GERUND or INFINITIVE? Choose the right one with 50 common verbs!

0:00 Hm.

0:00 Is it I forgot calling her or I forgot to call her?

0:05 And is it I regret saying that or I regret to say that?

0:11 How do you know whether to use the ing form or the infinitive in English?

0:17 Well, it all depends on the verb that it follows.

0:22 And in this lesson, you're going to learn whether to use the gerand,

0:26 like calling or the infinitive, like to call after 50 common verbs in English.

0:35 And I'm also going to teach you a simple trick

0:38 so you know which one to use every single time.

0:43 Are you ready?

0:47 Okay.

0:48 So, we're going to start with the rule,

0:50 then look at some verbs that take the gerand,

0:54 then verbs that take the infinitive,

0:56 and then verbs that take both, but the meaning changes.

1:01 Okay?

1:01 So, here's a quick reminder of the rule.

1:05 So, we use the verb plus the gerand if we are looking backwards.

1:12 And if we're talking about a general activity or an experience and we

1:19 use the infinitive when we're looking forwards or talking about a goal,

1:26 a plan, an intention, or a decision.

1:29 Now listen, a lot of verbs follow this logic, but not all of them.

1:34 But in a part of grammar which causes so much pain and confusion,

1:40 it's a great idea to just use this little bit of logic

1:45 to try to help you make sense from this very messy situation.

1:50 Okay.

1:50 Now, I'm going to keep this video fairly concise and quick.

1:54 So, I'm going to explain 30 of these verbs in this video.

1:58 And I've included the extra 20 in this worksheet

2:02 which you can download absolutely free by clicking

2:05 the link up there or you can also scan

2:08 the QR code or click the link in the description.

2:12 Just enter your email address and I will send you that and that also comes

2:16 with a test so you can make sure that you have completely learned this grammar.

2:22 Okay.

2:23 So let's have a look at some verbs which

2:25 are followed by the gerand and as you will see

2:29 the verb in the gerand is being treated like a general

2:34 activity or an experience and we're looking backwards at it.

2:40 Let's go.

2:41 Enjoy.

2:43 I enjoy reading in bed.

2:46 Reading is the activity.

2:48 Avoid.

2:49 She avoids driving in the city.

2:53 Again, driving is the activity.

2:55 Consider they're considering moving to London.

2:59 Okay, maybe they're not looking back in this one,

3:02 but it still talks about an experience, moving to London.

3:07 Discuss.

3:08 We discussed hiring someone new.

3:11 Again, we're talking about the general activity of hiring someone.

3:16 Miss.

3:17 What do I miss?

3:18 I miss England.

3:19 I miss my friends.

3:20 I miss seeing my old friends.

3:25 Finish.

3:26 He finished.

3:27 What activity did he finish?

3:29 He finished cleaning the kitchen.

3:32 Practice.

3:33 What activity do you need to practice?

3:36 You need to practice speaking English more.

3:40 Speaking in the gerand.

3:43 Admit.

3:45 She admitted.

3:46 What experience did she admit?

3:48 She admitted taking the money.

3:51 Suggest I suggest starting earlier now.

3:56 Yes, actually we can also say I suggest we start earlier.

4:02 Um, watch that video to learn how to use that structure.

4:06 It's the English subjunctive and there are lots

4:10 of other ways to use the subjunctive in that video.

4:13 But in this case, we can also use the gerand.

4:16 I suggest starting earlier.

4:19 And the last one, keep.

4:20 What activity does he keep doing?

4:23 He keeps interrupting me.

4:26 Okay, so you can see in those situations, they follow the logic.

4:30 We're talking about a general activity or experience,

4:35 and we're normally looking backwards.

4:38 Now, let's have a look at some verbs that take the infinitive.

4:43 So, remember, these are usually verbs that don't look backwards,

4:47 but they look forwards and they describe a goal,

4:51 an intention, a decision, or a plan.

4:56 So, let's have a look at some of these verbs now.

4:59 And remember, if you want the full list of 50,

5:02 you can download that worksheet by clicking the link in the description.

5:07 Okay.

5:08 So, some common verbs that take the infinitive.

5:11 Want.

5:12 I want to leave now.

5:14 Okay.

5:14 This is something that I want in the future.

5:17 We're looking forward here.

5:19 It's my intention.

5:20 I want to leave now.

5:22 And a similar verb need.

5:24 You need again.

5:26 We're looking forward.

5:27 What do you need to do?

5:28 What's your goal here?

5:29 You need to study more.

5:33 Decide.

5:34 We decided to stay at home.

5:36 And yes, this verb is in the past tense.

5:39 So, aren't we looking backwards?

5:41 No.

5:43 Yes, I'm talking in the past.

5:44 But when that action happens in the past, we deciding to do something.

5:49 The decision at that time was looking forwards.

5:53 Okay?

5:54 So, at 6:00 last night,

5:55 we made the decision to stay at home for the rest of the evening.

6:01 Hope again, you hope something for the future.

6:04 They hope to win the prize.

6:06 Plan.

6:08 She's planning to travel soon.

6:10 As I mentioned, we use the infinitive when we're talking about plans,

6:13 decisions, like decide, intentions, goals.

6:18 Agree.

6:18 [clears throat] He agreed to help us.

6:22 Again, we're looking forward.

6:23 It's that plan that he agreed to do.

6:26 Learn.

6:27 I'm learning to play the guitar.

6:31 and offer.

6:33 They offered to drivers.

6:35 Again, they're looking forwards.

6:37 It's an intention as is refuse.

6:40 He refused to go.

6:43 Promise is another one.

6:45 She promised to call.

6:47 Okay.

6:47 So, do you see how these work?

6:49 Again, yeah, it is a good idea to learn these and learn them in the sentence,

6:53 but also learn the logic and try to apply the logic.

6:58 You might make some mistakes sometime, but you won't have to guess.

7:02 You will have a good idea always of whether to use the gerand or infinitive.

7:09 Now, good news and bad news.

7:12 There are some verbs that take the infinitive or the gerand

7:18 and the meaning changes a little bit depending on which you use.

7:23 Sorry about that.

7:24 So, let's have a look at a few.

7:26 And [snorts] again, I've put more in the PDF that you can download,

7:30 but these verbs can take both.

7:33 And in fact, the two that I mentioned

7:35 at the beginning of this video are in this little section.

7:39 And the thing is with this, these little differences are the kind of thing

7:45 you need to know if you want an internationally recognized B2 level of English.

7:51 Lots and lots of jobs require this level.

7:54 and my course, Brilliant B2, will help you reach that level in 12 weeks.

8:00 So, if you're working towards that level,

8:02 I'll put a link in the description for you.

8:05 I would love to have you inside that course.

8:08 Okay, let's have a look then at some of these verbs.

8:12 Remember, I remember locking the door and remember to lock the door.

8:19 Let's just have a look at these two sentences for a minute.

8:23 They follow the same logic as I mentioned earlier in the video.

8:27 So I remember plus the gerand I remember locking the door.

8:32 I remember that general activity.

8:35 I'm looking backwards.

8:36 It happened.

8:37 I'm talking about the experience or the activity and it's in my memory.

8:44 However, remember to lock the door.

8:47 If I say that to you, I'm talking to you about a goal, an intention, a plan.

8:54 So, I want you to remember to do something in the future,

9:00 which is to lock the door.

9:02 Do you see the difference?

9:03 They both follow the logic from earlier in the video,

9:07 but if you mix them up, you could be saying something completely different.

9:11 I mean, not completely different.

9:13 You're still talking about the door, but it would be very confusing and unclear

9:18 if you chose one instead of the other.

9:20 Okay, the opposite of remember is forget.

9:24 And this is also in this category.

9:26 So look at these two sentences.

9:29 I'll never forget meeting you and I'll never forget to meet you.

9:36 So again, when we use the gerand,

9:38 we're looking backwards and talking about an activity.

9:41 I'll never forget.

9:44 What experience am I talking about here?

9:47 Meeting you.

9:48 Wow.

9:49 When I met you, it was an unforgettable experience.

9:52 I will never forget it.

9:54 I will never forget meeting you.

9:58 However, I'll never forget what's my intention here.

10:02 What's my plan?

10:03 What's my goal for the future?

10:06 To meet you.

10:07 Okay?

10:07 I'll never forget to meet you.

10:09 every time you say, "Hey, Greg, let's meet." Okay,

10:14 I promise I will not forget to meet you.

10:17 Okay, here's another one which doesn't exactly fit in with what I'm saying,

10:23 but it's an example that every English teacher uses,

10:26 so I want to include it here.

10:28 I'm talking about this.

10:30 She stopped smoking or she stopped to smoke.

10:34 So the first one, yeah,

10:37 she used to smoke 20 cigarettes a day and then she stopped.

10:42 Okay, she stopped that horrible activity.

10:44 Good for her.

10:45 She's now living a healthier life because she stopped that activity.

10:50 She stopped smoking.

10:51 She quit smoking.

10:53 However, she stopped to smoke.

10:57 This is more like she stopped in the middle of the street.

11:02 Why?

11:03 With what intention?

11:04 With what plan?

11:06 To smoke.

11:07 Okay.

11:07 So, she's walking along the street.

11:09 She stops.

11:10 She gets her cigarettes out of her pocket and she smokes.

11:14 She stopped.

11:15 Why?

11:16 To smoke.

11:17 This for me actually falls more into the category

11:20 of should we use two or should we use four.

11:25 Many students make mistakes and aren't sure whether to use two or four.

11:31 I explain all those rules in that video there.

11:35 You're gonna love it.

11:36 It's really simple when you follow those rules.

11:38 So, I'll put a link in the description for you, too.

11:41 Okay.

11:42 The next one in this little section is

11:44 try pressing this button or try to press harder.

11:50 Again, try this activity, pressing the button.

11:53 Try plan intention goal to press it harder.

11:57 And regret.

11:59 I regret saying that or we regret to inform you that.

12:04 Again, both are correct.

12:06 But if you use the gerand,

12:07 then we're looking back on an experience or activity that you regret.

12:14 But at the beginning of a letter that is giving you bad news,

12:19 you would see normally from a company,

12:22 it would say, "We regret to inform you that." Okay?

12:25 because it's introducing the plan, the goal,

12:29 the intention that is going to be mentioned in that letter.

12:34 Okay?

12:34 Like you get a letter from the bank.

12:36 We regret to inform you that all your money has been stolen.

12:41 Okay?

12:41 I have one bonus section for you which you're going to love and it's

12:46 verbs that take both the gerand or infinitive and it makes no difference at all.

12:55 Why aren't all verbs like that?

12:57 So, here we go.

12:58 Here are five.

12:59 And again, I'll put more in that worksheet for you.

13:02 Begin.

13:03 She began to cry.

13:04 She began crying.

13:07 No difference.

13:08 Start.

13:09 I started to read.

13:11 I started reading.

13:12 You'll hear both interchangeably.

13:15 It really makes no difference.

13:17 Continue.

13:18 He continued to work.

13:19 He continued working.

13:21 Yeah.

13:22 Tomato tomato.

13:23 love.

13:24 They love to travel or they love traveling.

13:28 Again, pretty much the same thing.

13:30 And like I like swimming or I like to swim.

13:34 Again, normally there's not much difference in those two sentences.

13:40 Sometimes there is.

13:41 I'll put a link to an old video I did about the difference

13:45 in the comments if you want to learn

13:47 the small difference between those two sentences.

13:50 Okay, I've got another great video coming for you on Friday,

13:54 so subscribe so you don't miss that.

13:56 For now, leave a comment using one of the verbs from this lesson.

14:01 And remember to download the worksheet to get the full list of 50

14:06 everyday verbs that are followed by either the gerand or the infinitive.

14:11 Now, earlier in this video,

14:12 I explained the importance of knowing the difference between for and to.

14:18 So, watch that video to learn the rules so you never make a mistake with that.

14:24 There's the worksheet.

14:25 Thanks for watching and bye for now.

14:32 [music]