Gerunds and infinitives: enjoy doing or decide to do? Gerund and infinitive exercises: -ing or to?

This B1 drill lesson gives gerund and infinitive exercises: which verbs take -ing and which take to, -ing after prepositions and as a subject, and stop, remember, forget and try.

Grammar: Verb + -ing (enjoy, avoid, suggest, mind), verb + to (decide, refuse, afford, would like), both (like, start), preposition + -ing, adjective + to, and not before to.
Topic: Tiny Wins, an invented self-improvement podcast: an episode page with a nurse who kept saying “tomorrow”, the show notes, a listener's email, the newsletter and a chat with Lucinda.
Activities: True or false, sorting, choices, gap-fills, matching, drag-and-drop, word order, tables, quizzes, an anagram, a memory game and a chat.

What's inside

Chapter 1The rule
- PictureUnlock
- Study the scheme: gerunds and infinitivesGrammar schemeTry it
- Is the sentence correct? Mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Sort the verbs: -ing, to or both?Sort into columnsTry it
- Choose the right formChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: verb-ing or to + verbFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 2Enjoy doing, decide to do
- Choose the right form after the verbChoose the optionTry it
- Fill in the gaps: the right form of the verbFill in the gapsUnlock
- Match the situations and the sentencesMatchUnlock
- Drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right wordsQuizUnlock
- Read Wilfred's message and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 3Good at it, easy to use
- Choose the right form after the prepositionChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: after a prepositionFill in the gapsTry it
- Sort the phrases: -ing or to + verb?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Drag the words into the gaps: adjectives and prepositionsDrag and dropUnlock
- Fill in the table: -ing as the subjectFill in the tableUnlock
- Put the words in order: prepositions and adjectivesUnjumbleUnlock
- Read the job ad and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 4Stop, remember, forget, try
- Match the sentences and their meaningsMatchTry it
- Choose the right form: stop, remember, forget, tryChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: stop, remember, forget, tryFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read and choose the right answerQuizUnlock
- Read Kalinda's blog post and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: stop, remember, tryUnjumbleUnlock
- Choose the right form: everything togetherChoose the optionUnlock
Chapter 5Real life: The queen of tomorrow
- Read the podcast episode pageReal-life documentUnlock
- Read the episode page again: true or false?True or falseUnlock
- Read the show notes and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Kwabena's email and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Read Lachlan's newsletter and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Choose the right replies: Lucinda texts youChatTry it
- Test yourself: choose the right answerQuizUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Choose the right form: at workChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: family and homeFill in the gapsUnlock
- Sort the words: verb-ing or to + verb?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: -ing and toUnjumbleUnlock
- Match the beginnings and the endingsMatchUnlock
- Fill in the table: use the verb in bracketsFill in the tableUnlock
- Choose the right words: memories and plansChoose the optionUnlock
- Unscramble the verbsAnagramUnlock
- Find the mistake in each sentenceQuizUnlock
- Drag the words into the gaps: free timeDrag and dropUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: after prepositions and adjectivesFill in the gapsUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: same meaningMemory gameUnlock
- Read Jadwiga's email and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Sunil's review and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Choose the correct sentenceQuizUnlock

Grammar: gerunds and infinitives: -ing or to + verb?

Some verbs take -ing (a gerund), some take to + verb (an infinitive), and a few change their meaning with each: I stopped smoking isn't I stopped to smoke. Prepositions, adjectives and sentence subjects have patterns of their own.

Verb-ing or to + verb?

Some words take verb-ing (a gerund), some take to + verb (an infinitive), and a few change their meaning.

Verb + -ing or verb + to?

Enjoy, avoid, suggest, mind and keep take -ing: She suggested taking a taxi. Decide, hope, refuse, afford and would like take to: We decided to stay. Like, love and start take both, with the same meaning.

After these verbs	Use	Examples
enjoy, avoid, suggest, consider, keep, mind, finish, practice, imagine, miss, recommend, give up	verb-ing	I enjoy cooking. She suggested taking a taxi.
decide, hope, refuse, promise, manage, afford, agree, offer, plan, want, learn, seem, pretend, expect	to + verb	We decided to stay. I can't afford to buy it.
would like, would love, would prefer	to + verb	I'd like to come. (Not: I'd like coming.)
like, love, hate, prefer, start, begin, continue	both, with the same meaning	I love swimming. = I love to swim.

After a preposition: always -ing

Good at, interested in, tired of, thanks for, without and feel like all take -ing. In look forward to, to is a preposition: I look forward to seeing you.

good at / bad at: She's good at drawing.
interested in: I'm interested in learning Spanish.
afraid of / tired of: I'm tired of waiting.
about: I'm worried about losing it. How about ordering pizza?
for: Thanks for helping me!
before / after / without / instead of / by: Wash your hands before eating.
feel like: I don't feel like cooking tonight.
look forward to (here, to is a preposition!): I look forward to seeing you.

Adjective + to, and -ing as the subject

Adjectives like easy, ready and important take to + verb: This app is easy to use. As the subject of a sentence, the verb takes -ing and works like a noun: Walking is good for you.

adjective + to + verb

easy, hard, ready, surprised, glad, happy, safe, important
This app is easy to use.
I'm ready to leave.
It's important to drink water.

verb-ing as the subject

the -ing form works like a noun
Walking is good for you.
Learning a language takes time.
It's hard to say no. = Saying no is hard.

Stop, remember, forget, try

The meaning changes: I stopped eating meat (not anymore), we stopped to buy gas (why we stopped); I remember meeting her (a memory), Remember to buy milk (a job); I tried drinking tea (a test), I'm trying to fix it (an effort).

Verb	+ verb-ing	+ to + verb
stop	not do it anymore: I stopped eating meat.	stop to do something else: On the way, we stopped to buy gas.
remember	a memory of the past: I remember meeting her.	a job, don't forget it: Remember to buy milk.
forget	a memory, mostly with never: I'll never forget seeing the ocean.	a job you didn't do: I forgot to call Mom.
try	do it as a test: did it help? I tried drinking tea. It didn't help.	make an effort, it's hard: I'm trying to fix it.

Two small rules and common mistakes

Not goes before to or -ing: I promised not to tell anyone. Learners often write I suggest to go home, I'm interested in to learn, I look forward to see you and I stopped to smoke last year.

Two small rules

Not goes before to or -ing: I promised not to tell anyone. Thanks for not calling so late. Would like / would love / would prefer take only to: I'd love to come! (Not: I'd love coming.) Like, love, hate and prefer alone take both: I like to cook. = I like cooking.

Common mistakes

I suggest to go home.
I suggest going home.
suggest + -ing
I'm interested in to learn.
I'm interested in learning.
after a preposition: -ing
I look forward to see you.
I look forward to seeing you.
to is a preposition here
I stopped to smoke last year.
I stopped smoking last year.
stop + -ing = not anymore

Examples

I avoid checking my email before ten.verb + -ing
She promised to help me.verb + to
We're thinking about moving.preposition + -ing
I stopped to talk to Ana. (I talked to her.)stop + to: why you stopped
I stopped talking to Ana. (We don't talk now.)stop + -ing: not anymore
We decided not to go.not before to

More lessons on this grammar: Gerunds and infinitives lessons and exercises

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What's in the lesson

40 auto-checked exercises
6 games
1 real-life document
1 grammar scheme
1 picture

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

use -ing after enjoy, avoid, suggest and mind: Sam suggested having a picnic on Sunday, not suggested to have
use to after decide, refuse, afford and would like: We can't afford to buy a bigger house.
put -ing after every preposition, even the to of look forward to: I'm looking forward to seeing you.
tell stop, remember, forget and try apart: Jen stopped drinking coffee (not now) and Jen stopped to drink a coffee (a break)
use -ing as a subject and to after adjectives: Walking every day is good for you. These instructions are easy to follow.

Grammar:: gerund · infinitive · verb + -ing · verb + to · preposition + -ing · stop / remember / try
Topic:: grammar practice · habits · self-improvement · podcast · free time

Teaching tips

Try a two-minute start in class: like Ezinne, each student works for two minutes on a task they keep putting off, then reports what they decided to do and what they avoided doing.
Sort verb cards on the board: hand out cards (enjoy, refuse, afford, mind, like), students stick each under -ing, to or both, then say a true sentence with it.
Mime stop doing and stop to do: one student walks and stops to tie a shoe, another acts out giving up a habit, and the class describes each with the right form.

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