Real Grammar - Susan Conrad, Douglas Biber 2009

Verb + Infinitive
Unit 33 She seemed to like him a lot

What have you learned from your grammar textbook?

Some verbs can be followed by (1) a gerund. Other verbs can be followed by (2) an infinitive, or

(3) a noun phrase + infinitive. Finally, some verbs can be followed by (4) either a gerund or an infinitive.

1. I enjoy playing soccer.

2. Sara decided to play badminton.

3. Sara asked Doug to play badminton.

4. Kate likes playing/to play tennis.

What does the corpus show?

A

Overall, verb + infinitive combinations are more common than verb + gerund combinations. (See Unit 34 for verb + gerund combinations.)

B

Although many verbs can be followed by an infinitive, with or without a noun phrase (NP), only a few verbs are very common with an infinitive. When we consider both conversation and writing, the most common verbs fall into four categories of meaning:

Be careful! The verbs in the “want or need” category are very common only in conversation. They are rarely used in academic writing. The other categories are used in both conversation and writing.

C

In conversation, four of the verb + infinitive combinations that were covered in Section В are especially common:

• want + infinitive is extremely common. It is often pronounced as one word: “wanna.”

• like, try, and seem + infinitive are also very common.

D

In conversation, try and is sometimes used as an alternative to try to. It is often used when the verb try is an infinitive:

• We want to try and find a copy of that magazine. [= We want to try to find a copy ...]

• You don’t have to try and cook everything in under ten minutes. [=You don’t have to try to cook ...]

E

In academic writing, no single verb + infinitive combination is very common. In addition to the verbs in Section B, five other verbs are relatively common. They fall into two meaning categories:

Activities

1 Notice in context: Read the conversation and the newspaper paragraph, underline the verb + infinitive combinations.

1. Conversation: Talking about Diana’s four-year-old daughter, Amanda.

Diana: I realized today that I nag Amanda too much. She takes forever for everything. Like getting dressed.

Joan: What do you say to her?

Diana: I just sort of try and bring her attention back to the task. But now I’m thinking to myself, I don’t think I should say anything. ’Cause she knows what she needs to do.

Joan: She can put on her own clothes, right?

Diana: Yeah, but she’s slow. I want to get ready to go out, and she’ll start to get dressed, and then she’ll get distracted and start playing, and I’ll be like, okay, now you need to put your pants on.

2. Newspaper writing: From an article about lead-based paint as a health hazard for children.

The primary source of lead exposure for children remains old, lead-based paint. Lead in paint made it more durable, but due to health concerns, manufacturers began to reduce lead as long ago as 1940. Lead in paint was finally banned in 1978. Doctors say children should be tested for lead poisoning first when they are about a year old, and then once or twice thereafter. If a child appears to have lead poisoning, it may be time to have the home checked as well.

2 Analyze and edit: Each of the following sentences has a verb + infinitive combination that is typical of conversation rather than writing. Change the verb or entire combination to one that is more typical of writing using the meaning category in parentheses. Cross out the original combination and write the new one above it.

2. Some employers will not want you to share your workload officially, but may be open to revising your job description to fit in with the company’s needs. (allow)

3. In research studies, some people will not give personal information, or they don’t even try and cooperate with the researchers. (effort)

4. In a study, Americans hoped to have the use of food stamps rather than policies for a guaranteed minimum income for all people. (report research findings)

5. For the first time last fall, all freshmen needed to take algebra. (allow)

6. Individual schools and determined teachers in the privacy of their own classrooms wanna violate numerous regulations and traditions. (effort, with success)

3 Analyze discourse: Read through (1) a newspaper article, (2) a page in a novel, and (3) a page in a textbook. List the verb + infinitive combinations you find in each reading. What meaning categories do they fall into? How do the verbs and categories differ among the newspaper, novel, and textbook? Share your findings with a partner.

4 Practice conversation: Write a conversation between two friends who want to study together after class. Use verb + infinitive combinations that are common in conversation. When you are finished, practice your conversation with a partner.

Scene: A has a check to deposit at the bank and would enjoy eating an ice cream cone. B’s mother asked her to go grocery shopping, and she also has nothing suitable to wear for her job interview tomorrow.

A: So, what do you have to do before our study date?

В: I need to do some grocery shopping for my mom...

A: ...

B: ...

5 Practice writing: Below are sentences from three different types of writing. Create a paragraph for each one, including at least two verb + infinitive combinations most likely to appear in each type of writing. Write your paragraphs on a separate piece of paper.

1. Newspaper writing: Thick fog covered the city early today, cutting visibility during morning rush-hour traffic.

2. Fiction writing: My grandson was staring at me, and it occurred to me he was about to burst into tears or else run out of the room.

3. Academic writing: Scientists have found a way to help night shift workers get a decent day’s sleep.