Gerund / Infinitive

Gerund (-ing)

🔹 After certain verbs: adore, enjoy, suggest, imagine, keep, avoid, appreciate, can’t help, consider, deny, finish, risk, miss, tolerate, would mind…

✅ I enjoy reading books.
✅ Would you mind closing the door?
✅ Bob suggested going to the cinema. 

🧩 After Phrasal Verbs

▶ put off (delay) → I put off doing my homework.
▶ go on (continue) → She goes on learning the language.
▶ carry on (continue) → He carried on playing after the injury.
▶ keep on (persist) → They kept on working despite the noise.

👥 Verb + Someone + Gerund (-ing)
✅ Sorry for keep you waiting for me such a long time.
✅ I can’t imagine Jessica dating with him.
✅ We noticed her crying during the movie.

💡 Past gerund 

If you want to show that an action happened before another past event:

✅ They admitted having stolen the keys. (Stealing happened before admitting.)

To + Infinitive

🔹 After certain verbs: agree, decide, refuse, promise, deserve, pretend, hope, manage, need, plan, want, would like, fail, arrange, offer, ...

 ✅ He offered to take the second interview.
✅ We agreed to meet next week.
✅ My kids refuse to take the pills.

💛 More Common Verbs That Take "To + Infinitive":

Seem → You seem to be really calm now.

Appear → She appears to be very tired today. 

Tend → My neighbors tend to talk too much.

Pretend → She pretended to be sick to skip school. 

❌ The Negative Form of To + Infinitive

📝 Structure:
➡ not + to + verb

✅ We decided not to go to the theater this evening.
✅ I promised you not to take your clothes!
✅ He planned not to go out this evening.  

💡 Common verbs that often use the negative infinitive:
ask, decide, expect, hope, promise, refuse, tell, advise, remind, warn, plan

🚨 Incorrect: ❌ She decided to not go to the party.
✔ Correct: ✅ She decided not to go to the party.