Gerund & Infinitive

List of verbs plus a quiz

In English, some verbs have to be followed by the Gerund (-ING form) while others are followed by the Infinitive (to…). Some verbs may be followed by both forms. These verbs are marked with an asterisk (*) in the list below. الافعال التي تحمل نجمة (*) تقبل أي منهما حسب السياق

List of Verbs Followed by ING Form or Infinitive!

it’s noun+ to + infinitive.

1. Gerund after prepositions that stand alone

2. Gerund after Adjective + Preposition

3. Gerund after Noun + Preposition

4. Gerund after Verb + Preposition

EXERCISE: GERUND OR INFINITIVE

List of Verbs Followed by ING Form or Infinitive!

FOLLOWED BY ‘ING’ ====

AVOID - Why are you avoiding getting down to work? Stop procrastinating.
MISS - I miss playing with my Barbie dolls. Why can’t I be a child again?
CONSIDER - Would you consider working as an English Language teacher?
SUGGEST - I suggest going in Bruce Wayne’s car.
WOULD ADVISE - I would advise not calling him at this time of night.
IMAGINE - Peter has imagined telling his wife the truth many times.
ADMIT - He didn’t want to admit cheating on her.
FINISH* - Never talk to Joker until he has finished speaking.
POSTPONE - I think we’ll have to postpone meeting the clients.
DELAY - Janet delayed telling her husband that she wanted a divorce. It was Christmas after all.

FOLLOWED BY INFINITIVE (to …) ====
- HOPE - I hope to see you again soon.
- WANT - Doctor Octopus wants to rule the world.
- WISH - Follow my Facebook group if you wish to improve your English.
- PREFER - We’ve received a thousand-dollar donation, but the donor prefers to stay anonymous.
- INTEND* - I don’t intend to reveal his identity.
- ASK - What are you doing with Tom’s laptop? Did you ask to use it?
- AIM - I aim to get there before two o’clock.
- DARE - Do you know what time Suzy will get here? No, I didn’t dare to ask.
- TRY* - I’ve tried to call her a few times, but she didn’t pick up.
- LEARN* - When did you learn to swim? I’ve never learnt to swim.
- FAIL - I’m afraid I fail to see your point.
- DECIDE - I’ve decided to learn ten new words every day.
- CHOOSE - I wasn’t dumped by Barbara. I chose not to see her again.
- PROMISE - She promised to keep in touch.
- SWEAR - I want you to swear not to tell anyone what you’ve just seen.
- AGREE - Will you agree to be Barbara’s lawfully wedded husband?
- REFUSE - I wanted to apologize to her, but she refused to see me.
- BEGIN* - It began to rain just as I was getting ready to go for a run. What a shame.
- START* - I started to learn English when I was eight years old.
- CONTINUE - I’m going to continue to learn until I’m fluent.
- AFFORD - My laptop is broken and I can’t afford to buy a new one.
- SEEM - Who’s that guy? He seems to know what he’s talking about.

it’s noun+ to + infinitive.

Here’s a list of nouns that can be used with an infinitive.

1. Chance – I have a chance to see my mom while I am in town.

2. Goal – It is my goal to find a new school for my daughter this year.

3. Suggestion – Do you have any suggestions to help me figure out what to do this weekend?

4. Proposal – Do you have the proposal to fix the sprinkler system?

5. Dream – It is my dream to go to New York.

6. Attempt – I would like you to attempt to go to school today.

7. Ability – Do you have the ability to give me a discount?

1. Gerund after prepositions that stand alone

after
After having a shower, I waited for Steven.
before
The tablet must not be taken before getting up in the morning.
by
I manage it by working much longer than 40-hour weeks.
in spite of
In spite of studying a lot he didn't pass the exams.
on
What was her reaction on hearing the news?
without
He told the joke without laughing.

2. Gerund after Adjective + Preposition

afraid of
They are afraid of losing the match.
angry about/at
Pat is angry about walking in the rain.
bad at/good at
John is good at working in the garden.
crazy about
The girl is crazy about playing tennis.
disappointed about/at
He is disappointed about seeing such a bad report.
excited about
We are excited about making our own film.
fond of
Hannah is fond of going to parties.
glad about
She is glad about getting married again.
happy about/at
The children are not happy about seeing a doctor.
interested in
Are you interested in writing poems?
keen on
Joe is keen on drawing.
proud of
She is proud of speaking English.
sick of
We're sick of sitting around like this.
sorry about/for
He's sorry for eating in the lesson.
tired of
I'm tired of waiting for you.
used to
She is used to smoking.
worried about
I'm worried about making mistakes.

3. Gerund after Noun + Preposition

advantage of
What is the advantage of farming over hunting?
chance of
There's a chance of catching a cold these days.
choice between
There's a choice between flying to London Heathrow or Stansted.
danger of
Peggy is in danger of making a mistake.
difficulty in
He has difficulty in texting.
doubt about
He is in doubt about buying the correct software for his computer system.
hope of
There's little hope of catching the new Corvette.
idea of
I like the idea of setting up a new email account.
interest in
There's no interest in writing letters.
method of
This is a simple method of finding solutions.
opportunity of
There's some opportunity of bringing her parents together again.
possibility of
These wheels offer the possibility of riding tubeless.
problem of
He has the problem of swimming too slow.
reason for
There's a real reason for winning the contest.
risk of
There's a risk of digging too deep.
trouble for
He was in trouble for stealing.
way of
This is a new way of building a wall.

4. Gerund after Verb + Preposition

accuse of
They were accused of breaking into a shop.
agree with
I agree with playing darts.
apologize for
They apologize for being late.
believe in
She doesn't believe in getting lost in the wood.
blame for
The reporter is blamed for writing bad stories.
complain about
She complains about bullying.
concentrate on
Do you concentrate on reading or writing?
congratulate sb. on
I wanted to congratulate you on making such a good speech.
cope with
He is not sure how to cope with getting older.
decide against
They decided against stealing the car.
depend on
Success may depend on becoming more patient.
dream about/of
Sue dreams of being a pop star.
feel like
They feel like going to bed.
get used to
You must get used to working long hours.
insist on
The girls insisted on going out with Mark.
look forward to
I'm looking forward to seeing you soon.
prevent sb. from sth.
How can I prevent Kate from working in this shop?
rely on sth.
He doesn't rely on winning in the casino.
succeed in
How then can I succeed in studying chemistry?
specialize in
The firm specialized in designing websites.
stop sb. from
I stopped Andrew from smoking.
talk about/of
They often talk about travel(l)ing to New Zealand.
think about/of
Frank thinks of playing chess.
warn sb. against
We warned them against using this computer.
worry about
The patient worries about having the check-up.

EXERCISE: GERUND OR INFINITIVE

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