Infinitive in English– this is a non-personal form. Like a verb, an infinitive names an action, but unlike a verb, it does not indicate person or number. In its basic form (Simple Infinitive), the infinitive answers the questions: what to do? what to do?
to purchase – to purchase.
The infinitive is also called the “infinitive form of the verb” or the “initial form of the verb.”
Table: infinitive forms in English (briefly)
The infinitive can have 4 forms in the active voice and 2 in the passive voice.
However, the most common and relevant for study is the form “simple infinitive in the active voice” (to ask). In fact, when they say “infinitive”, usually, in most cases, I mean exactly this form - it is assigned most of this article.
Below we will look at the same table again and analyze each form in detail, but first we need to clarify two more points:
- The infinitive can be with or without the particle to.
- How is the negative form of the infinitive formed?
After that, let's return to the analysis of each form.
Infinitive with the particle to and without the particle to
The infinitive can be used with or without the particle to:
- I want to help you. - I want to help you.
- I must help you. - I have to help you.
Most often the infinitive is used with to, but there are a number of cases when the infinitive is used without the particle to, they apply to all forms of the infinitive(i.e. all forms from the table above). I note that most often the infinitive without to occurs after modal verbs , other cases are quite rare.
1. After modal verbs (the most common case)
Negative infinitive
The negative form is formed using a particle not– it is placed before the infinitive. If the infinitive has the particle to, the negation not is placed before it.
I decided not to go to London. – I decided not to go to London.
He asked me not to be late. - He asked me not to be late.
I might not come. – I may not come.
All forms of the infinitive in English (details)
Let's look again at all forms of the infinitive:
There are six forms in total in the table:
1. Simple Infinitive:
I want to ask you – I want to ask you.
2. Simple Infinitive Passive:
I want to be asked- I want to be asked.
3. Continuous Infinitive:
I happened to be asking her about you when you came in. “It so happened that I asked her about you when you came.”
4. Perfect Infinitive:
You could have asked me first - You could ask me first.
5. Perfect Infinitive Passive:
She could have been asked by anybody – Anyone could have asked her.
6. Perfect Continuous Infinitive:
He doesn't seem to have been asking wrong people - Looks like he was asking the wrong people questions.
Please note that the most common, necessary and important form to study is Simple Infinitive. In second place - Simple Infinitive Passive. Other forms are used less frequently.
Forms Perfect And Perfect Continuous(that is, those where there are have) – largely overlap with the themes “ and . If you already know these topics, you will see familiar things, but just from a different perspective - everything is explained in more detail below.
Simple Infinitive - simple infinitive (the most necessary form)
The most common and important form of the infinitive to study is the simple infinitive in the active voice (Infinitive Indefinite Active or Simple Infinitive Active). It is used to denote an action that:
1. Occurs simultaneously with the action of the main verb:
Tell him to stop. - Tell him to stop.
2. Refers to the future tense:
I want you to come with me tomorrow. – I want you to come with me tomorrow.
3. Regardless of the time of commission:
To know such tricks are useful. – Knowing such tricks is useful.
Let's name the main cases of its use.
1. With verbs that do not give full meaning
The infinitive is often used in combination with verbs that do not make full sense without it, for example:
- Tell- say/command something,
- Begin- start,
- Continue- continue,
- Want- want,
- Intend- intend
- Try- try, try,
- Hope- hope
- Promise- promise,
- Decide- decide, make a decision.
I want to see your permission. - I want to see your permission.
Do you promise to quit smoking? – Do you promise to quit smoking?
Nina decided not to sing the agreement. – Nina decided not to sign the agreement.
I'll try to help you. - I'll try to help you.
These verbs include modal verbs. I remind you that after them the infinitive is used without the particle to:
I must see your permission. - I need to see your permission.
Can you quit smoking? -Can you quit smoking?
2. To indicate the purpose of an action
In Russian, when we need to express the purpose of an action, we say “to” or “with a purpose.” In English we use the infinitive:
She came to collect her letter. - She came (to) pick up her letter.
We came to help you. - We came (to) help you.
I am calling to ask you about dad. – I’m calling you (to) ask about dad.
You sister has gone to finish her homework. - Your sister left to finish her homework(left to finish finishing).
In this case to can be replaced by a union in order to(with a purpose), the meaning will be the same, but sentences with in order to sounds more formal:
You sister has gone in order to finish her homework. – Your sister left to complete her homework.
3. Infinitive as subject
The infinitive is used as a subject in formal speech, often in writing.
To be or not to be, that is the question. – To be or not to be, that is the question.
To know she is to love her. “To know her is to love her.”
To visit the Grand Canyon is my life-long dream. – Visiting the Grand Canyon has been my life’s dream.
To understand statistics, that is our aim. – Understanding statistics is our goal.
4. To indicate the purpose of the item
If I had known you were coming I would have baked a cake. “If I had known you were coming, I would have baked a pie.”
You could have helped him. – You could have helped him (but you didn’t).
In the case of the verb should there is a hint of regret or reproach:
Where should have taken more gas. – We should have taken more gasoline (but, unfortunately, we didn’t).
You should have been prepared for anything! “You should have been ready for anything!” (but you weren't and therefore you let us down)
Perfect Continuous Infinitive - an infinitive denoting a continuous-perfect action
Scheme: to have been + Present Participle. Example: to have been talking.
This form is used in the following cases:
1. Long completed action
The infinitive denotes a continuous action that was performed but completed before the action expressed by the verb.
The woman seemed to have been crying. “The woman looked like she was crying.
He pretended to have been working all day. “He pretended that he had been working all day.”
2. After modal verbs must, may, should
The assumption is expressed that some long-term action took place, but has already ended.
You must have been waiting for hours! “You must have waited for hours!”
They might have been talking before you came in. “They must have been talking before you came in.”
In the case of a modal verb should there is a tinge of regret or reproach that some long-term action could have occurred, but in reality did not occur.
You should have been studying for your test. – You should have studied for the test (but you didn’t).
Note:
Please note that in all perfect forms of the infinitive, that is, in forms where there is have, the word itself have never takes shape has, as in the case of a verb in its personal form. Word have in this case it is part of the infinitive, therefore it cannot be correlated with person and number, and accordingly cannot take a personal form has(has = 3rd person, singular).
He has a fox. - He has a fox.
The has form is used because it is the personal form (3rd person, singular) of the verb.
He might have a fox. - He might have a fox.
Here have– infinitive, it has no person and number.
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Infinitive in English is an imfinite form of an English verb that denotes only action, without indicating either person or number. The infinitive answers the questions: what to do? what to do?
To speak - to speak
In Russian, the infinitive is often called indefinite verb form. It is the infinitive that is given in dictionaries as the initial form of the verb.
The formal sign of the infinitive in English is the particle to, which is omitted before the infinitive in some cases.
I was glad to see the car stop.
I was glad to see that the car had stopped.
He must leave before 11 a.m.
He must leave before 11 am.
Infinitive forms
The infinitive in English has four forms in the active voice and two in the passive voice. Forms of the passive voice have only the simple and perfect infinitive of transitive verbs, i.e. verbs used with an object:
- Simple infinitive in active voice:
Pauline likes to write letters.
Polina loves to write letters.
- Continuous infinitive:
What is Pauline doing? She must be writing a letter.
What is Polina doing? She must be writing a letter.
- Perfect infinitive in active voice:
Pauline is glad to have written that letter.
Polina is glad that she wrote this letter.
- Perfect continuous infinitive:
Pauline must have been writing that letter since morning.
Polina must have been writing a letter since the morning.
- Simple infinitive in passive voice:
This letter seems to be written in pencil.
This letter appears to have been written in pencil.
- Perfect infinitive in passive voice:
The forms of the infinitive clearly reflect the relationship with the predicate verb in the sentence.
Simple infinitive in active and passive voice is used when the action it expresses either occurs simultaneously with the action expressed by the predicate verb in personal form, or is irrespective of the time of the action:
I am glad to see you. (simultaneous action)
I'm glad to see you.
I like to be given presents.(action not related to time)
I like it when people give me gifts.
To show that an action relates to the future, a simple infinitive is used after modal verbs may, must, should, ought to and after verbs to expect- expect, to intend- intend, to hope- hope to want- want, etc. For example:
You may come tomorrow.
You can come tomorrow.
He must do it immediately.
He must do this immediately.
You should put on a warm hat.
You should wear a warm hat.
I expect to see you next week.
I expect to see you next week.
I intend to go to the seaside this summer.
I intend to go to the sea this summer.
I hope to find him at home.
I hope to find him at home.
Continuous infinitive emphasizes the duration of the action, simultaneous with the predicate verb:
Form perfect continuous infinitive indicates that the action expressed by the infinitive began earlier than the action expressed by the predicate verb and continues to this day:
She seems to have been cooking since morning.
It seems like she's been cooking since the morning.
Perfect infinitive used to denote an action preceding an action expressed by a predicate verb:
I am sorry not to have told you about it earlier.
I'm sorry I didn't tell you about this sooner.
Perfect infinitive after modal verbs must And may expresses the assumption that an action has already taken place:
After modal verbs should, ought to, could, might, was/ were The perfect infinitive denotes an action that should or could have happened, but in fact did not happen.
From English the word ‘ infinitive’ translates as “uncertain”. In fact, the very concept of the infinitive has become entrenched in the language as an impersonal form of the verb, which is devoid of any tense, person, number or mood:
In Russian, the indefinite form is also represented:
Tell him to SPEAK louder - nothing can be heard.
Tell him TO SPEAK louder, I can hear nothing.
It should be noted that in English, unlike Russian, we encounter six forms of the infinitive - simple, objective, infinitive phrases and complex forms of the infinitive. In this article we will talk about the simple infinitive, consider its functions in a sentence, features of use and translation.
Simple infinitive in English
Let's see how the use of infinitive forms in English helps to implement grammatical relationships in a sentence.
The infinitive answers the question “What (to) do?”, however, it will never be used as an independent predicate. A distinctive feature of the infinitive is the presence of a particle to and a complete lack of endings:
Infinitive vs. Verb (verb)
He likes to travel abroad. - He travels abroad.
He loves to travel abroad. - He travels abroad.
In some cases the particle to may be missing. For example, when paired with a modal verb in English, you should use the infinitive (initial form) without a particle to:
Can you feel the love tonight? -Can you feel the touch of love tonight?, - sings Elton John in the soundtrack to the cartoon “The Lion King”.
The simple form of the infinitive is a dictionary form and is used much more often than complex forms. They are addressed to avoid duality of meaning, in order to avoid distortion of the intent.
Using the English Infinitive in a Sentence
Speaking about a verb group, it can express part of a compound predicate, be defined by an adverb and have a direct object. As a member of a noun phrase, the infinitive is often used as a subject, object, and even a modifier.
Verb functions
Functions of a noun
In formal statements it usually appears at the beginning of the sentence, while in more informal communication introductory constructions like ‘ it is well-known’, ‘it is difficult' and others:
To talk like that was very rude of you. - It was very rude of you to speak in such a tone.
It was very rude of you to talk like that. - It was rude to speak in such a tone.
Very often the infinitive can be found after transitive verb. In this case, it expresses the complement in the sentence and is translated into Russian through the initial form:
My husband decided to take us to Paris on holiday. - My husband decided to take us to Paris on vacation.
We offer you a list of verbs after which the infinitive can act as an object.
As a direct object, the simple infinitive can also be used with question words ( how, when, what, etc.) and after constructions with verb forms to be:
I'm glad to meet you. - Glad to meet you.
Don't look at me. I don't know what to do. - Do not look at me. I do not know what to do.
As a definition, a simple infinitive answers the question “which?” and stands after the defined word in English:
I need a new house to live in. - I need new house, in which I can live (to live there).
We cannot put an infinitive after a verb. This will no longer be a definition, but an addition and the sentence will lose meaning:
The order of words is very important here, otherwise you can often get nonsense and not be understood.
Very often, as a definition, a simple infinitive comes after pronouns something, somebody, anything, anybody, nothing, nobody or after ordinal numbers:
I have nothing to wear. - I have nothing to wear.
In conclusion, we would like to add that we only told you about the simple infinitive. In our future publications we will definitely return to this phenomenon of English grammar.
We wish you success in your studies and interesting practice!
Victoria Tetkina
The word “infinitive” often causes confusion among English language learners because many people have no idea what the word means. In one of our articles We have already begun to tell you about what an infinitive is and how it is used. You can talk a lot on this topic, delving more and more into the grammar of the language. Of course, you shouldn’t dump everything on you in one article, but it would be nice to remember the old things and add a few subtleties on the topic.
What is an infinitive and how do we understand that we have a verb in the infinitive (initial form)?
An infinitive is a form of a verb that answers the questions “ what to do?" And " what to do?” (go, draw, build, etc.). It is also called “indefinite or initial form”, because. it does not show who performs the action or when the action is performed. Usually in the dictionary verbs appear in this form.
Notinfinitive:
Highlighted words Not are infinitives because they indicate on that Who performs an action (I, you, he, she, we, you, they), and then When an action is performed (in the present tense).
Infinitive :
Most often, the fact that we have a verb in the infinitive is indicated by a small word that stands before verb - particle to:
to read - read t
to dance - dancet
to travel - travelingt
The negative form of the infinitive is formed using the word not (not), which is placed before to:
not todance - not to dance
not totravel - not to travel
Another signal that we have an infinitive (or the initial form of a verb) is the question “what to do?” and “what to do?”, that is, the verb in the initial form will always answer one of these questions:
I like to read. - I like (what to do?) read.
(In this sentence, the infinitive contains the verb “to read”, and the Russian word “read” corresponds to it).
I want to dance. - I want (what to do?) dance.
How to use an infinitive in speech?
1. Very often the infinitive is used after the following words: happy(happy), glad (joyful), sorry (regretful), difficult (difficult), nice (cute), good (good), etc. in expressions such as:
2. For indication goalsactions, that is, when we say why or why we are doing something. In this case, the particle to can be translated into Russian as “to.”
3. There are often situations (both in English and Russian) when we use 2 verbs in a row. For example, you’re hungry, you like to read, you promise to do it. The second verb here is in the initial form in the Russian version. In English, there are often several ways to convey the same meaning. The second action (eat, read, do...) can be conveyed either using the infinitive or in another way. However, there are a number of verbs after which ONLY the infinitive can be placed. They need to be remembered. Below I will list the most used ones:
Verbs expressing thoughts and feelings
|
hope - to hope |
I hope to see you next week. - I hope you see next week. |
|
Choose - choose, decide |
She chose to study English literature. - She decided study English literature. |
|
Decide - decide |
My mother decided to leave her job. - My mother decidedleave From the job. |
|
Expect - expect |
He expects to get an award - He expects to receive a prize. |
|
Prepare - to prepare |
She prepared to be a mother. - She was getting ready become a mother. |
|
Forget - forget |
I forgot to do my homework. - I forgot to do homework. |
Verbs used to convey the speaker's words. These are such g lagols that we usually use when paraphrasing someone's words.
Example:
|
Agree - agree |
I agreed to go with him. - I agreed go with him. |
|
Ask - to ask |
He asked to closethe door. - He asked close the door. |
|
Promise - promise |
I promise to go back soon. - I promise soon return . |
Verbs of desire
|
Want - want |
She wanted to get a new ring. - She wanted get a new ring. |
|
Wish - to wish |
I wish you to be happy. - I wish you be happy. |
|
Would like - want |
I would like to stay at home. - I would like To stay home. |
Verbs denoting the beginning, continuation, end of an action
Some modal verbs and constructions
Read about when the infinitive is used without the particle to.
Well, now you remember what an infinitive is, you learned where it is used in speech and when you need to put to in front of it. And now I suggest you start applying your knowledge in practice and complete the task to consolidate it.
Reinforcement task
Insert to or not to (in case of negation) where necessary. Leave your answers in the comments.
(Example: He promised to arrive on time. I asked not to call me.)
Those with an intermediate level and higher can write a complete translation of the sentences from the assignment in the comments.
I'm glad to meet you.
We decided not to go to the cinema.
He came here to walk the dog.
I promise not to be late again.
She is capable of fixing the lock herself.
We are glad to see you.
Continue straight, then turn left.
He will have to look for a new apartment.
He started speaking English.
He agreed to pay for me.
I hope to return to this city.
I would like to chat with the star.
The Infinitive
Infinitive in English is an impersonal form of a verb that names an action in its most general form. Most often, the infinitive is indicated by the main (dictionary) form of the verb.As you have probably already noticed, one of the distinctive features the English infinitive is the presence of a particle to before the verb:
To be or not to be- that is a question. = To be or not to be, that is the question.
However, it is not at all necessary that the infinitive will always be preceded by the particle to. Remember that to not used before an infinitive:
1. After most modal verbs. For example:
She can swim best of all. - She can swim better than anyone.
2. After verbs of sensory perception feel, hear, see, watch:
I never saw her cry. - I've never seen her cry.
3. After the verb let:
Let's him go. - Let him go. (Let him go).
4. After the verb make (meaning “to force”):
He made her cry. - He made her cry.
And also after would rather
, had better and after the verb help(however, after help can also be used with particle to).
Example:
I would rather keep my personal life private. - I would chose to keep your personal life in secret.
Infinitive forms:
Present Infinitive: to do
Present continuous infinitive ( Present continuous infinitive): to be doing
Perfect Infinitive: to have done
Infinitive perfect continuous tense ( Perfect continuous infinitive): to have been doing
Present Infinitive Passive: to be done
Perfect Infinitive Passive: to have been done
Below is a list of verbs with translation, after which the infinitive is used:
to aim - to strive
to afford - afford (sth)
to agree - agree
to appear - appear
to arrange - negotiate
to ask - to ask
to attempt - try
to beg - to beg
to begin - to begin
to care - worry
to choose - choose
to consent - agree
to continue - continue
to dare - to dare
to decide - to decide
to determine - to determine
to demand - demand
to desire - to wish
to expect - to expect
to fail - to fail
to forget - forget
to guarantee - guarantee
to happen - to happen
to hate - to hate
to help - to help
to hesitate - to doubt
to hope - to hope
to intend - intend
to learn - to learn, to learn
to like - to love, want
to love - to love
to manage - cope
to mean - to imply
to neglect - neglect
to negotiate - negotiate
to offer - to offer
to plead - to ask, beg
to pledge - pledge
to prefer - to prefer
to prepare - to prepare
to pretend - pretend
to promise - to promise
to propose - to propose
to refuse - refuse
to regret - to regret
to remember - remember
to resolve - decide
to seek - to search
to seem - to seem
to start - to begin
to swear - to swear
to threaten - to threaten
to trouble - to disturb,
to try - try
to volunteer - volunteer
to want - to want
to wish - to wish, to want
There are the following constructions with the infinitive:
1. Objective case with infinitive –
This is a noun or pronoun in the objective case + infinitive. For example:
I want you to come here. - I want you to come here.
2. Infinitive with preposition for -
This is for + noun or pronoun in the objective case + infinitive. For example:
He opened the door for me to come in. - He opened the door for me to enter.
3. Subjective infinitive phrase -
This is subject + predicate + infinitive.
The verbs to seem, to appear, to happen, to prove, to turn out are used in the active voice; other verbs are used in the passive. What is supposed to happen in our city? - What should happen in our city?
The predicate can also be a compound nominal (linking verb + adjective or adverb). For example:
He is said to know five foreign languages. - They say that he knows five foreign languages.
Translate these sentences into Russian, pay Special attention to the infinitive:
- She heard the door close.
- We waited for him to phone.
- You seem to have heard nothing.
- She is easy to deal with.
- Jim makes me feel happy.
