El ingls tiene dos tipos de sustantivos verbales, el infinitivo (con o sin "to") y el gerundio (la terminacin -ing).

La mayora de los verbos que toman un sustantivo verbal pueden estar seguidos de uno u otro (un gerundio o un infinitivo, pero no ambos). Sin embargo, existen determinados verbos a los que puede seguirle indistintamente un gerundio o un infinitivo. A ellos nos referiremos aqu...

VERBOS
A algunos verbos puede seguirles el gerundio o el infinitivo y es slo una cuestin de estilo cmo y cundo utilizarlos. Tres de estos verbos son continue (continuar),start (arrancar, comenzar) y begin (comenzar, iniciar). The fans continued to shout / shouting at the referee. Helen started to cough / coughing because of her bad cold. It began to rain / raining. Otros verbos pueden tomar el gerundio o el infinitivo en la mayora de los tiempos verbales (aunque el ingls britnico prefiere el gerundio, el infinitivo es muy comn en ingls americano), pero slo se los usa con el infinitivo cuando se encuentran en condicional. Estos verbos son: hate (odiar, no gustar), love (amar), can't bear (no soportar), like (gustar), dislike (disgustar) y prefer (preferir). I hate talking to her. I like to get up early on Sunday mornings and go riding. ... but: I like getting up early on Sunday mornings to go riding. I couldn't bear to live in that country. I'd prefer to see the manager early tomorrow.

CUANDO EL SIGNIFICADO CAMBIA

Sin embargo, con algunos verbos el significado de las oraciones se altera, si se utilizan gerundios o infinitivos. Es interesante analizarlo:

Remember/Forget (recordar/olvidar)
Con los verbos remember (recordar) y forget (olvidar), el gerundio hace referencia a una accin que ocurri ANTES QUE el hecho de recordar u olvidar. Veamos... I remember giving him the key significa... I remember having given him the key o lo que es lo mismo... I remember the moment in which I gave him the key. I will never forget going water rafting in Africa significa... I will never forget the occasion on which we went water rafting in Africa.

Sin embargo, con remember y forget, el infinitivo hace referencia a una accin queocurri DESPUES QUE surgiera el hecho de recordar u olvidar. Veamos... I remember to feed the cat significa... I remember that it was my responsibility to feed the cat and I fed her. I forgot to post that letter significa... I did not post the letter because I forgot.

Regret (lamentar/se)
El verbo regret (lamentar/se) es similar. La estructura regret + gerund (ing) hace referencia mientras que regret + infinitive se usa para prsentar malas noticias (I regret to say..., I regret to tell you..., I regret to inform you...). Por lo tanto, decimos... I regret telling him the secret significa I regret having told him the secret o lo que es lo mismo I wish I hadn't told him the secret. I regret to say that I just ran over your dog! significa I'm very sorry but I just killed your dog with my car. I regret to inform you that your car is missing significa It is my sad responsibility to inform you that your car is missing.

Stop (dejar de)

La estructura stop + gerund (ing) expresa que se ha interrumpido la accin mencionada en el gerundio. Veamos... You must stop smoking. Sin embargo, stop + infinitive expresa que se interrumpel la actividad que se est realizando para llevar a cabo la actividad mencionada en el infinitivo. Observa... The window-cleaners stopped to smoke. significa They stopped cleaning the windows in order to have a cigarette.

Go on (seguir, continuar)
La estructura go on + gerund expresa lo mismo que continue + gerund/infinitive: He went on talking about himself, even though nobody was listening. Sin embargo, go on + infinitive significa to start something new: He went on to talk about his children significa He was talking about one thing and then he changed the subject and started to talk about his children.

Try (tratar, intentar)

Existe una ligera diferencia entre try + infinitive y try + gerund. La estructura try + infinitive sugiere que la accin del infinitivo es difcil y posiblemente la persona no llegue a realizar la accin: Try to open the window. I can't because I'm not very strong and it has recently been painted. He tried to climb the cliff. Sin embargo, try + gerund sugiere que la accin del gerundio no es compleja pero desconocemos si la consecuenciade esa accin ser lo que buscamos o deseamos. Se utiliza la estructura try + gerund cuando realizamos algo para descubrir cules sern las consecuencias. Observa... A: Phew! It's hot in here! B: Try opening the window. Although it's probably just as hot outside!

Need (necesitar, tener necesidad de)

Con el verbo need, el infinitivo adquiere un significado activo y el gerundio uno pasivo. I need to talk to you significa I must talk to you. My shoes need cleaning significa My shoes need to be cleaned. The car needed servicing significa The car needed to be serviced.

English Grammar - The Gerund

Use -ing form used as a noun Form infinitive + -ing Examples
Going to parties is fun. Gerund is subject I enjoy reading. Gerund is object

Gerund after prepositions (adjectives)

We use the Gerund after prepositions. adjective + preposition We use the Gerund after the following phrases: afraid of angry about/at bad at good at clever at crazy about disappointed about/at excited about famous for fed up with fond of glad about They are afraid of losing the match. Pat is angry about walking in the rain.

John is good at working in the garden.

He is clever at skateboarding. The girl is crazy about playing tennis. He is disappointed about seeing such a bad report. We are excited about making our own film. Sandy is famous for singing songs. I'm fed up with being treated as a child. Hannah is fond of going to parties. She is glad about getting married again.

happy about/at interested in keen on proud of sick of sorry about/for tired of used to worried about

The children are not happy about seeing a doctor. Are you interested in writing poems? Joe is keen on drawing. She is proud of riding a snowboard. We're sick of sitting around like this. He's sorry for eating in the lesson. I'm tired of waiting for you. She is used to smoking. I'm worried about making mistakes.

Gerund after prepositions (nouns)

We use the Gerund after prepositions. noun + preposition We use the Gerund after the following nouns: advantage of chance of choice between danger of difficulty in doubt about hope of What is the advantage of farming over hunting? There's a chance of catching a cold these days. There's a choice between flying to London Heathrow or Stansted. Peggy is in danger of making a mistake. He has difficulty in sending SMS. He is in doubt about buying the correct software for his computer system. There's little hope of catching Schumacher's Ferrari.

idea of interest in method of opportunity of possibility of problem of reason for risk of trouble for way of

I like the idea of setting up a new email account. There's no interest in writing letters. This is a simple method of finding solutions. There's some opportunity of bringing her parents together again. These new wheels offer the possibility of riding tubeless. He has the problem of swimming too slow. There's a real reason for winning the contest. There's a risk of digging too deep. He was in trouble for stealing. This is a new way of building a wall.

Gerund after prepositions (verbs)

We use the Gerund after prepositions. verb + preposition Exception: to Here we use the phrase: looking forward to + Gerund Example: I'm looking forward to seeing you soon. We use the Gerund after the following phrases: accuse of agree with apologize for believe in They were accused of breaking into a shop. I agree with playing darts. They apologize for being late. She doesn't believe in getting lost in the wood.

blame for complain about concentrate on congratulate sb. on cope with decide against depend on dream about/of feel like get used to insist on look forward to prevent sb. from sth. rely on sth. succeed in specialize in stop sb. from talk about/of think of warn sb. against worry about

The reporter is blamed for writing bad stories. She complains about bullying. Do you concentrate on reading or writing? I wanted to congratulate you on making such a good speech. He is not sure how to cope with getting older. They decided against stealing the car. Success may depend on becoming more patient. Sue dreams of being a pop star. They feel like going to bed. You must get used to working long hours. The girls insisted on going out with Mark. I'm looking forward to seeing you soon. How can I prevent Kate from working in this shop? He doesn't rely on winning in the casino. How then can I succeed in learning chemistry? The firm specialized in designing websites. I stopped Andrew from smoking. They often talk about travelling to New Zealand. Frank thinks of playing chess. We warned them against using this computer. The patient worries about having the check-up.

Gerund after special verbs

We use the Gerund after the following verbs: admit avoid carry on consider delay deny dislike can't help enjoy finish give up imagine include involve justify keep (on) mention mind miss practise regret risk suggest He admitted having driven too fast. They avoid going on holiday on Saturdays. If we carry on sleeping so badly, we may need help. Ralph is considering buying a new house. I delayed telling Max the news. She denies reading the book. We dislike reading poems. He couldn't help falling in love with her. I enjoy playing chess. They finished working in the garden. Susan gives up playing ice-hockey. He imagined driving a new car. Your responsibility includes taking reservations on the phone. The project will involve growing plants. I cannot justify paying $100 for this ticket. They keep on running. Did Alex ever mention playing baseball? I don't mind sleeping on the couch. They miss playing with their friends. She practised playing hockey. Do you regret having mentioned it? You risk catching a cold. She suggested flying to Cairo.

Gerund after special phrases

We use the Gerund after the following phrases: to be busy couldn't help don't mind He is busy reading the paper. She couldn't help eating another apple. I don't mind telling them my opinion.

feel like how about it's (no) good it's no use spend one's time there's no there's no point what about worth

We feel like having a cup of tea. How about walking home instead of taking the car? It's no good talking to this girl. It's no use talking to the headmaster. They spend their time reading. There's no cheating anymore. There's no point in complaining further. What about going to the zoo? The book is worth reading.

Gerund after prepositions

We use the Gerund after the following prepositions: after before by in spite of on without After having a shower, I waited for Steven. The tablet must not be taken before getting up in the morning. I manage it by working much longer than 40-hour weeks. In spite of studying a lot he didn't pass the exams. She insisted on calling her sister. He told the joke without laughing.

Gerund or Progressive/Continuous
Both forms end in -ing. Nevertheless it is easy to find out whether it is a Gerund or a Progressive form. Progressive tenses These tenses are formed with von to be and the infinitive + - ing. sentences He is reading a book. He was reading a book. He has been reading a book for three hours. He had been reading a book before Mary came in. He will be reading a book when I get home. He will have been reading a book. tense Present Progressive Past Progressive Present Perfect Progressive Past Perfect Progressive will-future Progressive Future Perfect Progressive

He would be reading a book if he had time. He would have been reading a book if he had had time. A book is being read. A book was being read. Gerund The Gerund is formed only with infinitive + - ing. sentence Reading books is great fun. He likes reading books. He is looking forward to reading books at the weekend. He is keen on reading books. He is used to reading books. What about reading books? He likes the idea of reading books. After reading the book, he went to bed. I remember having read this book. - Passiv

Conditional Progressive Conditional Perfect Progressive Present Progressive - Passive Past Progressive - Passive

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