THE INFINITIVE AS AN OBJECT

1. It is mainly used after the following notional verbs :

To agree to arrange to attempt to care to like to love

To claim to consent to decide to deserve to lend to determine

To expect to fail to fear to forget to hesitate to refuse

To intend to learn to long to hope to regret to manage

To mean to neglect to omit to plan to swear to prefer

To remember to pretend

1. Mostly non-perfect forms of the infinitive are used after these notional verbs,

e.g. We agreed to meet at ten o’clock. Martha planned to come on Tuesday.

Jake hesitated to say something in return.

1. Some of these notional verbs can have perfect forms of the infinitive to express priority,

e.g. Paul regretted to have written to the newspaper.

Sonya remembered to have met the man at the Browns’.

1. Some of these notional verbs have a modal colouring that show that the action expressed by the perfect infinitive was not fulfilled. These verbs are:

To attempt to expect to hope to intend to mean

To plan to try

e.g. Solomon hoped to have found Diana at home.

The sailors intended to have reached the coast long before.

5. The object can be expressed by a conjunctive infinitive phrase after the verbs like:

To advise to ask to decide to explain to find out to forget

To know to learn to remember to show to teach to tell

To want to wonder to understand

The conjunctions that are most frequently used are as follows:

what where who how much/many how whether

e.g. We had lost our way and didn’t know where to go.

When I came in my parents were discussing how long to stay in the country.

6.After some of these verbs both infinitive and gerund can be used but with some difference in meaning:

To remember, to forget, to regret

Gerund infinitive

(about things that were done in the past)(about things that are/were to be done; intentions)

I remember playing with Ted Remember to switch off the light before you

in my childhood (I did it in the past but leave.

I remember about it now). I remembered to lock the door but forgot to shut the windows.

I will never forget meeting him. I forgot to buy the bread.

Tina regretted marrying so young. I regret to mention this again.

(Tina married young and she is sorry about

it now)

to mean

Gerund infinitive

(to involve smh) (to intend to do smth)

Being a pilot means traveling a lot. Barbara means to open her own shop.

to prefer

Gerund infinitive

( general preference) (future preference)

Stewart prefers spending his holidays at home. This year Stewart prefers to go to the sea.

to like

gerund infinitive

(to enjoy smth – general preference) (to think that smth is good or right to do)

Martha likes swimming. I like to exercise every day but I’m too busy for it.

to try

Gerund infinitive

(to do smth as an experiment) (to attempt to do one’s best)

Try exercising, you may lose weight. David tried to win the race, but failed.

1. The infinitive is often used in the structure

notional verb + indirect object + infinitive

e.g. Before Derek left he asked me to keep an eye on his luggage.

In this structure the following notional verbs are used:

Date: 2015-12-24; view: 1417