Mohammad Abdullah

                                                  Infinitives

Definition

An infinitive is the most basic form of a verb. It is “unmarked” (which means that it is not conjugated for tense or person), and it is preceded by the particle to.

Infinitives are known as non-finite verbs, meaning they do not express actions being performed by the subjects of clauses. Instead, infinitives function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs to describe actions as ideas.

Infinitives are distinct from a similar construction known as bare infinitives or the base forms of verbs, which are simply infinitives without the particle to. Although nearly identical, we use them in different ways than “full” infinitives, which we’ll look at later in this section.

Using infinitives

Infinitives are used to express an action as a concept, rather than what is being done or performed by the subject of a clause. In this way, they can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs—that is, nearly any role in a sentence except that of a main verb.

Infinitives can stand on their own to complete these functions, or they can work together with their own predicates (any additional information that modifies or completes them) to form infinitive phrases. Infinitive phrases function as a nouns, adjectives, or adverbs as a single, holistic unit.

(In the examples in this section, infinitive phrases have been put in bold, while the infinitive verbs that begin them are in italics.)

Making infinitives negative

To make an infinitive or infinitive phrase negative, we use the word not before the infinitive.

We can also put greater emphasis on not by placing it after to.*

(*This creates what is known as a split infinitive—an infinitive that has an adverb between to and the base form of the verb. While some traditional grammar guides state that this should never be done, in reality there is no such “rule” in English; it is perfectly grammatical to split an infinitive, and in many cases it sounds more natural to do so.)

Infinitives as nouns

Because infinitives and infinitive phrases can function as nouns, it means that they can be the subject of a clause, the direct object of a verb, or a predicate noun.

Subjects

The subject performs, occupies, or controls the action of the verb.

• “To err is human; to forgive is divine.”
• “To study mathematics at Harvard was her ultimate dream.”
• “To live in the city means adjusting to a completely different lifestyle.”

Objects

As direct objects

A direct object is a person or thing that directly receives the action of the verb in a clause. An infinitive that acts as the object of another verb is sometimes known as a verb complement.

Remember that intransitive verbs do not take direct objects, so you will only find infinitives used as the objects of transitive verbs.

• “I’m not going unless you agree to go with me.”
• “You appear to be correct.”
• “Please be quiet; I’m trying to study.”
• “They’re attempting to solve the equation.”
• “Let me know if you decide to leave early.”
• “We hope to go in the near future.”
• “We rarely manage to get out of the house for the night.”

As objects in reported speech

When we use reported speech, we often use infinitives as the direct object of a “reporting verb” to express what was said or asked in the past. For example:

• “He asked to help us fix the car.”
• “She said not to answer the phone.”
• “He demanded to speak to the manager.”
• “They offered to take me to the airport.”
• “I promised to buy her a diamond ring.”
• “He threatened to report me to the police if I didn’t give him back the money.”

As object complements

Certain verbs do not make sense with only a direct object, especially when that direct object is a person. More information is required about the object’s relationship with the verb to form a complete thought. This extra information is known as the object complement.

An infinitive can also act as an object complement, which is word or group of words that describe, rename, or complete the direct object of the verb. For example:

• “I don’t expect you to approve of my decision.”
• “She’s forcing me to work through the weekend.”
• “We need you to make a few more copies.”
• “Janet’s father wants her to go to Harvard.”
• “I would like the boss to see these reports.”
• “He persuaded me to marry him.”
• “They taught me (how) to work the photocopier.”

We often use infinitives as object complements in reported speech to express what someone said to or asked of someone. For example:

• “He asked me to help him.”
• “She told me not to answer the phone.”

Gerunds vs. Infinitives

Certain verbs can take either gerunds or infinitives as direct objects. In some cases, this results in no difference in meaning. For example:

 In other instances, however, the meaning of the clause is significantly changed as a result. For instance, the verbs remember, forget, try, and stop can have both infinitives and gerunds as direct objects, but the meaning changes depending on which is used. For example

 Source:- The Far;ex English Grammar Book By Peter Herring