sounds.
He greeted me noisily, but I cut him short by giving him the

telegram.

I don't want to distress her by telling her that you have be-
haved like a cad.

"I have my dignity to think of." "One often preserves that
best by putting it in one's pocket."

This ing-form is generally placed after the predicate verb,
though its front position is occasionally possible.

e.g. By keeping quiet, she might save herself a lot of trouble.

The ing-form introduced by instead of is also in common use.
It is characterized by a clear-cut meaning, owing to the preposition

itself. Its position with regard to the predicate verb is not fixed.

e.g. Why do you tuck your umbrella under your left arm instead

of carrying it in your hand like anything else?
You positively help them instead of hindering them.

He bought pictures instead of buying me the things I wanted.
I persuaded my uncle that it would be very good for my

lungs if instead of staying at school I spent the following

winter on the Riviera.

The use of the ing-form with other prepositions is less common.

The ing-forms following the prepositions before, after and on
express time relations between the action of the predicate verb
and that of the ing-form.

Before shows that the action expressed by the ing-form follows
that of the predicate verb. It is usually placed in post-position to
the predicate verb.

e.g. He waited a long while before answering.

He had given her two pots of geraniums before leaving for

London last week.
They were sitting there now before going out to dinner.

After indicates that the action expressed by the ing-form pre-
cedes the action expressed by the predicate verb.

e.g. After glancing at his watch he said, in a businesslike tone:

"You've made me a bit late."
After staying away eighteen years he can hardly expect us to

be very anxious to see him.
But after hesitating a moment or two, Jiggs knocked on the

door.

On expresses the same relations as after. But on emphasizes
the idea of an immediate succession of the two actions — the ac-
tion of the predicate verb begins at the moment the action of the
ing-form is accomplished. It is noteworthy that we find only the
ing-forms of terminative verbs here.

e.g. On arriving at the cottage she found it locked.

On getting up in the morning I found a letter on my doorstep
Mr Doyle came in as a man at home there, but on seeing the
stranger he shrank at once.

As is seen from the above examples, the ing-form, introduced
by after and on is usually placed before the predicate verb.

The meaning of the ing-form introduced by in is not so clear-
cut. It may be defined as limiting the sphere of application for

 

the action denoted by the predicate verb or as indicating a process
during which the action of the predicate verb is performed.

e.g. I've done something rather foolish in coming here tonight, I
regret it.

In defending myself against this lady, I have a right to use

any weapon I can find.
I daresay you have noticed that in speaking to you I have

been putting a very strong constraint on myself.
The place of the ing-form preceded by in is not fixed.
The use of ing-forms introduced by other prepositions is still
less frequent. We find various prepositions here.

e.g. It was a lesson he had learned from having seen so many acci-
dents.

I found that besides being a philosopher he was an uncommonly
good writer.

We talked in whispers for fear of disturbing the Smiths.
It was very quiet in the wood except for our feet breaking
twigs.

They were political link-men who added to their incomes
through leaking secret information to the press.

As for staying with your uncle for a while, I'm convinced
you'll enjoy every minute of it.

It should be noted that the use of the ing-form described above
is stylistically neutral — it is found in literary as well as in spo-
ken English. However, care should be taken to remember that ing-
forms preceded by after, before and on are not in common use.
Adverbial clauses of time are much more frequent.

Note. Note that in the following sentences we are dealing with set phrases:
e.g. He said in passing that money didn't matter much, since his wife was so rich.

They were to do nothing for the time being.

It goes without saying that healthy men are happier than sick men.

(For comparison with the infinitive see § 195-201.)

§226. The subject of the ing-form in the adverbial functions
described above is the same person or thing as denoted by the sub-
ject of the sentence. But the ing-form may have a subject of its
own with which it forms the so-called absolute construction.

e.g. He gave an intimate smile, some of the freshness returning

to his face.
His study was a nice room with books lining the walls.

There are two parallel actions in this sentence pattern — one
of them is expressed by the predicate verb, the other by the ing-
iorm. Each action has its own subject.

Absolute constructions may be of two kinds: non-prepositional
and prepositional, introduced by the preposition with. They are
both lexically independent.

The non-prepositional construction and the prepositional con-
struction are synonymous.

Absolute constructions, while serving to denote a second ac-
tion parallel to that of the predicate verb, acquire at the same
time adverbial meanings and thereby stand in specific relations to
the main part of the sentence.

The most commonly occurring meaning of the absolute con-
struction is to describe the appearance, the behaviour or inner
state characterizing the person denoted by the subject of the sen-
tence. Non-prepositional (a) as well as prepositional (b) construc-
tions serve this purpose. This meaning of the absolute construc-
tion may be called descriptive circumstances.

e.g. a) Finally she stood back and looked at him, her face radiant-
ly smiling.

"But it's so ridiculous that we don't know what to do,"
William told them, his voice rising in indignation.

She kept on running, her heart thumping furiously, her

steps quickening in pace with her heartbeats,
b) The man was leaning forward in his seat, with his head
resting in his hands.

He struggled on, panting for breath, and with his heart
beating wildly.

He went into the house, with a curious sadness pressing
upon him.

Another meaning of the absolute construction is to describe
the circumstances attending the action of the predicate verb,
serving as its background, as it were. It may also be expressed by
non-prepositional (a) and prepositional (b) constructions.

 

e.g. a) When we entered the sitting-room she was sitting with her
sister before an open fire-place, the glow of a lamp with
a red-flowered shade warmly illuminating the room.
Then they were out in the cold night, fresh snow crunch-
ing noisily underfoot.

b) The night was clean, with a new moon silvering the trees
along the road and an energetic wind tidying away the
clouds.
With a hurricane approaching, we prepared to stand a seige.

Absolute constructions may acquire the adverbial meaning of
cause, when the action denoted by the absolute construction indi-
cates the cause of the action denoted by the predicate verb. This
meaning is also expressed by non-prepositional constructions (a)
and prepositional constructions (b).

e.g. a) Death being contrary to their principles, the Forsytes took

precautions against it.

A room lit up on the third storey, someone working late,
b) I can't write with you standing there.

By twelve o'clock, with the sun pouring into the room,
the heat became oppressive.

Finally, absolute constructions can serve as some kind of addi-
tional explanation of the statement made in the main part of the
sentence. In this case the absolute construction acquires more se-
mantic independence — it seems to be on a par with the predicate
verb. This meaning is mainly expressed by the non-prepositional
construction.

e.g. Everyone in the house was busy: Nessie frowning over her les-
sons, Mumma deeply engaged in her novel, Grandma sleep-
ing in her armchair.

There were two serious accidents in the West Country, one in-
volving a coach and a car.

English words can be classed as variable and invariable, the
latter being much more numerous than in the other Euro-
pean languages.

Absolute constructions are generally characteristic of literary
style where their use is quite extensive. In spoken English we
mainly find the prepositional absolute construction.
(For comparison with the infinitive see § 202.)

The ing-form as Attribute

§ 227. The ing-form in the function of attribute is found in
different constructions.

The ing-form may immediately precede its head-noun. In this
case it expresses an action which is performed by the person or
thing denoted by the head-noun (i.e. the head-noun is the subject
of the action expressed by the ing-iorm). The ing-form is always a
single word in this case, not an extended phrase. This attribute is
not lexically dependent — it may modify any noun.

e.g. There was nothing to be seen or heard, not even a barking dog.
Passing the Comedy Theatre I happened to look up and saw

the clouds lit by the setting sun.

I reached for a cigarette with trembling hands, and lit it.
Singing people, arm in arm, filled the streets.

This kind of attribute is not of frequent occurrence in En-
glish. However, ing-forms appear to be quite common as at-
tributes when they are used metaphorically.

e.g. They delivered their views on the burning questions of the day.
Arthur gave a creaking laugh.

"Hungry," said Mrs Nenneker, in a trumpeting voice.
Carbury cocked an inquiring eye at him.
He watched it with despairing incredulity.

It is characteristic of the ing-form in this function to become
adjectivized — the ing-form is devoid of the idea of action in this
case and its lexical meaning is often changed as compared with the
meaning of the corresponding verb, e.g. a charming girl means 'a
very nice girl,' an amusing story is 'an interesting, funny story,' a
promising writer is 'a talented writer' (For adjectivization see also
"Verbs", §172).

e.g. We had a very good view of all the surrounding scenery.

A desolate loneliness settled on me — almost a frightening

loneliness.
In her ringing voice, she turned to the man on her right:

"Reggie, what do you think I ought to do?"
They were preoccupied with the coming debate.

Such adjectivized ing-forms are in common use in English. An-
other peculiar feature of the ing-form in this function is its ten-

 

dency to form, in combination with its head-noun, a set phrase,
e.g. the reading public, the presiding magistrate, a racing man,
working people, a fighting officer, a leading politician, revolving
doors, running water, a booking office, a publishing house, closing
time, walking shoes, etc.

§ 228. The ing-form as attribute may closely follow its head-
noun. It also expresses an action performed by the person or thing
denoted by the head-noun (i.e. the head-noun is the subject of the
ing-iorm). But unlike the ing-form in pre-position to the noun, it
I is a more or less extended group, not a single word. This kind of
attribute is not lexically dependent — it may modify any noun.
Yet its use is structurally dependent when it serves to modify a
noun after there is (are).

e.g. There are some people coming in here now.
There is a lot of work waiting for me to do.
"Aren't you coming to the music room?" "Not if there is any

music going on."
"There was a man hurrying down the street in front of me.

We find the structurally dependent use of the ing-form in
coming on (in, up) when it modifies a noun which is an object of
the verb to have (to have got).

e.g. I saw at once he had an attack of malaria coming on.

Sam thinks that he ought to return home by the next boat. He

has got his exams coming on.
You've got too many things coming up to get involved in such

an affair.

This kind of attribute is used in literary as well as in spoken
English.

Note. It is noteworthy that running in post-position to a plural noun is used in
the meaning of 'one after another', 'in succession'.

e.g. He says he has received three telegrams running from them.

§ 229. In all other instances the use of the ing-form as at-
tribute in post-position is free. It is a loose attribute in this case
and, hence, may be separated from its head-noun by a pause. In all
other respects this attribute is similar to the structurally depen-

dent one: the head-noun is also the subject of the ing-form and
the ing-form is generally part of a more or less extended group.

This kind of attribute is neither lexically nor structurally de-
pendent — it can modify any noun and the noun can have differ
ent syntactic functions in the sentence.

e.g. I could hear the voices of the kids waiting for the school bell

to ring.

They stumbled on the snow turning to icy water.
Then I picked up a booklet depicting various scenes of Navy
life.

The loose character of the ing-form in this function is always
marked off by intonation, and it may also sometimes be indicated
by the use of a comma.

e.g. The wardrobe was empty, except for one dress, swinging on a
hanger.

The door was opened by one of the man-servants, bearing an
envelope, addressed to me in Collingwood's bold hand.

This loose attribute is frequently used in literary style but is
not typical of spoken English.

§ 230. The ing-form in the function of attribute may be pre-
ceded by a preposition. In this case it always follows its head-
noun and is generally part of an extended phrase. The ing-form is
lexically dependent here.

In most cases the ing form is preceded by the preposition of
and the attribute acquires appositive meaning, i.e. serves to ex-
plain the meaning of its head-noun. That is why it can modify only
certain abstract nouns that admit of and sometimes even require
an explanation of their meaning. The number of nouns thus used
is quite considerable. The most commonly occurring of them are:
action, (dis)advantage, adventure, aim, appearance, art, attitude,
business, capacity, case, chance, charge, choice, (dis)comfort, com
plication, conception, consequence, consideration, consolation,
(in)convenience, cost, custom, danger, delight, difficulty, disap
pointment, disgrace, effect, emotion, enterprise, evidence, expendi
ture, expense, experience, fact, fascination, favour, fear, feeling-
gesture, gift, grief, guilt, habit, honour, hope, horror, humiliation.

 

idea, ignorance, illusion, impertinence, importance, impression, in-
 cident, initiative, instant, intention, interest, issue, job, joke, joy,

labour, lightness, limit, love_t luck, luxury, madness, magnificence,
m anner, means, medium, memory, merit, method, misery, misfor-
tune, mistake, moment, motion, movement, necessity, notion, object,
opinion, opportunity, pain, pity, pleasure, point, policy, possibility,
power, precaution, pretence, pride, privilege, process, proof, pros-
pect, purpose, question, relief, reputation, result, risk, role, routine,
rule, satisfaction, sensation, sense, shame, shock, sign, signal, sin,
sorrow, sort, speciality, stage (=level), standard, state, success, sup-
port, surprise, symptom, talent, task, terror, thought, trick, trouble,
 use, way, week, wisdom, work and some others.

e.g. He said that he had no chance of learning the truth.
I don't want her to make a habit of being late.
I have no hope of discussing it, Mr Birling.
There was no possibility of taking a walk that day.
I had the privilege of meeting your mother and dad some

weeks ago.
The prospect of travelling with two elderly very dull people

made me regret my hasty decision yesterday.
He admired his way of doing things very much.
After a while I began to have a feeling of being watched.
Miss Moss gave no sign of having heard his words.
She experienced an unreasonable feeling of having been cheated.
Her parents are terribly upset at the thought of her giving ev-
idence.

 

The ing-form may also be preceded by the prepositions for, in,
at, about and to. But they are by far less common than of. These
prepositions are found after a limited number of nouns which reg-
ularly require their use:

for — cause, excuse, genius, gift, grounds, motive, passion,

pretext, reason, reputation, talent;

in — advantage, belief, believer, difficulty, experience, harm,
hesitation, ingenuity, meaning, object, participation,
pleasure, point, purpose, sense, skill, use;

at — amazement, astonishment, attempt, delight, dismay, ir-
ritation, pleasure, satisfaction, shyness, surprise;
about — fantasy, obsession, scruples;
to — objection, preparation.

e.g. She had a real passion for reading detective stories.
Did he have any special reason for doing that?
There was no point in going further.
I saw no harm in asking a few questions.
He felt irritation at being disturbed.
I was making up my mind to another attempt at persuading

him to do it.
After three months I got an obsession about having a place of

my own.
Certainly I should have no objection to working with the man.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
by the ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

This ing-form is not restricted to any particular style and is
widely used in English.

(For comparison with the infinitive see §§ 203-204, 242.)

§ 231. The ing-form may be used as an attribute in a sentence
pattern with it as a formal subject. The ing-form is lexically de-
pendent here — it is regularly used only after it is no good and it
is no use with appositive meaning.

e.g. It's no use lamenting over things that are past and done with.
"It's no use going on like this," he said.
It's no good trying to fool yourself about love.
It's no good my saying I'm sorry for what I've done. That

would be hypocritical.
If she had made up her mind to anything it was no good our

opposing her.

Note. We also find a synonymous construction there is no use followed by an

Ing-form.

e.g. There was no use pretending that they were different from the others.
There was no use complaining.

This construction is less common than the one with the formal if, still less
common is the pattern in which the ing-form is preceded by the preposition in.

e.g. You can see now there's no use in trying to make him understand.

Sometimes the ing-form occurs after a number of other nouns
which are, as a rule, semantically pale, such as thing, business,
chance, idea, problem and some others. The nouns are usually
modified by an adjective which is semantically more important
than the noun.

 

e.g. In this filthy weather it's the hardest thing in the world get-
ting things dry.

I'd like to give it to him myself. It's not the same thing send-
ing it in a letter.

It's been a great chance my meeting you like this.

It'll be such a surprise to her seeing you.

It should be mentioned, however, that the ing-form is not
common after these nouns. We normally find an infinitive here
(see "Verbs", § 206). The use of this ing-form is mainly restricted
to spoken English.

For the means of expressing the subject of the action denoted
I by the ing-form see "Verbs", § 166.

§ 232. The ing-form may also be used as an attribute in a sen-
tence pattern with it as a formal object of the verbs to find, to
think and to make. The formal it, in its turn, is followed by a
noun. It is to this noun that the ing-form serves as an attribute.

e.g. Won't you find it rather a bore having me at home for so long?

It should be noted that this construction is of rare occurrence.
(For comparison with the infinitive see § 207.)

The ing-form as Parenthesis

§ 233. The ing-form as parenthesis tends to become a set phrase.

We mainly find here the verbs to talk and to speak. The ing-form
as parenthesis serves to denote some sort of reservation on the part
of the speaker or else it is used as an introductory phrase, meaning

'incidentally' (compare with the Russian кстати ).

e.g. Secrets, generally speaking, are not very well kept nowadays,
with reporters and television cameras all around us.

Roughly speaking, it might have been said that youth and
hope in women touched him.

Talking about crime, I can lend you rather a good book, as
you are interested in the subject.

Of course, strictly speaking, the excuse was not necessary.

The ing form as parenthesis is in most cases placed at the head
of the sentence and, in writing, marked off by a comma.

The Infinitive and the ing-form Compared

§ 234. The infinitive and the ing-form sometimes have similar
functions in the sentence and it is therefore necessary to define
the spheres of their application.

The distinction between the two verbals partly lies in their dif-
ferent tense and aspect characteristics. The infinitive tends to ex-
press a single action following that of the predicate verb, while
the ing-form generally serves to denote permanent actions, simul-
taneous with that of the predicate verb. (These characteristics re-
fer to the simple forms of the infinitive and the ing-form. Their
Perfect forms are infrequent and do not play an important part in
distinguishing between the two verbals). But it should be noted
that we are dealing here only with tendencies, not with hard and
fast rules. For that reason the difference between the infinitive
and the ing-form sometimes becomes obliterated.

In most cases, however, the differentiation between the two
verbals rests on linguistic tradition which finds its expression in
the following:

1) the infinitive and the ing-form have a different frequency
of occurrence in certain functions (and the preference of one form
to the other cannot be accounted for by any tangible reasons,
grammatical or semantic);

2) the infinitive and the ing-form are in certain functions lexi-
cally dependent, which means that their choice is determined by
their head-word, but not by any grammatical properties inherent
in them;

3) the infinitive and the ing-form are sometimes structurally
dependent, i.e. their use is determined by definite sentence patterns;

4) the infinitive and the ing-form may become part of a set
phrase.

Besides, in some of the functions there are a few additional
factors which affect the choice between the two verbals. The in-
finitive, for instance, may acquire modal meaning which is never
expressed by the ing-form. The ing-form, in its turn, when preced-
ed by prepositions (or conjunctions), can express different mean-
ings not typical of the infinitive. In certain functions the infini-
tive of terminative verbs serves to express accomplished actions,
while the ing form shows the action in its progress.

 

The Perfect infinitive may, as well as the Perfect ing-form,
denote actions preceding that of the predicate verb. But the Per-
fect infinitive can also, in certain positions, express unreality.

On the whole, the differentiation between the infinitive and
the ing-form is well defined, and the choice between them does not
present much difficulty as in most functions there is no overlap.
To prevent possible mistakes in the cases where they do overlap, it
is necessary to compare the two verbals where they are used in a
parallel way.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Subject

§ 235. Neither the infinitive nor the ing-form as subject is
common in English, so the distinction between them is not very
important for practical purposes.

The differentiation between the infinitive and the ing-form as
subject is, on the one hand, determined by their respective tense
and aspect characteristics — the infinitive tends to denote an ac-
tion following that of the predicate verb (a), while the ing-form
mainly serves to express an action simultaneous with that of the
predicate verb (b).

e.g. a) To win the world's greatest cycling event became the ambi-
tion of his life.

b) Beatrice and I don't correspond unless there is a major
event in the family. Writing letters is a waste of time.

On the other hand, the choice between the infinitive and the
ing-form is to a certain extent determined by the usage. Accord-
ing to tradition, the ing-form is preferred in this function and the
infinitive is by far less frequent. Sometimes, however, the use of
the infinitive is required by an additional factor, namely the abili-
ty of the infinitive to express the modal meaning of condition.

e.g. To go to them with an accusation would be absurd.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Predicative

§ 236. As predicative, the infinitive and the ing-form may both
have the same appositive meaning. The difference between them is
mainly determined by tradition — the infinitive (a) is in common
use in English whereas instances of the ing-form (b) are scarce.

e.g. a) The job of a reporter is to expose and to record.

All one could do was try to make the future less hard,
b) The important part is helping people so that they can live
normal lives.

Yet the infinitive is used only after the link-verb to be, while
the ing-form. is found after other link-verbs, particularly to mean.

e.g. That would mean telling him everything.

Still another point of difference is that only an ing-form is
used after to be like. The ing-form has appositive meaning here
but the explanation is made by way of comparison.

e.g. Philip tries to direct his mind to the question but it is like
trying to press the like poles of two magnets together.
They push away.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Object

§ 237. As an object of a verb, the infinitive and the ing -form
are lexically dependent.

According to a well-established tradition, a number of verbs
are followed by the infinitive (for the list see "Verbs', § 186),
while certain other verbs require the use of the ing-form (for the
list see "Verbs", § 214). Yet after a few verbs it is possible to use
either of the two verbals.

The overlap in the use of the infinitive and the ing form is,
however, caused by several reasons:

1) The head-verb is sometimes polysemantic and requires the
use of the infinitive in one of its meanings while in another it
must be followed by an ing-iorm. Here belong the verbs to try, to
propose and to go on.

To try in the meaning of 'to make an effort or attempt¹ is
used with an infinitive (a), while in the meaning of 'to test', 'to
make an experiment' it is followed by an ing-form (b).

e.g. a) I'll try to do what I can.

Someone said, "We mustn't try to run before we can walk."
b) The young writer, dissatisfied with the result of his work,
tried altering words or the order in which they were set.
As we couldn't understand his English he tried speaking
French to us.

 

It should be noted, however, that to try is much more common
in the meaning of 'to make an effort' and hence it is usually fol-
lowed by the infinitive.

To propose in the meaning of 'to intend' is used with the infin-
itive (a), while in the meaning of 'to put forward for consider-
ation' it is followed by the ing-form (b),

e.g. a) Tell me more about how you propose to start your business.

He did not propose to forgive them this time,
b) What do you propose doing?

To go on in the meaning of 'to do next or afterwards' requires
an infinitive (a), whereas in the meaning of 'to continue' it is fol-
lowed by an ing-form (b).

e.g. a) She went on to say that he was a man one could trust com-
pletely.

The shopkeeper went on to explain that these little wood-
en figures were by no means comparable to the mass-
produced figures.

b) Tom went on talking.

But you can't go on living in this way any longer.

Note. The verb to mean in the meaning of 'to intend' is followed by an infini-
tive (a). But when to mean is followed by an ing-form, it is a link-verb denoting 'to
signify', 'to have as a consequence'. The ing-form is not an object in this case; it is
used in the function of a predicative (b).

e.g. a) Do you mean to say he actually approves of it?

b) "To love a woman means giving up everything else," he said.

2) With certain other verbs the overlap in the use of the infin-
itive and the ing-form is accounted for by their tense and aspect
characteristics. This is found after the verbs to remember, to for-
get and to regret. The infinitive expresses an action following that
of the predicate verb (a), while the ing-form denotes a preceding
action (b).

e.g. a) Bart remembered to count five before answering his father,
b) I remember saying to him: "Look here, if anyone acted like
you, the world couldn't go on."

a) I forgot to tell John about the party.

b) I shall never forget testifying in that trial twelve years

ago.

a) I regret to say it but you shouldn't believe everything he

tells you.

b) He regretted hurting her feelings.

It should be noted that owing to their lexical meaning the
verbs to remember and to regret are in most cases followed by an
ing-form. Conversely, with the verb to forget the situation gener-
ally calls for an infinitive.

3) With some other verbs the infinitive and the ing-form seem
to be interchangeable. These verbs are to begin, to cease, to con
tinue, to dread, to hate, to intend, to like, to love, to neglect, to
prefer and to start.

However, after to begin, to cease and to continue the infinitive
is commonly found, while to start, to like and to hate are more of
ten followed by an ing-form.

Note 1. Care should be taken to remember that there are other verbs in English
denoting the beginning, the continuation or the end of an action which are associat-
ed with only one of the two verbals. Thus, to commence and to set out are used with
an infinitive. Yet to finish, to keep, to keep on, to leave off, and to set about take
an ing-form.

Note 2. After the verb to stop the object is always expressed by an ing-form,
e.g. She stopped speaking, as though waiting for him to speak.

The infinitive after to stop can serve only as an adverbial modifier of purpose.
It is usually separated from the verb to stop by an object or an adverbial modifier.

e.g. As I stopped at the bar to have a drink I saw them talking it over.

If the infinitive happens to follow the head-verb immediately it is to be regard-
ed as accidental. Examples of this kind are of rare occurrence.

e.g. I stopped to ask if you were better. They told me you were on duty.

Note 3. The infinitive and the ing-form may serve as object to verbs generally
requiring a prepositional object. Normally the ing-form is used in this case. (For the
list of verbs see "Verbs", §216.) However, after some verbs the ing-form is inter-
changeable with the infinitive. These verbs are: to agree, to aim, to care, to hesi
tate, to long, to plan and to threaten.

e.g. "I may as well plan on living in London for the rest of my life," said George.
Everything you've planned to do is sensible.
He was still hesitating about joining the expedition.
They didn't hesitate to make free use of his purse.

Note 4. There have been a great many attempts to explain the difference in the
use of the infinitive and the ing-form after the verbs given in this section. The in-

 

finitive has been described as referring to special, particular and concrete occasions
or circumstances, as being more definite and lively in character and perfective in
aspect. Conversely, the ing-form has been described as stating a general fact, repre-
senting an action as permanent or more abstract, expressing a deliberate act and
being imperfective in its aspect. However, none of the above explanations are borne
out by living English usage. Moreover, some of the authors believe that it is unnec-
essary to make formal distinctions between the two constructions.

§ 238. As an object of an adjective, the infinitive and the ing-
iorm are lexically dependent. (For the lists see "Verbs", §§ 187
and 217.) Both verbals may be found after the following adjec-
tives and adjectivized participles: afraid, amazed, annoyed,
ashamed, astonished, careful, certain, content, fortunate, fright-
ened, furious, happy, keen, proud, right, scared, set, slow, sorry,
sure, surprised, touched and wrong. The ing form is always used as
a prepositional object after them.

On the whole the choice between the infinitive and the ing-
iorm after the above adjectives appears to be free.

Cf. I was touched to find my own name on the invitation list.

She couldn't allow herself to tell him how touched she was at
finding him there.

Her coat was pulled tightly round her as if she were afraid
to take it off.

Are you wanted by the police? You needn't be afraid of tell-
ing me.

She is certain to get the names wrong. She is so careless.

"You look for trouble, don't you?" "Only because I'm certain
of finding it."

I was just scared to leave it there.

I was scared to death at going there to speak.

She told me sternly how fortunate I was to be there in time.

I am very fortunate in having a wife who likes being a woman.

I was content to let things drift along just as they were.

I was fairly content with letting things go as they were.

She looked wonderfully and vividly alive, and I was proud to
be with her.

But when I went to Germany I discovered that the Germans
were just as proud of being Germans as I was proud of be-
ing English.

The men were careful not to slip on the ice.

We were never very careful about taking precautions.

After certain of the above adjectives, however, the infinitive
tends to express a single action following that of the predicate
verb (a), while the ing-form is preferred when simultaneous or
preceding actions are expressed (b).

e.g. a) In fact, I haven't the faintest idea what's been going on,

and I'm afraid to ask.
b) I'm always afraid of getting caught.

a) I walked up and down the hall. I was afraid to go in.

b) Were you ever afraid of losing your mind?

a) Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I won't be able to

use my car.

b) I'm sorry for coming like this, without being invited.

a) I thought that perhaps I should be wiser not to go.

b) I thought she wasn't very wise in telling us that.

Yet it should be pointed out that on the whole the infinitive is
more common after all the above listed adjectives; the ing-form is
somewhat literary in style.

The use of the infinitive and the ing-form with certain other
adjectives is associated with a change of meaning of the adjec-
tive. Here belong, for example, grateful, good, interested and
some others.

e.g. a) The apples are good to eat (=the apples are good for eating),
b) I'm not very good at driving (=I don't very well know how
to drive).

a) At first he was grateful to have the play to read (=he was

pleased / happy to have...).

b) No one is grateful for being looked after (=no one feels

gratitude for being looked after).

a) I was interested to learn that it was the same cafe where

they had met (=it was interesting for me to learn...)

b) Somehow I was interested in getting back into that work

(=I was anxious to get...).

 

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Object
in a Sentence Pattern with it as a Formal Subject

§ 239. We usually find the infinitive as an object of a verb or
adjective in a sentence pattern with it as a formal subject.

e.g. It annoyed me to hear him tell a lie.

It's not easy to live with someone you've injured.

It wouldn't be tactful to bring up the subject in his presence.

The ing-form can also be found as an object of an adjective in
a sentence pattern with it as a formal subject in spoken English
where it adds emotional colouring to the sentence.

e.g. Well, it isn't easy telling you all this.

It will be great having them at the party.

However, only the ing-form is used after the expressions to be
worth and to come to.

e.g. If it came to losing him, would she suffer?
It wasn't worth talking to him about it.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Subjective Predicative

§ 240. As subjective predicative, the infinitive and the ing-form
are lexically dependent (for the lists see "Verbs", §§ 192 and 221).
Both verbals are found after the following verbs in the passive: to
find, to hear, to leave, to report, to see, to show and to watch.

After to hear, to see and to watch the differentiation between
the two verbals is based on their lexical character. Both verbals
serve to express simultaneous actions. But with terminative
verbs, the infinitive shows that the action is accomplished (a),
whereas the ing-form denotes an unaccomplished action in its
Progress (b).

e.g. a) The front door downstairs was heard to slam.
He was seen to take the money.

b) The door was heard shutting.

He was last seen turning round the corner.

With durative verbs, the difference between the two verbals
disappears and the choice of the form is free.

e.g. He had been heard to discuss the possibility.

He went out and was heard laughing in the hall.

After the verbs to find, to report and to show the difference be-
tween the two verbals is of a peculiar character — with the verb to
be the subjective predicative is always expressed by a simple infini-
tive (a); with all other verbs, it is expressed by an ing-form (b).

e.g. a) A week later he was found to be out of danger.

The Senator was reported to be badly injured in the accident,
b) The man was found crawling about.

About that time a hurricane was reported moving out of
the Caribbean in our direction.

However, analytical forms of the infinitive may also be found
with verbs other than to be.

e.g. She was found to have stolen the ring.

The building is reported to have been damaged in the air raid.
He was reported to be preparing an account of the incident.

After the verb to leave the infinitive shows that the action
follows that of the predicate verb (a) while the ing-form expresses
a simultaneous action (b).

e.g. a) The matter will be left to lie.

If things are left to run their usual course, everything

will shape out by itself,
b) Cliff and Helena were left looking at each other.

Some writers claim that in life stories are not finished, situa-
tions are not rounded off, and loose ends are left hanging.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Objective Predicative

§ 241. As objective predicatives the infinitive and the ing-form
are lexically dependent (for the lists see "Verbs", §§ 193 and 222).
Both verbals are found after the following verbs: to fancy, to feel,
to find, to get, to hate, to have, to hear, to imagine, to (dis)like, to
listen to, to notice, to see, to understand, to want and to watch.

After the verbs denoting physical perception, such as to feel, to
hear, to listen to, to notice, to see and to watch, the choice between the
infinitive and the ing-form is determined by their lexical character
With terminative verbs, the infinitive expresses an accomplished ac-
tion (a) and the ing-form an unaccomplished action in its progress (b)-

 

e.g. a) Nobody had noticed him come in. Nobody had seen him go
upstairs.

b) He heard footsteps coming from the direction of the library.

a) Bridget heard Luke drive up. She came out on the steps to

meet him.

b) As I looked out at the garden I heard a motor-truck start-

ing on the road.

a) One night in late November I heard him make a remark

about his coming marriage.

b) I heard him saying the other day he could do with a few

more pounds a week.

With durative verbs, the difference in meaning between the
two verbals disappears and the choice of the form is free.

e.g. a) I thought also that it would do him no harm to hear us

talk about his progress,
b) I've never heard you talking like this about him.

a) I was watching the doctor work.

b) I noticed him working in the garden.

 

a) They listened to him talk about the picture.

b) I listened to them discussing it.

On the whole it should be pointed out that the ing-form is
more common in this case. The infinitive, for example, would not
be used in the following sentences:

e.g. I held her close against me and could feel her heart beating.

We saw the troops marching along the road.
I looked in the door of the big room and saw the major sit-
ting at his desk.

With the verbs to fancy, to find, to imagine and to under-
stand, the difference lies in the lexical character of the objective
predicative. With the verb to be, the objective predicative is al-
ways an infinitive (a); with all other verbs, it is an ing-form (b).

e.g. a) They found him to be a bore.

b) When he arrived he found me reading Tom Jones.

a) I imagined him to be a bigger man.

b) I imagined her sitting by the fire-place, alone and in tears.

After the verbs to get, to hate, to have, to like and to want the
choice between the infinitive and the ing-form is free. Yet, the in-
finitive is much more common with to get and to want, whereas
the ing-form is more common with to (dis)like and to hate.

e.g. a) He wanted us to go with him, but Jimmy refused.
b) I didn't want any outsiders coming to the rehearsal.

a) I couldn't get him to leave.

b) She got all her guests going the moment she felt sleepy.

 

a) I like my oatmeal to have a salty taste.

b) I don't like anybody getting ideas where my wife is concerned.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Attribute

§ 242. As attributes the infinitive and the ing-form overlap
only when they have appositive meaning. They are both placed in
post-position to their head-noun and are lexically dependent. (For
the lists of nouns see "Verbs", §§ 204, 2 and 230.) Besides, the ing-
form is always preceded by a preposition, usually of.

We may find either an infinitive or an ing-form after the fol-
lowing nouns: action, attempt, capacity, chance, excuse, intention,
motion, necessity, opportunity, possibility, power, precaution, right,
sign and way. On the whole the choice between the two verbals af-
ter these nouns is free.

e.g. a) I haven't had a chance to see my dog this morning.

b) The Careys had had a chance of welcoming their nephew.

a) He was trying to find a way to earn fifty pounds.

b) They were trying to find a way of talking directly to their

opponents.

a) I had no opportunity to speak to her.

b) I had no opportunity of doing so.

 

a) She only laughed and made no attempt to withdraw.

b) I made another attempt at going.

It should be mentioned that some of the nouns quoted above, for
example, such an attempt, necessity, right, tend to be associated will
an infinitive, whereas other nouns, for example, such as chance, in

 

tention, possibility, way, tend to be followed by an ing-form. The
noun opportunity appears to be equally common with both forms.

The Infinitive and the ing-form as Attribute

in a Sentence Pattern with it as a Formal Subject
§ 243. In this function the infinitive and the ing-form are lexi-
cally dependent. (For the lists of the nouns see §§ 206, 231.) The
infinitive is the norm, the ing-form being a rare exception.

e.g. It was a pleasure to see him among us again.
It is a hard job to clean the kitchen.
It is no use deceiving ourselves.

§ 244. The use of the infinitive and the ing-form in all the oth-
er functions is not parallel and so they need not be compared.

The Use of the Participle

§ 245. The functions of the participle in the sentence are more
restricted as compared with those of the infinitive and the ing-
iorm. Besides, it tends to become adjectivized even in the func-
tions that it can perform in the sentence. (For the adjectivization
of the participle see "Verbs", § 179.)

The participle cannot be used either as the subject or as the
predicate of the sentence. When it is used as predicative, it is al-
ways adjectivized and may be preceded, like a real adjective, by ad-
verbs of degree, such as extremely, greatly, so, too, very and the
correlative conjunctions as ... as and not so ... as.

e.g. Three of the girls were given to giggling.

Roger was set on getting the job himself.

Strickland was distinguished from most Englishmen by his
perfect indifference to comfort.

We lived in the same neighbourhood and we felt friendly dis-
posed to one another.

"I was cold but too excited to mind it.

I've never been so deceived in a man as I was in George.

If anyone lived there he would be as scared as we were.

I am naturally very disappointed.

It should be mentioned that if participles were not adjectiv-
ized in this case, they would form, with the verb to be, the Pas-
sive Voice.

Note. Some adjectivized participles, however, can be modified, like verbs, by
(very) much. This may be accounted for by their verbal origin.

e.g. If Tony expected her to rush into his arms he was very much mistaken.

In a day or two the answer came back that he was very much opposed to the
whole scheme.

It follows from what has been said that the participle proper (i.e.
the participle which is not adjectivized) cannot be used as predicative.

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