Differences in Use After Certain Verbs | English Grammar Guide for French Students

• 1 Certain verbs require specific forms after them
• 2 Patterns must be memorized for each verb
• 3 Changing the pattern can alter the meaning
• 4 Some verbs can take both forms with different meanings

1 Decide: "I decided to go to the cinema"
2 Plan: "They planned to visit Paris"
3 Want: "She wants to learn French"
4 Hope: "I hope to succeed"

1 Promise: "He promised to help us"
2 Refuse: "She refused to answer the question"
3 Offer: "They offered to pay for the meal"
4 Agree: "We agreed to meet tomorrow"

1 Enjoy: "I enjoy reading novels"
2 Love: "She loves dancing"
3 Hate: "He hates waiting in lines"
4 Like: "They like playing football"

1 Avoid: "Try to avoid making mistakes"
2 Finish: "Have you finished writing the report?"
3 Consider: "I'm considering moving to London"
4 Suggest: "She suggested going to the museum"

1 Start: "I started to read" OR "I started reading"
2 Begin: "She began to cry" OR "She began crying"
3 Continue: "He continued to work" OR "He continued working"
4 Like: "I like to swim" OR "I like swimming"

1 Remember: "I remember to do it" (remember to do in future) vs "I remember doing it" (remember past action)
2 Forget: "I forgot to do it" (forgot to do) vs "I forgot doing it" (forgot past action)
3 Stop: "I stopped to smoke" (stopped in order to smoke) vs "I stopped smoking" (quit smoking)
4 Try: "I tried to open it" (attempted) vs "I tried opening it" (experimented)

Pattern Type	Verbs	Example	Meaning
Infinitive only	decide, plan, promise, refuse, offer	"I decided to go"	Future intention
Gerund only	enjoy, avoid, finish, consider, suggest	"I enjoy reading"	Present/habitual action
Both (similar meaning)	start, begin, continue, like	"I started to read/reading"	Beginning of action
Both (different meaning)	remember, forget, stop, try	"Remember to do" vs "Remember doing"	Different timing/aspect

1 Look forward to: Always takes gerund: "I look forward to seeing you"
2 Put off: Takes gerund: "I put off calling him"
3 Give up: Takes gerund: "She gave up smoking"
4 Carry on: Takes gerund: "He carried on working"

1 Perfect infinitive: "I expected to have finished"
2 Perfect gerund: "I regret having said that"
3 Passive infinitive: "I want to be invited"
4 Passive gerund: "I don't mind being criticized"

• 1 Using gerund after verbs that require infinitive: "I decided going" (incorrect)
• 2 Using infinitive after verbs that require gerund: "I enjoy to swim" (incorrect)
• 3 Not recognizing when meaning changes: "I stopped to smoke" vs "I stopped smoking"
• 4 Confusing similar verbs with different patterns

1 ✓ Correct: "I decided to go"
2 ✗ Incorrect: "I decided going"
3 ✓ Correct: "I enjoy swimming"
4 ✗ Incorrect: "I enjoy to swim"

1. I want _______ (to go/go) to the cinema tonight.

2. She promised _______ (to help/help) with the project.

3. They plan _______ (to visit/visit) their grandparents next week.

4. He refused _______ (to answer/answer) the difficult question.

5. We decided _______ (to start/start) the meeting early.

6. I enjoy _______ (swimming/swim) in the ocean.

7. She avoids _______ (eating/eat) spicy food.

8. They finished _______ (cleaning/clean) the house.

9. He considers _______ (changing/change) his job.

10. We suggest _______ (taking/take) a break now.

11. I started _______ (to work/work) on this project yesterday.

12. She began _______ (to sing/sing) when she was five years old.

13. He likes _______ (to read/read) mystery novels.

14. They continued _______ (to discuss/discuss) the issue.

15. I love _______ (to travel/travel) to new places.

1 Remember to do: Remember a future obligation: "Remember to lock the door"

2 Remember doing: Remember a past action: "I remember locking the door"

3 Forget to do: Forget a future task: "I forgot to buy milk"

4 Forget doing: Forget a past action: "I forgot buying milk"

5 Stop to do: Stop in order to do something: "He stopped to rest"

6 Stop doing: Cease doing something: "He stopped smoking"

7 Try to do: Attempt to do: "Try to be quiet"

8 Try doing: Experiment with: "Try drinking hot tea"

1 English: Uses specific patterns for infinitive vs gerund after verbs
2 French: Uses infinitive after most verbs (je veux partir, j'aime partir)
3 English: Distinction between "remember to do" and "remember doing"
4 French: Different constructions but similar meaning distinctions

• 1 English has more complex patterns than French for verb + verb combinations
• 2 Pay attention to meaning changes with "remember", "forget", "stop", "try"
• 3 Some French verbs that use infinitive require gerund in English
• 4 Practice memorizing patterns for each specific English verb

1 Group by meaning: Verbs of intention (infinitive), verbs of experience (gerund)
2 Create associations: "Decision verbs need future form (infinitive)"
3 Remember meaning differences: "To do" = future, "Doing" = past experience
4 Practice with real examples: Use verbs in actual sentences daily

• 1 Create flashcards with verb + pattern
• 2 Practice with real-life scenarios
• 3 Read English texts to see natural usage patterns
• 4 Focus on verbs that change meaning with different forms

• Some verbs take only infinitive (to + base verb)
• Some verbs take only gerund (-ing form)
• Some verbs take both forms with similar meanings
• Some verbs take both forms with different meanings
• Patterns must be memorized for each specific verb

Remember: Decision verbs take infinitive, experience verbs take gerund!

• Start with the most common verbs
• Focus on meaning differences first
• Practice with real-life examples