English Grammar Drills - Mark Lester 2009
Infinitives and infinitive phrases
6 Gerunds and Infinitives
Part 1 Noun Phrases
Infinitive and infinitive phrases are generally quite similar to gerunds and gerund phrases. Most of the description of gerunds and gerund phrases will apply to infinitive and infinitive phrases.
Infinitives consist of to + the base or dictionary form of the verb. For example:
to be
to go
to have
Infinitives can be used in many ways, but in this chapter we are only concerned with infinitives used as nouns.
An infinitive phrase is an infinitive together with all of its modifiers and/or complements. The difference between an infinitive and an infinitive phrase is exactly the same as the difference between a noun and a noun phrase. For example, compare the following pairs of infinitives and infinitive phrases used as objects. The infinitives are in italics, and the entire infinitive phrase is underlined.
We all need to sleep.
We all need to sleep for a few hours.
We want to finish.
We want to finish this job as soon as we can.
They expected to win.
They expected to win the game easily.
From now on we will use the term infinitive phrase for infinitives with or without modifiers and/or complements. Infinitive phrases can play three of the basic four noun roles: subjects, objects of verbs, and predicate nominatives. Unlike gerund phrases, infinitive phrases cannot be objects of prepositions. Here are some examples of infinitive phrases as subject, object of a verb, and predicate nominative:
Subject
To give up so easily would be a terrible thing to do.
To do our very best is all that anybody could ask of us.
To learn Chinese characters takes years.
Object of verb
We need to get some more help.
They expected to be in Dallas by noon today.
The office tried to reach him by voice mail.
Predicate nominative (complement of a linking verb)
The idea is to arrange a surprise party for Susan next week.
Our goal for this year was to increase our sales by ten percent.
The driver’s responsibility is to get all of the guests from the airport to the hotel.
As is the case with gerund phrases, infinitive phrases are a category of noun phrases. Since infinitive phrases are nonhuman and always singular, infinitive phrases can always be replaced by it. Here are examples of infinitive phrases in all three noun roles, subject, object of a verb, and predicate nominative, followed by the it substitution.
Exercise 6.4
Underline the infinitive phrases in the following sentences. Confirm your answers by replacing each infinitive phrase with it.
1. Our original plan was to go to the play after having dinner in town.
2. We wanted to get an apartment somewhere in easy commuting distance.
3. To operate heavy equipment requires a special license.
4. They decided to enroll in a gym or health club.
5. The lawyer’s advice was to get out of the contract any way we could.
6. To teach math in middle schools requires a special kind of person.
7. Our assignment was to analyze the financial status of a small business.
8. To assume that you know what is going on may be a big mistake.
9. Our decision was to fight against the zoning change.
10. To permit such dangerous behavior is really asking for trouble.
11. I didn’t want to stop for lunch because I had so much work.
12. To give up so easily would be a sure sign of weakness.
13. The plan was to make them an offer they couldn’t refuse.
14. After the long flight, we really needed to stretch our legs.
15. We didn’t want to think about all the awful things that could happen.
16. To receive this award from you is a great honor and privilege.
17. After much debate, the final decision was to add three new positions.
18. You will need to take a full load next semester.
19. I wanted to believe that they were telling us the truth.
20. To err is human, to forgive is divine.
Infinitive phrases differ from gerund phrases in one respect. English speakers often prefer to move longer infinitive phrases to the end of the sentence, putting an it in the subject position to act as a placeholder or marker. This use of it is called a “dummy” or “empty” it because it does not actually refer to anything outside the sentence. For example, consider the following sentence with an infinitive phrase in the subject position:
To turn down such a good opportunity didn’t make economic sense.
We could shift the infinitive phrase to the end of the sentence and put a dummy it in the position vacated by the infinitive phrase:
It didn’t make economic sense to turn down such a good opportunity.
Here are some examples of subject infinitive phrases shifted to the end of the sentence and replaced by dummy it.
Original: To drive on the left side of the road was a strange experience.
Shifted: It was a strange experience to drive on the left side of the road.
Original: To do it the right way would cost more than we could afford.
Shifted: It would cost more than we could afford to do it the right way.
Original: To insist on a down payment seemed perfectly fair to me.
Shifted: It seemed perfectly fair to me to insist on a down payment.
Exercise 6.5
Underline the infinitive phrases in the following sentences. Then shift the phrases to the end of the sentence, using a dummy it in the subject position.
To complete our research on time was important for the project.
It was important for the project to complete our research on time.
1. To get finished on time was a great feeling.
2. To unite the voters behind his candidacy was Senator Blather’s goal.
3. To miss three meetings in a row was totally out of character.
4. To make the criminals pay for their crimes was of utmost importance.
5. To cut too many corners was just asking for trouble.
6. To begin eating while the hostess was in the kitchen seemed terribly rude.
7. To meet all the course prerequisites is the responsibility of every applicant.
8. To see the landscape with fresh eyes is the gift of a great painter.
9. To enforce the laws is the first obligation of a policeman.
10. To get a clear picture of what was going on seemed necessary.