{"id":176550,"date":"2023-06-03T07:12:45","date_gmt":"2023-06-03T11:12:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/gerunds-and-infinitives\/"},"modified":"2025-01-30T05:28:35","modified_gmt":"2025-01-30T10:28:35","slug":"gerunds-and-infinitives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/english\/gerunds-and-infinitives\/","title":{"rendered":"When to Use Gerunds and Infinitives: 5 Simple Rules for English Learners"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gerunds and infinitives are very common in the English language.\u00a0But how do you know when to use an infinitive and when to use a gerund?<\/p>\n

The five simple rules below are sure to help.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What is an Infinitive and a Gerund?<\/h2>\n

An infinitive<\/strong> is the verb form that has “to” at the beginning. For example, “to do,” “to sleep,” “to love” and “to create.” It is the simplest verb form that you have to modify to fit into sentences.<\/p>\n

For example, “She sleeps” no longer contains the infinitive of the verb “to sleep.” Instead, it has been conjugated into the simple present third person form of the verb “to sleep”: sleeps.<\/p>\n

Infinitives are easy!<\/p>\n

How about gerunds?<\/p>\n

Gerunds<\/strong> are formed by adding “-ing” to the verb: “sleeping,” “drawing,” “swimming.” But they are not the “-ing” verb forms that you see in the present or past continuous tense<\/a>. They look the same, but gerunds are actually verb forms used as\u00a0nouns<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Let’s take the infinitive of the verb “to sleep” and use it in two different sentences:<\/p>\n

I am sleeping<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is the present continuous. “Sleeping” here is part of the verb. It is not a gerund. Here’s the second sentence:<\/p>\n

I don’t like sleeping<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is present simple<\/a>, but it contains a gerund. “Sleeping” is the direct object of this sentence.<\/p>\n

Now that you know the difference between infinitives and gerunds, let’s introduce the rules that will help you use both correctly.<\/p>\n

While the rules below will help you understand how infinitives and gerunds should be used, you should make sure to practice them so you can use them in real life. One easy way to do this is by learning with FluentU<\/a> videos.

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

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You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n \r\n\r\n \"FluentU\r\n

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