Words in Transition

Infinitives and gerunds are verbals, words formed from verbs. Verbals can function in a sentence as nouns, adjectives, or clauses. Infinitives and gerunds can both be used as nouns and, therefore, can follow main verbs as direct objects. Some main verbs can be followed by either an infinitive or a gerund. However, some must be followed by an infinitive and others must be followed by a gerund.

The following six rules list common verbs and phrases associated with each of these verbals. They also give help in correctly using infinitives and gerunds as objects.

1. Use an infinitive with to after these common verbs:
   

   agree	come	have	mean	refuse
   arrange	decide	hope	offer	wait
   bed	deserve	intend	plan	want
   claim	expect	manage	promise	wish

   Keith refused participating in the discussion. [to participate]

2. Learn which verbs are followed by a noun or pronoun object and an infinitive with to.Some verbs are followed by two objects-a noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb and then the infinitive. The following verbs have a noun or pronoun object as well as an infinitive object:
   

   advise	convince	invite	persuade	tell
   allow	forbid	order	remind	urge
   cause	instruct	permit	require	warm

   We persuaded_^to come with us. [our neighbors]

   The Embassy invited_^to attend a reception in the Princess’s honor. [us]

   The following verbs may either take a noun or pronoun object or be followed directly by an infinitive:

   allow *	cause	force	help	want
   ask	expect	get	need	would like

   I would like dessert.

   I would like it.

   I would like to go.

   Exception: When allow does not have a noun or pronoun object, it is followed by a gerund.

   Many companies no longer allow smoking on their premises.

3. Use let, make, and have correctly.When let means “allow,” make means “force,” and have means “cause,” they are followed by a noun or pronoun object (0) and the infinitive without to.

   Customs officials let Martha pass through without inspecting her luggage. [O]

   They did not make her show them her briefcase, either. [O]

   Tom had the barber cut his hair much shorter this time. [O]

4. Use a gerund after the following verbs:
   

   admit	delay	imagine	practice	risk
   allow *	deny	keep	prevent	stop
   appreciate	discuss	mind	regret	suggest
   avoid	enjoy	miss	remember	toerate
   consider	finish	postpone	resist

   I enjoyed to meet your family. [meeting]

   The government no longer allows to smoke in government offices. [smoking]

   *Note: Allow is followed by an infinitive when it has a noun or pronoun object.

   I don’t allow anyone smoking in the house. [to smoke]

5. Use a gerund after certain verbs plus a preposition.The following phrases are frequently followed by gerunds:
   

   accuse someone of	be responsible for	feel like
   apologize to	be tired of	insist on
   approve of	be used to	look forward to
   be afraid of	believe in	object to
   be capable of	depend on	talk about
   be interested in	dream of	think about

   Sue is responsible for preparing the financial data.

6. Use either an infinitive or a gerund after the following verbs:
   

   begin *	hate	love	start *
   continue	like	prefer

   The store cannot continue to raise prices.

   The store cannot continue raising prices.

   Note: When begin and start are used in the progressive tenses, they can only be followed by an infinitive.

   Lani is beginning_^enjoying her dance class. [to enjoy]

   After some verbs, such as remember, stop, and try, the infinitive and the gerund have different meanings.

   Sid remembers going to the bank on Friday.

   [Sid remembers that he went to the bank last Friday.]

   Sid remembers to go to the bank on Friday.

   [He remembers to go to the bank every Friday.]

Two-word verbs consist of a main verb plus a particle (a preposition or adverb). Note that the particle changes the meaning of a verb completely.

let down [disappoint]

let out [free]

These combinations of verb + particle are idiomatic; that is, the separate meanings of the verb and the particle do not predict their meaning when they are combined into a two-word verb.

Like other verbs, two-word verbs may be either transitive or intransitive.

Transitive come across [find], let down [disappoint], tell off [rebuke]

Intransitive catch on [understand], crop up [occur], give in [yield]

Transitive two-word verbs are either inseparable or separable. The verb and particle of inseparable two-word verbs are never separated by the direct object. However, the verb and particle of separable two-word verbs are sometimes separated by the direct object. There is no way of telling which two-word verbs are inseparable and which are separable except by noting how a writer handles the object of these verbs. You must, therefore, note this distinction when you learn each new two-word verb.

Follow these four rules in placing the direct object of transitive two-word verbs.

1. Do not separate the verb and particle of inseparable two-word verbs. Place the noun or pronoun after the particle.Lucy does not take after her older sister. [DO]

   Lucy does not take after her. [DO]

2. When the object of a separable two-word verb is a noun, place it either between the main verb and the particle or after the particle.We turned the offer down. [DO]

   We turned down the offer. [DO]

3. When the object of a separable two-word verb is a pronoun, place the object only between the verb and the particle.We turned it down because it came too late. [DO]
4. Learn some common separable and inseparable transitive two-word verbs.
   

   Separable

   fill out an application/fill it out
   give up smoking/give it up
   look up some words/look them up
   put out a fire/ put it out
   tear down a house / tear one down
   throw away the paper / throw it away
   try on some clothes / try some on
   turn down the TV / turn it down
   turn up the volume/turn it up

   Inseparable

   call on a student/ call on her
   come across an article / come across it
   get over a cold/get over it
   hear from an old friend/hear from him
   look after his mother / look after her
   look through an encyclopedia/look through it
   pick on someone smaller / pick on someone
   run into a neighbour / run into her
   take after a grandparent/ take after him

The passive voice of a verb (V) consists of a form of be (am, is, are, was, were, being, be, or been) plus the past participle of the main verb. In a sentence in the passive voice, the subject (S) receives the action; it does not do the action.

Diamonds and gold are mined in South Africa. [S] [V]

Keep the following three points in mind to form the passive voice correctly.

1. Use the past participle, not the base form or past tense, to form the passive voice.Pay particular attention to past participles of irregular verbs.A lot of electronic parts are manufacture in Southeast Asia. [manufactured]

   In my family, clothing was wore by all three children and then gave to the church. [worn] [given]

2. Identify the subject and make sure the helping verb be agrees with it. The sea otter, an endangered species, are native to the Pacific coast. [is][The subject, sea otter, is singular, even though the appositive, species, sounds plural.]
3. Use only transitive verbs in the passive voice. A transitive verb, unlike an intransitive one, always takes a direct object (DO).TransitiveJacques Villeneuve drove the car to victory in the Indy 500. [S] [V] [DO]

   [The direct object, car, receives the action of the verb drove.]

   Intransitive

   Sylvia seems forgetful lately. [V]

   [The verb seems has no direct object. Forgetful is a predicate adjective that describes the subject, Sylvia.]

   In the passive voice, the object of the action becomes the grammatical subject of the sentence.

   The car was driven to victory in the Indy 500 by Jacques Villeneuve. [S] [V]

   Since intransitive verbs have no direct object, you cannot form the passive voice with them. If you are not sure whether a verb is transitive, check your dictionary.

Form the Prefect Tenses Correctly

The perfect tenses of a verb are created by combining a form of have with the past participle of the main verb. (Read about the present perfect, past perfect, and future perfect tenses)

Present Prefect

Luis has grown fast this year.

Past Prefect

We already had started dinner when the Smiths arrived.

Future Prefect

Wang will have finished her speech by 8 p.m.

When you use the perfect tenses, remember these two points about the helping verb and the main verb.

1. Make sure the present tense of the helping verb have agrees with its subject.
   • Richard have been a member of the Young Liberals Club for ten years. [has]
   • They has elected her president three times. [have]
2. Use the past participle, not the past tense, to form the perfect tenses.
   • Review the list of the principal parts of verbs.
   • Marie has broke several world records for speed skating. [broken]
   • When I met Harold, he had already began growing bald. [begun]

Form and Use the Progressive Tenses Correctly

The progressive tenses consist of a form of the helping verb be (am, is, are, was, were, being, be, or been) plus the present participle of the main verb.

Present Progressive

Haroon is building a new house.

Past Progressive

Sheila was washing her hair at midnight.

Future Progressive

We will be traveling to Alberta soon.

Some verbs, such as linking verbs, are typically not used in the progressive. The following four points will help you form the progressive tenses correctly and identify verbs not used in the progressive.

1. Use a form of be with the progressive.
   • Kate _^ working in the lab all afternoon today. [is]
   • Several of us _^ working on the same project. [are]
2. Make sure the helping verb be agrees with its subject.
   • The librarians was helping Teresa find books for her report. [were]
   • The number of work-study scholarships are increasing. [is]
   • (Review subject-verb agreement in EDIT 1.)
3. Use the helping verb have in the present perfect progressive.
   • Ari _^ been cooking all day for the party. [has]
   • Elliot and Craig _^ been restoring an old Chevy on weekends. [have]
4. Learn which verbs are usually not used in the progressive.
   • Certain verbs are typically not used in the progressive tenses. These verbs fall into the following categories:
   • Linking Verbs and Verbs that indicate qualities or states of being [appear, be, become, have, seem]
     • Cheng was seeming sick all morning. [seemed]
   • Verbs that show intellectual states, emotional or attitudes [believe, disagree, dislike, hate, imagine, intend, know, like, pity, prefer, realize, suppose, think, understand, want, wish, wonder]
     • I am knowing those formulas perfectly. [know]
   • Verbs that show sense perceptions [feel, hear, see, smell, taste]
     • The milk is smelling sour. [smells]

Mastering a language, whether it is your own or a second language, is an ongoing process. This unit is designed to help students of English as a second language (ESL) with the most frequent problems in writing grammatically correct, idiomatic English.

Verbs

Verbs formed with helping verbs (auxiliaries) can be troublesome for people whose first language is not English. This section provides additional information about these verb forms.

Use Modal Auxiliaries Correctly

Modals (M) are verbs that are used with a main verb (MV) to suggest various judgments by the writer or speaker about the action of the main verb.

You should see a doctor. [M] [MV]

[The modal should expresses the writer’s feeling that the action is necessary or urgent.]

Modals express the following ideas about an action or event:

Probability - may, might, shall, will, would

Necessity or Obligation - must, should

Ability - can, could

Follow these six rules for writing verb phrases with modals.

1. Use the base form of the main verb after modals that express ideas about the present or the future.
   • The modals can, could, may, might, must, should, and will can be used to write about the present or the future.
   • Jeff can swimming very well. He should competes. [swim] [compete]
2. Do not omit shall or will to express the future, even in sentences with adverbs that indicate future time.
   • The coach _^ phone Bob soon. I am sure he _^ get to play first base this year. [will] [will]
   • You can also use going to or the present progressive to express the future.
3. Use only one modal with each main verb.
   • The following sentence expresses two ideas that are normally suggested by modals. However, the expression be able to must substitute for the modal can.
   • I might _^ can join the swimming team this year. [be able to]
   • The following phrases can be used with modals. Their meanings are similar to modals.
   • [have to] They may have to leave early.
   • [be obliged to] He might be obliged to pay that bill.
   • [be able to] I will be able to get to the theater by 8 p.m.
4. Use could, was able to, had to, was obliged to, might, and would plus the base form of the main verb to write about the past.
   • Two years ago he cannot read. [could not]
   • See Word Groups for how to use would and might in reported speech.
5. Use would plus the base form of the main verb to write about a habitual action in the past.
   • When I was a child, I will always try to go barefoot in summer. [would]
6. Use the base form of have or be when the modal is followed by a verb in the perfect or progressive form.
   • Ann should not had quit school. She must is looking for a job now. [have] [be]

A verb (V) expresses action (run, think) or a state of being (is, become, seem). A complete verb is composed of the main verb (MV) itself and any helping verbs (HV) that may be used with it. The most commonly used helping (auxiliary) verbs are the nine modals: may, might, shall, will, would, must, should, can, could. Modals express how the writer feels about an action. Modals express probability, necessity or obligation, or ability.

He may wash the dishes. [probability] [HV] [MV]

He should wash the dishes. [obligation] [HV] [MV]

He can wash the dishes. [ability] [HV] [MV]

Other helping verbs include the forms of have, be, do, used to, and ought to.

He is washing the dishes. [HV] [MV]

He did wash the dishes. [HV] [MV]

He used to wash the dishes. [HV] [MV]

Forms of verbs

All verbs have five forms, with the exception of be, which has eight forms. The first three of the five verb forms are called the principal parts of a verb.

1. Base Form or Infinitive	(to) talk/write	(to) be
2. Past Tense	I talked/wrote	was, were
3. Past Participle	I have talked/written	been
4. -s Form or Present Tense	He/she/it talks/writes	am, is, are
5. Present Participle	I am talking/writing	being

The infinitive is made up of to and the base form (to see, to believe).

Most verbs in English are regular (talk, talked, talked), but a few are irregular (write, wrote, written).

Intransitive, Transitive, and Linking Verbs

A verb can be intransitive, transitive, or linking, depending on whether it takes an object or complement and, if so, what kind.

An intransitive verb has a subject (S) but does not require an object or complement to complete its meaning.

Nobody cares. [S] [V]

Transitional Verb

A transitive verb, as its name indicates, transfers its action from the subject to the object of the sentence. Transitive verbs always take a direct object (DO) and sometimes an indirect object (IO) to complete their meaning.

The waves lashed the shore. [S] [V] [DO]

Maria gave her mother flowers. [S] [V] [IO] [DO]

Linking Verb

A linking verb (LV) connects the subject to a predicate noun (PN), which renames the subject, or a predicate adjective (PA), which describes the subject.

Carol Shields is a writer. [S] [LV] [PN]

The grapefruit is sour. [S] [LV] [PA]

Common Linking Verbs

be (is, am, are, was, were) act
appear
become
grow
look
seem
feel
taste

Verbals

Sometimes a verb does not function as a verb in a sentence. In this case, it is called a verbal. There are three types of verbals: gerunds, participles (both past and present), and infinitives. Verbals are usually used in phrases.

Gerund

Swimming is my favourite sport. [N]

Present Participle

Swimming out to the raft, he got a cramp. [ADJ]

Past Participle

His cramped leg still aches. [ADJ]

Infinitive

Bob is learning to swim. [N]