{"id":15668,"date":"2026-06-03T09:00:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T08:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/?p=15668"},"modified":"2026-05-27T14:23:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T13:23:47","slug":"gerunds-and-infinitives-in-english","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/gerunds-and-infinitives-in-english\/","title":{"rendered":"Gerunds and Infinitives in English"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Learn when to use Gerunds (-ing) and Infinitives (to + verb). This guide explains how each is used, and when to use them. With clear rules and examples, it helps you speak more accurately and talk about your plans in English.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Gerunds and Infinitives in English<\/h1>\n

In English, we often use two verb forms<\/strong> after another verb: the gerund<\/strong> (verb + ing<\/em>) or the infinitive<\/strong> (to + verb<\/em>). Knowing when to use each form helps your English sound natural and correct.<\/p>\n

What Is a Gerund?<\/h2>\n

A gerund<\/strong> is a verb ending in -ing<\/strong> that acts like a noun.<\/p>\n

\u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • I enjoy learning<\/strong> English.<\/li>\n
  • She finished studying<\/strong> late.<\/li>\n
  • We talked about moving<\/strong> to Ireland.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    What Is an Infinitive?<\/h2>\n

    An infinitive<\/strong> is to + verb<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    \u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • I want to improve<\/strong> my English.<\/li>\n
    • He decided to travel<\/strong> in summer.<\/li>\n
    • We hope to see<\/strong> more of Ireland.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Verbs Followed by Gerunds<\/h2>\n

      Some common verbs are followed by a gerund:<\/p>\n

      \u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438:<\/p>\n

        \n
      • enjoy<\/li>\n
      • finish<\/li>\n
      • avoid<\/li>\n
      • practise<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Sentences:<\/p>\n

          \n
        • I enjoy living<\/strong> in Dublin.<\/li>\n
        • She practises speaking<\/strong> English every day.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Verbs Followed by Infinitives<\/h2>\n

          Some verbs are followed by an infinitive:<\/p>\n

          \u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438:<\/p>\n

            \n
          • want<\/li>\n
          • decide<\/li>\n
          • plan<\/li>\n
          • hope<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            Sentences:<\/p>\n

              \n
            • I plan to study<\/strong> all summer.<\/li>\n
            • They decided to stay<\/strong> in Ireland.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Verbs That Can Use Both<\/h2>\n

              Some verbs can be followed by both<\/strong> forms, but the meaning can change slightly.<\/p>\n

              \u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434:<\/p>\n

                \n
              • I stopped smoking<\/strong>. (I don\u2019t smoke now)<\/li>\n
              • I stopped to smoke<\/strong>. (I stopped something else to smoke)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                At B1 level, it\u2019s enough to recognise the difference.<\/p>\n

                Gerunds and Infinitives in Daily Life<\/h2>\n

                English learners use these forms to talk about:<\/p>\n

                  \n
                • goals and plans<\/li>\n
                • hobbies<\/li>\n
                • studying English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                  \u041f\u0440\u0438\u043a\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438:<\/p>\n

                    \n
                  • I enjoy meeting<\/strong> new people.<\/li>\n
                  • I want to travel<\/strong> more this year.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    Final Tip<\/h2>\n

                    Don\u2019t try to memorise everything at once. Learn verbs in groups<\/strong> and notice how people use them in real life.<\/p>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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                    Learn when to use Gerunds (-ing) and Infinitives (to + verb). This guide explains how each is used, and when to use them. With clear rules and examples, it helps you speak more accurately and talk about your plans in English.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Learn when to use Gerunds (-ing) and Infinitives (to + verb). This guide explains how each is used, and when to use them. With clear rules and examples, it helps ...","protected":false},"author":120,"featured_media":15669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"%%sitetitle%% %%sep%% %%post_title%%","_seopress_titles_desc":"Learn when to use Gerunds (-ing) and Infinitives (to + verb).","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"72","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"both","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":301,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"grammar,verbs,modal verbs","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[{"url":"","title":"","desc":"","thumbnail":"","duration":"","rating":"","view_count":"","tag":""}],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[72,194,71],"tags":[195,2817,2808],"class_list":["post-15668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic","category-english-tips","category-isi-dublin-blog","tag-english-tips","tag-grammar","tag-languagetips"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/120"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15668"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15670,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15668\/revisions\/15670"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/studyinireland.ie\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}