Unit 35 The Infinitive, the Gerund and the Participle.

Uses and Functions

1. Introduction
2. A Theoretical Framework for the Infinitive, the -ing Form and the Participle
2.1. Linguistic Levels Involved
2.2. Phrase, Sentence and Clause Structure
2.3. The Clause Structure: Finite vs. Non-Finite Forms
2.4. Grammar Categories Involved: Open vs. Closed Classes
3. Main Structural Features: Form, Main Uses and Functions
3.1. The Infinitive
3.1.1.The Infinitive: Main Forms
3.1.2.The Infinitive: Main Uses
3.1.3.The Infinitive: Main Functions
3.2. The -ing Form
3.2.1.“Gerund” vs. “Present Participle”
3.2.2.The -ing Form
3.2.3.The -ing: Main Uses
3.2.4.The -ing: Main Functions
3.3. The Infinitive vs. The -ing Form
3.4. The Past Participle
3.4.1.The Past Participle: Main Forms
3.4.2.The Past Participle: Main Uses
3.4.3.The Past Participle: Main Functions
4. Educational Implications
5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography

1. Introduction
This Unit is primarily aimed to examine in English the three non-finite forms: the infinitive, the -ing
form and the past participle in terms of their main structural features regarding form, uses and
function to provide a relevant and detailed account of this issue.
The study will be divided into six chapters. Chapter 2 provides a theoretical framework for the
infinitive, the -ing form and the past participle by answering questions such as, first, which
linguistic levels are involved; second, What is a phrase, sentence and clause structure in terms of
linguistic units; third, within the clause structure, Which are finite vs. non-finite forms; and finally,
Which grammar categories are involved in their description in clause structure: finite vs. non-finite
forms.
Chapter 3 will offer a general introduction to these three non-finite forms with respect to their main
structural features. They will be analysed in terms of form, main uses and functions, following
morphological, phonological, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic guidelines.
Chapter 4 provides an educational framework for the teaching of the infinitive, the gerund and the
participles within the curriculum.
Chapter 5 draws on a summary of all the points involved in this study. Finally, in Chapter 6
bibliography will be listed.
 2. A Theoretical Framework for the Infinitive, the -ing Form and the Participle
This theoretical chapter provides a framework for the infinitive, the -ing form and the past participle
by answering questions such as, first, which linguistic levels are involved; second, What functions
they have in a phrase, sentence and clause structure in terms of linguistic units; third, Which
grammar categories are involved in their description in clause structure: finite vs. non-finite forms.
2.1. Linguistic Levels Involved
The usual description of a language comprises four major components: phonology, grammar,
lexicon, and semantics, out of which we get five major levels: phonological, morphological and
syntactic, lexical and semantic
First, the phonology describes the sound level, that is, how to pronounce the “to” on the infinitive,
the -ing forms and the -ed participles (ex: the weak form of “to” in “You have to go” or strong in “To
go on holidays is fantastic).
Second, the morphological level (ex: infinitive formation) and the syntactic level (where to place
these three forms in a sentence).
Third, the lexical level lists vocabulary items which, for our purposes, are lists of verbs (infinitives,
gerunds and participles).
Semantics is the dimension to which all four of the major components are related. A linguistic
description which ignores meaning is incomplete, and in particular, when dealing with non-finite
forms. It is the field of semantics which establishes the differences between the use of infinitive
and the use of gerund or participle after certain verbs where syntactic and morphological levels do
not tell the difference.
2.2. Phrase, Sentence and Clause Structure
The distinction between phrase, sentence and clause structure at a functional level is relevant for
our study since the infinitive, gerund and participles will be related to them as constituents, that is,
as elements or grammatical categories into which a sentence can be segmented and which play a
role in large syntactic structures (phrases, sentences and clauses).
The Phrase Structure
The phrase structure is defined as a constituent which can be identified on the basis of the word
class membership of at least one of its constituent words which is called the “head” of the phrase.
The other elements show a relation of dependency or subordination to the head (determiners;
modifiers).
However, the factors which determine which of the words of the phrase constitutes its principal
part are not the same for all five phrase types. Thus, in three types, the noun, adjective and
adverb phrase, the dominant element is that which can replace the whole phrase without affecting
the structure of the sentence (ex: We like medieval stories = we like stories). A fourth type of
phrase, the verb phrase, differs from the former in that the essential element, mainly from
semantic considerations, cannot replace the whole phrase without causing serious harm to
syntactic structure (ex; John has phoned Christine vs. John phone Christine).
The fifth type of phrase, the prepositional phrase, differs from the rest in that the element that
gives its name to the phrase cannot be called its head since it cannot replace the whole phrase
and it has a function of government.
Regarding the participation of infinitive and -ing forms in phrase structures, we find them in (1)
noun phrases as premodifiers (ex: a passing car) as well as postmodifiers (ex: We have
something to do); (2) in adjective phrases when the adjective is followed by an infinitive clause (ex:
a man easy to persuade); (3) adverb phrases (ex: He behaved so strangely as to frighten
everybody); and (4) prepositional phrases (ex: He is very good at playing cards)
Sentence vs. Clause Structure
The sentence is actually identifiable on the basis of the relations holding among its immediate
constituents (subject, predicate, direct/indirect object, complement, adverbial and so on).
Once assumed that the sentence is the largest unit of grammatical description and that it does not
function in the structure of a unit higher than itself, we are ready to understand the duality
sentence vs. clause by means of two further possibilities. First, when a sentence functions in the
structure of another sentence of the same rank (ex: I believe that he is quite loyal); and secondly,
when a sentence functions in the structure of a phrase, that is in the structure of a unit lower than
itself (ex: as postmodifier: the man that came yesterday was a politician).
Hence, when sentences are embedded in the structure of other sentences or in the structure of
phrases, we call them “clauses”, which usually corresponds to the notions of “subordination” (or
embedding) and “coordination”.
2.3. The Clause Structure: Finite vs. Non-Finite Forms
To examine the clause structure at sentence level, finite vs. non-finite clauses, we must examine
their main differences in terms of morphology and main syntactic functions.
Firstly(1), in morphological terms, finite clauses contain a finite verb phrase which is formed by an
only word capable of showing tense, mood, aspect and voice. If this verb is not first in a sequence
of more verbs, this would be non-finite (ex: He is always laughing).
Non-finite clauses contain a non-finite verb phrase realized by an infinitive, with or without “to”, an
-ing participle or an -ed participle. Any clause in which one of these verb forms is the first or only
word is a non-finite form. Alike finite verb clauses, non-finite forms do not normally occur as the
verb phrase of an independent clause. For instance, “To dance like that deserves an award”.
Secondly (2), regarding their main syntactic functions, which is the core of our study, their main
differences are, first, that finite verb forms can occur as the verb phrase of independent clauses
because they always contain a subject and predicate, except in the case of commands and
ellipsis. The base form, which has no inflection, is sometimes finite (ex: You go to school
everyday) when it takes first position in predication, and sometimes non-finite (ex: You have gone
to school twice today) when it takes second position.
The four classes of non-finite verb phrase serve to distinguish four classes of non-finite clauses:
(1) the bare infinitive; (2) the to-infinitive; (3) the -ing participle (living) as a non-finite verb in (a) the
progressive aspect following “be” and (b) in -ing participle clauses (ex: Calling early, I found her in
the office); and (4) the -ed participle as a non-finite verb in (a) the present perfect following “have”,
(b) the passive voice following “be” and (c) -ed participle clauses (ex: Called early, he took a hot
bath).
2.4. Grammar Categories Involved: Open vs. Closed Classes
In order to confine the non-finite forms to particular grammatical categories, we must review first
the difference between open and closed classes. The open classes are verbs, nouns, adjectives
and adverbs, and are said to be unrestricted since they allow the addition of new members to their
membership, whereas the closed classes are the rest: prepositions, conjunctions, articles
(definite and indefinite), numerals, pronouns, quantifiers, and interjections, which belong to a
restricted class since they do not allow the creation of new members. As we will see, when taking
non-finite forms to sentence level, we are dealing with open word classes, since we are dealing
with lists of verbs in the bare infinitive, the -ing participle in noun phrase structures (ex: The driving
was no good at all) and adjectival structures (ex: That terrifying accident happened yesterday) or
(ex: An infuriated woman called the police).

3. Main Structural Features: Form, Main Uses and Functions

This chapter will offer a general introduction to these three non-finite forms with respect to their
main structural features. They will be analysed in terms of form, main uses and functions, following
morphological, phonological, syntactic, semantic and pragmatic guidelines.

3.1. The Infinitive

3.1.1. The Infinitive: Main Forms

The infinitive may take two main forms: the infinitive with “to” (full infinitive) and the infinitive
without “to” (bare infinitive).

The Infinitive with “to”

It is formed by the preposition (called proclitic particle) “to” + the base form of the verb. Other
frequent structures are “so as/in order + to” in assertive contexts; in non-assertive contexts the
structure is “not + full infinitive”. It is usually pronounced with the weak form /t+ schwa/ but I short
answers we find the strong form /tu:/.

The infinitive form may be classified into “simple infinitive” and “complex infinitive. It is within the
various types of full infinitive forms that we find the presence of finite forms features like aspect
(present or progressive) and voice (active or passive). The “simple infinitive” includes “present
infinitive” (to write), “present continuous infinitive” (to be writing), “present infinitive passive” (to be
written) and “present continuous passive” (to be being written). The “complex infinitive” includes all
the perfect forms like “the perfect infinitive” (to have written), “the perfect continuous infinitive” (to
have being written), “the perfect infinitive passive” (to have been written) and “the perfect
continuous passive” (to have been being written).

The full infinitive may appear with or without a subject, where the latter is the most common one
since no elements are introduced between “to” and the verb except within the structure: “for +
subject (usually object pronouns) + full infinitive” (ex: the best thing would be for her to tell the
truth). Constructions such as “split infinitives” where emphatic elements (usually degree adverbs)
are placed after the “to” in colloquial English (ex: It would take ages to really solve the mystery).

The Infinitive without “to”

The “bare infinitive is represented by the base form of the verb. Because of its simple structure, it
is often connected syntactically with certain elements to form a complete unit, for instance, with
auxiliary verbs (both primary and modals), idiomatic expressions (had better, would rather) and
certain constructions (make/let + pronoun + bare infinitive). The bare infinitive and these structures
also form a unit in phonological terms, that is, regarding accent, stress and intonation within the
speech chain, particularly when emphasis falls on the bare infinitive for the sake of clarity (ex: I
said you must read it, not write it).

3.1.2. The Infinitive: Main Uses

The infinitive may be used in certain contexts where meaning has much to say where form and
function cannot tell the difference, for instance, “I like getting unexpected invitations” and “I like to
get unexpected invitations”. There is a subtle difference in meaning that the student may not grasp
at once, the former means “I enjoy unexpected invitations” whereas the latter means “I want/wish
unexpected invitations”. So, let us examine the different uses of both infinitives in everyday
speech.
The Infinitive with “to”

According to Thomson & Martinet the infinitive with “to” is used:

(1) As a noun: at the beginning of a sentence functioning as a subject (ex: To stop smoking is
almost impossible) or in exclamatory sentences (ex: Wow! To be on holidays again!) as the
object or part of the object of a verb in predicative position (ex: He wants to drink a cola), as
the complement of a verb in predicative position, usually after “be, become, seem”, (ex: His
main goal is to pass the exam), after interrogative pronouns functioning as a subordinate
noun phrase (ex: how/where/when + to know) as in “I know where to find him”.
(2) As a modifier: after certain nouns or indefinite pronouns (ex: a book to read), after certain
adjectives (ex: easy to understand). In the case the verb is formed with a particle, this is
placed at the end of the phrase (ex: It was nice to look at).
(3) To express purpose or result as predicator complement in adverbial clauses (ex: He drove
so fast to arrive on time); to express commands or instructions (ex: No one is to leave this
building); to express purpose (ex: I’ve come to stay). In this case, it may be substituted by
other frequent constructions such as “so as/in order + (not) to”
(4) To join two clauses (ex: He hurried to my house only to find that it was empty)
(5) To replace relative clauses (ex: He is always the first to come)
(6) After certain verbs: “be, become, seem” (ex: He seems to be tired); after some semi-
auxiliaries (be able to, be about to, be going to, have to, etc); some catenative verbs (start +
working/to work); some modal idioms (have got to, be to); and after certain verbs which
express volition, cognition, perception, and so on. They must be followed by the full
infinitive (ex: afford, aim, allow, arrange, decide, expect, hope, manage, swear, tend,
promise, and so on).
(7) Within certain constructions such as: “too/enough + adjective/adverb + full infinitive” (ex: It
is too dark to see); “verb + accusative/pronoun + full infinitive” (ex: I want him to come
back).
(8) As part of idiomatic expressions (ex: To tell you the truth; to be honest)

The Infinitive without “to”

According to Thomson & Martinet the bare infinitive is used:

(1) In certain types of sentences where the subject is a whole sentence (ex: What you’ve done
is (to) spoil everything); some interrogative sentences which express surprise or doubt (ex:
Help them? Never in my life); in interrogative sentences which begin with “why” or “why not”
(ex: Why wait for them?
(2) After certain verbs: after auxiliary modal verbs and semi-auxiliaries (have to); with verbs of
perception such as “hear, see, watch, feel, and so on” (ex: I saw him enter) when the action
is done and completed (in opposition to “I saw him walking” where the action was taking
place). However, in the passive voice these verbs are used with “to-infinitive” constructions
(ex: He was seen to enter). The modal idioms (had better/would rather); and modal auxiliary
marginal verbs (dare, need, etc), however, in the passive they take the “to-infinitive” (ex: He
was dared to fight); with some other verbs, for instance, verb + noun/pronoun + bare
infinitive (make/let); and with the verb “help” (ex: I helped him cut the grass) although
sometimes it takes the “to-infinitive” (ex: He helped me to do my homework).

3.1.3. The Infinitive: Main Functions

With respect to the functions that infinitive forms may carry out, Aarts states that “with the
exception of the indirect object, sentence functions can be realized by both finite and non-finite
clauses” in which the infinitive forms are included. So, the main functions that both the full infinitive
and the bare infinitive can take: (1) the infinitive as subject, (2) the infinitive as direct object, (3) the
infinitive as a verb complement, (4) the infinitive after verb + object, (5) the infinitive with subject,
(6) the split infinitive, (7) the infinitive as a connective link and (8) the infinitive as an adverbial
clause. It must be born in mind that the forms “have to” and “ought to” are full forms where the “to”
particle is part of the verb and it is not considered as a part of the full infinitive.

The Infinitive as Subject

The infinitive or the infinitive phrase may take the function of subject of a clause when

(1) It is placed at the beginning of a sentence with the verbs “appear, be, seem” (ex: To have
breakfast in bed is nice).
(2) When it is at the end of the sentence as an attributive subject (ex: To know her is to love
her). Infinitive forms have nominal character so they may function as nouns (ex: To behave
like this would be madness). The -ing participle may also be used as the subject of a
sentence when the action is considered in a general sense (ex: Saving money seems
impossible).
(3) We use the “it” construction because it is more usual to place the pronoun “it” first. Then the
infinitive is moved to the end of the sentence (ex: It was easy to do it).
(4) It is preceded by verbs of cognition, such as “believe, consider, discover, expect, find, think
and wonder” (ex: He thought it would be a crime not to tell him). Moreover, the use with
interrogatives (ex: Would it be safe to camp here?)
(5) With the verbs “cost” and “take” (ex: It takes half an hour to get to the hotel).
(6) The Perfect Infinitive can also be used as the subject of a sentence (ex: To have told me a
lie is unforgettable) and similarly w may use “it” first (ex: It is better to have loved and lost
than never to have loved at all).

The Infinitive as Direct Object

The infinitive or the infinitive phrase may take the function of direct object of a clause when

(1) It is placed after certain verbs, such as “agree, aim, appear, arrange, ask, choose, claim,
decide, demand, forget, happen, hope, learn, manage, offer, plan, prepare, refuse,
remember, threaten, try among others.
(2) Other verbs and expressions can also be used with a “that-clause” (ex: I promise to tell
you=I promise that I will tell you)
(3) Sometimes a “verb + full infinitive” does not have the same meaning as the same verb used
with a “that-clause”, for instance, the verbs “learn, forget and remember” (ex: He learnt to
swim vs. He learnt (was told) that it would be difficult to swim)
(4) We also find the structure “verb + how/what/when/where/which/why + full infinitive”. The
most frequent verbs used are “ask, decide, discover, find out, forget, know, learn,
remember, see, think, understand, want to know” among others (ex: I don’t know what to
do). Also “whether + full infinitive” is used (ex: I wonder whether to write or phone).

The Infinitive as a Verb Complement

After certain verbs or expressions. For instance:

(1) The bare infinitive after the auxiliary verbs

(2) The full infinitive after verbs expressing “likes and dislikes”, although they can also function
with the gerund form.
(3) After verbs of knowing and thinking, such as “assume, believe, consider, feel, know,
suppose, think) as in “I consider him to be the best candidate”.
(4) After certain phrases, such as “be about, can afford, do one’s best, turn out” among others
(ex: We can’t afford to live in the centre).
The Infinitive after Verb + Object

The infinitive may function as a direct object r as an infinitive with accusative (verb + object +
infinitive – with or without “to”). The main cases are:

(1) We find the full infinitive and also the bare infinitive after:
(a) Verbs of knowing and thinking and in particular when the passive voice is used (ex: He is
invited to go)
(b) After verbs expressing volition, such as “want, request, force” (ex: I want him to tell me the
truth).
(c) After verbs of command or request in indirect speech, such as “order, tell, request, ask” (ex:
I told/ordered/asked him to stay).
(d) After verbs of perception, we may find the full or bare infinitive and sometimes the gerund.
For instance, with the verbs “feel, hear, see, watch” we usually find the bare infinitive in
active forms (ex: I heard him lock the door) and the full infinitive in the passive form (ex: He
was seen to enter the office). These verbs are also used with present participle (ex: He was
seen entering the office) when they describe a progressive action.
(2) After certain structures, such as:
(a) With the verbs “let” and “make” + object. In the active they take the bare infinitive (ex: He
made him cry) whereas in the passive they take the full infinitive (ex: He was made to cry).
(b) Would rather/sooner, rather/sooner than (ex: I’d rather wait until tomorrow).
(c) Had better (ex: You had better finish at once).
(d) Help (ex: He helped you (to) carry those heavy bags).

The Infinitive with Subject

The “full infinitive” may appear with or without a subject, where the latter is the most common one
since no elements are introduced between “to” and the “bare infinitive” (ex: The best thing is to tell
him right now). We often find the full infinitive with a subject in between within the structure: “for +
subject (object pronoun) + full infinitive” (ex: The best thing would be for her to tell him right now).

The Split Infinitive

We find other constructions such as “split infinitives” where emphatic elements (degree adverbs)
are placed after the “to” in colloquial English (ex: It would take ages to really solve this mystery).

The Infinitive as a Connective Link

The infinitive may also function as a connective link after the adverb “only” to express
disappointment (ex: He hurried to the shop only to find it was closed). We may omit the adverb
“only” without the idea of misfortune (ex: He returned home to find Sally had bought what he
needed) but this use is confined to such verbs as “find, hear, learn, see, be told” among others:

The Infinitive as an Adverbial Clause

It refers to certain infinitive phrases that can be placed at the beginning or sometimes at the end of
a sentence. These idiomatic expressions work as introductory sentences which are similar to
introductory sentence adverbs, for instance, “To be perfectly frank; to be honest; to tell you the
truth”, among others.

3.2. The -ing Form

In this section I will examine the -ing form, together with the main uses and functions, but before I
will analyse the distinction between the definitions of “gerund” and “present participle”.
 3.2.1. Gerund vs. Present Participle

Following Sanchez Benedito, we must distinguish between the -ing form as “gerund” and “present
participle” mainly because the verbal form “-ing” has two main different functions: (1) as a verbal
adjective or participle, “present participle”, which implies adjectival and verbal features. (2) the “-
ing” form may be realized as a verbal noun, hence the definition “gerund”, which implies noun and
verbal features.

Therefore, depending on their adjective or noun features, we will be dealing with “present
participles” or “gerunds”

3.2.2. The -ing: Form

There is only one way to construct the -ing form; that is, the base form of the verb + -ing. To add
the suffix -ing to the base form, we must pay attention to certain spelling rules, such as the
omission of final -e when adding -ing (ex: come – coming); the addition of a double final consonant
(ex: sit – sitting); and the addition of -ing to final -y (ex: study – studying).

Regarding word formation, the -ing form will show different features depending on its adjectival,
verbal or noun features. Thus, when considered as an adjective (present participle), it has both
adjectival and verbal features, and it is shown in active and passive forms. In the active, we find
present (doing) and perfect forms (having done); in the passive, we find again present (being
done) and perfect forms, usually to refer to past tenses (having been done).

However, it will be when used as a noun that we will find more changes in the way it is formed
since it will undergo the same word-formation rules as for nouns (plural, genitive, addition of
articles, etc).

3.2.3. The -ing: Main Uses

The main uses of the -ing form depend on its adjectival, verbal or noun features and therefore, the
-ing form can be used in different contexts as adjectives, verbs and nouns do.

As an Adjective

As an adjective (present participle), which has both adjectival and verbal features, it is used in
attributive position. In attributive position (ex: a burning candle) it functions as an adjective, so we
find no addition of plural markers or article to define it. The Present Participle in adjectival function
must be accented together with noun it is defining as it is done in the formation of compound
nouns; secondly, in predicative position (ex: The girl is playing with her friends) it functions as part
of a verb to show the progressive aspect.

As a Verb

When the -ing form has verbal features (present participle), the -ing form enjoys the status of a
verb and may take a direct object (ex: He likes drinking wine) and it may be modified by an adverb
(ex: He likes eating slowly). It may even take its own subject when the subject of the -ing form and
the subject of the sentence are the same (ex: The last bus having gone, we had to wait for a taxi).
It may function as an adverbial subordinate sentence (ex: Being the only man at the party, he had
great success with women) or predicator complement after prepositions (ex: After visiting me, he
went home).

As a Noun

Since the -ing form or gerund may function as a verb or a noun, we find on the one hand, noun
formation features such as plural formation, addition of articles, genitive construction and so on.
Thus, it may add a plural (ex: His talkings are so boring); an determiner (ex: Your travelling was
successful); a genitive (ex: I can’t stand my mother’s complainings); the addition of prepositions
(ex: The sinking of the Titanic); noun compound (ex: washing-up liquid) or coordination with other
nouns (ex: Diet or jogging is what he has to do); and the functions a noun can take: “subject” (ex:
Smoking is bad for your health); “object” (ex: She loves horse-riding); “predicator complement” (ex:
This is working hard), or prepositional complement (ex: He usually gives me a surprise by
preparing dinner with candles).

3.2.4. The -ing: Main Functions

The -ing form can function in different contexts as adjectives, verbs and nouns do. Yet, the -ing
form may function in the following cases: (1) as subject of a sentence (ex: Dancing is really funny);
(2) as the predicate of a sentence (ex: Seeing is believing); (3) as complement or direct object of
certain verbs (ex: His hobby is fishing; He loves dancing); (4) after prepositions when used as a
verb complement (ex: He was interested in painting): (5) as relative clauses (ex: The children
playing in the garden did not hear their mum); (6) as an adverbial subordinate clause (ex: Seeing
that he was upset, they apologized for being late); (7) as idiomatic expressions.

As a Subject

The “gerund” may function as the subject of a sentence (when used as a noun) when an action is
being considered in a general sense (ex: Reading German is easier than speaking it) whereas the
“to-infinitive is used when referring to a specific time.

The “gerund” can be the subject of a clause placed after certain verbs of knowing and thinking
(cognition) such as “believe, discover, expect, find, think, and so on” (ex: He thought that parking
in the city was so difficult). I addition, the “gerund” is used in short prohibitions, such as “No
smoking”, “No swimming”, although these cannot be followed by an object since prohibitions
involve an object which is often expressed by the imperative form (ex: Do nt smoke cigarettes
here).

As a Predicate

The “gerund” may also function as the predicate of a sentence, as in “Seeing is believing”. This
function is usually related to the verbs “be, seem, become”.

As a Verb Complement

The “gerund” may also function as a verb complement or direct object, as in “I hate fishing”. This
function is usually related to certain transitive verbs, such as “admit, avoid, consider, deny, dislike,
enjoy, fancy, keep, mean, miss, postpone, save, suggest, understand” among others.

It is also related to certain verbs making reference to “likes, dislikes”, such as “care, like, love,
hate, detest, wish” (ex: They like/detest dancing); “preference” (ex: I prefer running to jogging);
“volition” when we are considering the subject’s tastes generally (ex: She would like riding if she
could ride better); and “continuity” with verbs such as “start, go on, continue, keep on, finish, end”
(ex: He kept on talking all night long).

There is a construction of the type “verb + a possessive adjective or pronoun + gerund” in which
the gerund refers to the person denoted by the possessive adjective or pronoun (ex: He insisted
on my/me working=I had to work).

After Prepositions

When a preposition is followed by a verb, the -ing form must be used, except for the preposition
“to”. “To” can cause confusion as it can be either a part of an infinitive or a preposition. After the
auxiliary verbs “be, have, ought, used, be going”, it is part of the following verb. “To” is often
placed after certain verbs which are usually followed by gerund, for instance, “hate, intend, love,
mean, plan, etc” (ex: I love dancing vs. I love to dance).

“To” may not always indicate a “to-infinitive”. For instance, it is used in certain expressions, such
as “look forward to, take to, be accustomed to, get used to, be used to + gerund”. Following
Thomson & Martinet, “a good way of finding out whether a “to” is a preposition or part of an
infinitive is to see if it is possible to put a noun/pronoun after it. For Instance “I am used to listening
to the radio/it every morning=preposition”).

In addition, there is a number of phrasal verbs which take the gerund. The most common are “be
for/against, care for, give up, go on, keep on, leave off, look forward to, put off, see about” and so
on” (ex: He kept on saying the same thing).

As Relative Clauses

Given the adjectival character of the -ing form, it may also function as a relative sentence by
substituting the relative pronouns “which, who, that”. For instance, “The man who is coming
towards us is my uncle” may be realized by the sentence “The man coming towards us is my
uncle”.

As Adverbial Clauses

The -ing form may also function as an adverbial clause in absolute construction. This construction
is considered to be formal or literary and therefore, in colloquial English it is usual to introduce the
subordinate clause by a conjunction, for instance, “Being the best candidate, he won the
elections” vs. “As he was the best candidate, he won the elections”.

As Idiomatic Expressions

In colloquial English we usually find the -ing form functioning in everyday usage in constructions
such as “it is no good/use, there is no point in, what’s the point of, feel like, cannot stand, cannot
help, it’s worth, to be fond of, what/how about…? + gerund”. In addition, we find some idiomatic
expressions, such as “Generally speaking, I think it is a mistake”, “Considering the circumstances,”
“Bearing in mind the reports, …”, etc.

3.3. The Infinitive vs. the -ing Form

WE will distinguish two types of verbs when both forms are used indistinctively, first, those which
do not have any changes in meaning; and second, those which undergo semantic changes.

First of all, there is a group of verbs which do not change in meaning when they are followed by a
full infinitive or a gerund. This group of verbs includes, such as “start, begin, continue, keep on, go
on, finish, end”. In addition, verbs indicating “likes and dislikes” may also take the full infinitive or
gerund with slight differences of meaning.

Secondly, we find a reduced group of verbs which undergo relevant changes in meaning. For
instance, “remember and forget”; regret and dread”; “like, love, hate and prefer”; “try”; “mean”;
“need and want”; “go on”; “stop”.

(1) Verbs “remember and forget” take the gerund when they refer to an action which occurred
beforehand (ex: Do you remember taking this bus?) whereas they take the infinitive when
they refer to an action which comes afterwards (ex: I’m afraid you will forget to take the car
keys).
(2) Verbs “regret and dread” take the gerund when they refer to the past or likely future (ex: Do
you regret not having studied?). However, “dread” takes the infinitive “to think” and “regret”
takes the infinitives “to say, to tell” and “to inform” to talk about the future (ex: I dread to
think what might have happened if you’d stopped insulting me).
 (3) Verbs “like, love, hate, prefer” may take either a gerund or an infinitive when they mean
“enjoy” or “take pleasure in” (ex: I simply love cooking/to cook): Yet, when they mean “want”
or “wish”, they take the infinitive (ex: Would you like to have a tea?). The verb “prefer”,
when used in a comparison, takes the gerund (ex: He prefers skating to snowboarding).
(4) When the verb “try” takes the gerund, the meaning is “experiment” (ex: They tried putting
wire netting all round the garden), this means that they put wire netting round the garden to
see if it would solve their problem. However, when the infinitive is used, the meaning is
“attempt” (ex: They tried to put wire netting all round the garden), they attempted to do it.
(5) When the verb “mean” is used with the gerund (ex: The job means moving to another area),
the verb means “involve” but when it is used with the infinitive (ex: We are meant to be
together), it means “intend”.
(6) Verbs “need and want” mean “be in need of” when used with the gerund (ex: The hedge
needs trimming) whereas with the infinitive “need” means “have a need” (ex: We’ll need to
take a bus tomorrow) while “want” means “should/ought to” or “wish” (ex: You want to ask
John. He is an expert).
(7) The verb “go on” means “continue an action” with the gerund (ex: He went on describing his
house) whereas it means “introduce a new action” with the infinitive (ex: After describing his
mansion, he went on to describe his castle).
(8) Finally, the verb “stop” means “cease” with a gerund (ex: He stopped smoking) whereas it
means “to interrupt one action to perform another” with the infinitive (ex: He stopped to
smoke).

3.4. The Past Participle

3.4.1. The Past Participle: Main Forms

In English grammar, the past participle refers to an action that was started and completed entirely
in the past. It is the third principal part of a verb, created by adding -ed, -d, or -t to the base form of
a regular verb. The past participle is generally used with an auxiliary (or helping) verb—has, have,
or had—to express the perfect aspect, a verb construction that describes events occurring in the
past that are linked to a later time, usually the present. In addition to the perfect aspect (or perfect
tense), the past participle can be used in a passive voice or as an adjective.

To understand past participles, you first need to know how to make a verb past tense. To do so,
add ed, d, or t, as in these examples that show the verb on the left and the simple past tense on
the right:

Jump > jumped; Sleep > slept; Touch > touched

Turning these verbs into past participles is also simple: Make the verb past tense and precede it
with an auxiliary verb, as in these examples that list the simple past on the left and the past
participle on the right:

Jump > have jumped; Sleep > have slept; Touch > have touched

Though they may seem similar, there is a difference between the regular past tense and past
participle. The regular past has only one part while the past participle always has two or more
parts and generally requires an auxiliary verb. An example of a sentence with a regular verb would
be: "I helped my friend." You helped your friend at some time in the past, but you might continue to
help her at some point in the future.

The same sentence with a past participle verb would be: "I have helped my friend." You began
helping your friend in the past and completed the action of helping her in the past.
The past participle forms of irregular verbs have various endings, including -d (said), -t (slept),
and -n (broken). Irregular verbs are trickier to form in the simple past than regular verbs, as these
examples illustrate:

 Blow > blew
 Freeze > froze
 Go > went
To form the past participle of these irregular verbs, precede them with an auxiliary verb:
 Blow > has blown, have blown
 Freeze > has frozen, have frozen
 Went > has gone, have gone

The past participle can indicate past, present, and future meanings, according to "Essentials of
English: A Practical Handbook Covering All the Rules of English Grammar and Writing Style,"
which notes that the past participle has both perfect and progressive forms, as in these examples:

"Thus deceived, he will be outraged. [Both actions are in the future.]

"Baffled by your attitude, I cannot help you. [Both actions are in the present.]

"Baffled by your attitude, I could not help you. [Both actions in the past.]"

In the first sentence, the participle acts like an appositive, renaming the subject he. The two
actions occur completely in the future: He will be outraged and he (will be) deceived. Note how the
past participle includes an implied form of a "to be" verb: will be.

In the second sentence, baffled is still a past participle but the action will have been started and
completed entirely in the present. The past participle includes an implied auxiliary verb—having
been—so the full sentence would read: "Having been baffled by your attitude, I cannot help you."
The action of being baffled starts and is completed entirely in the present, as is the (non)action of
not helping. 

In the same way, the third sentence starts with a past participle describing an action that started
and was completed entirely in the past. The past participle also serves as an appositive adjective,
describing the pronoun (and subject of the sentence). The full sentence would read: "Having been
baffled by your attitude, I could not help you." The subjunctive mood in the second half of the
sentence describes an action—could not help—that happened (or in this case did not happen)
entirely in the past.

3.4.2. The Past Participle: Main Uses

Past particles can show up as adjectives within the sentence. They use the simple past tense (-
ed) form of the verb but serve to modify a noun or pronoun. Typically, this use ends up as a
predicate adjective, coming after a linking verb. 

Here are some examples:

 We felt exhausted after volunteering all day.

 We were enthralled by his exciting tale of adventure.
 Samantha was enticed by the last piece of cake.
 Jonathan is interested in learning more about veterinary science.

In English grammar, the past particle can also serve as the beginning of a participle phrase. These
phrases function as an adjective to describe a noun or pronoun later in the sentence. Here are
some examples:

 Frightened by the loud noise, the children ran inside.

  Interested in what he was saying, the students stopped talking to listen.
 Disgusted by what they saw, the family walked out of the restaurant and went elsewhere.
 Confused by her response, Charles was not sure if she accepted his proposal or not.

Present perfect tense uses the present-tense form of “have” and shows action in the past that
likely is continuing now and in the future.

The past participle can also show up in forming the three of the six perfect verb tenses. These use
the helping verb “have” and the past tense form of the verb.

Present Perfect Tense

The present perfect tense is the first example of this conjugation. This verb tense uses the

present-tense form of “have” and shows action in the past that likely is continuing now and in the
future. Here are some examples that show the present perfect tense:

 Megan has owned her chameleon for two years.

 The sheep have jumped over the fence three times.
 We have gone to Disney World for our last five vacations.

Past Perfect Tense

The past participle also shows up in the past perfect tense. This verb tense uses the past-

tense form of “have” and shows an action that occurred in the past before another action occurred.
Here are some examples:

 I had caught three fish before Samantha caught any.

 The dog had run off before we had a chance to shut the door.
 The mail had come early on Saturday.

Future Perfect Tense

The future perfect tense indicates an action that will be complete at a specific time in the future. It
combines the future tense of “have” with the past participle. Here are some examples of past
participles used as future perfect tense:

 She will have slept 10 hours by the time we wake her up.
 They will have left for school already by the time the snow day is called.
 Before winter comes, we will have chopped enough wood for the furnace.

Past Participle Examples – Irregular Verbs

Most past participles use the base form of the verb followed by -ed, such as walked or crossed.

However, irregular verbs can end in a variety of ways. Here are some examples:

 I have arisen with the sun. (Past participle of arise)

 We have caught the flu. (Past participle of catch)
 She has chosen her date for the prom. (Past participle of choose)
 If we had known the outcome, would have chosen differently. (Past participle of
know).

3.4.3. The Past Participle: Main Functions

Once you are able to recognize the Past Participle by its form, we can move on to its functions, i.e.
the work it does in sentences. Some of its functions are similar to those of the Present Participle
and some are different.
Here Are the Functions along with Examples...

1. Perfect Tenses
In perfect tenses, the past participle is part of the finite verb phrase, as in...
has sung
had sung
will have sung has been sung
had been sung
will have been sung

2. Passive Voice
In all the passive voice forms of finite verb phrases, the past participle is the main verb...
is sung
was sung
will be sung
is being sung was being sung
has been sung
had been sung
will have been sung

3. As Participial Adjectives
Past participles too behave like adjectives (participial adjectives) in the same way as the present
participles do...
healed person written instructions
trained teacher beaten path
risen sun fallen angels

4. Usually Has a Passive Meaning, but Can Have an Active Meaning Sometimes...
Examples Showing Passive Meanings

In the four examples on the left column of the table above, please note:

 the healed person is not doing the healing;

 the instructions are not doing the writing;
 the teacher is trained by somebody else;
 the path does not beat itself for people beat (create) the path by regularly walking there.

So, each past participle in these examples has a passive meaning.

Examples Showing Active Meanings

But less frequently, you can find past participles with active meanings...
as in the two examples in the right column above...

 risen sun, where the sun does the rising;

 fallen angels, where the angels fell.

The verbs rise and fall, from which risen and fallen are formed, are both intransitive; so, rising and
falling cannot be done to the sun or the angels.
5. Acts like a Verb
Like the present participle, the past participle too can function as the head of a participial
phrase. What we mean by this is that just like any verb, the past participle can have an object
and can be modified by modifiers.

See this example:

 Lovingly taught English by her father, she eventually became a fine writer.

In this sentence, the word English is the object and the adverb lovingly modifies the past participle
taught, which is the head of the participial phrase 'lovingly taught English by her father'.

6. Acts as an Adjective
Like the present participle, the past participle shares the nature of an adjective, in that it can be
modified by a degree modifier.

 Fully healed of his own bad memories, he went on to become an outstanding counsellor.

In the participial phrase 'fully healed of his own bad memories', the past participle healed is
modified by the degree modifier fully.

4. Educational Implications
The difference between the non-finite forms dealt with in this study are relevant to the learning of a
foreign language since differences between the vocabulary related to non-finite forms in the
learner’s native language (L1) and that of the foreign language (L2) may lead to several problems,
such as the incorrect use of each of them, especially because of the syntactic, morphological and
semantic processes implied in these categories.
This study has looked at the structure of the infinitive, -ing and -ed forms in terms of form main
uses and functions, that is, regarding morphological and phonological forms and syntactic,
semantic and pragmatic functions, all those related by the relevance of usage in everyday speech.
According to Thomson and Martinet, a European student may find especially troublesome the use
of the infinitive, the -ing form and -ed participle, and particularly when there are subtle differences
between their uses.
It has been suggested that a methodology grounded in part in the application of explicit linguistic
knowledge enhances the second language learning process.
So, the importance of how to handle non-finite forms cannot be understated since you can
communicate but not successfully because of the relevant distinction of meaning between them,
especially when we may use indistinctively infinitive or -ing forms.
Current communicative methods foster the “teaching” of this kind of specific linguistic information
to help students recognize the main differences with L2 words.
So far, I have attempted in this discussion to provide a broad account of the infinitive, -ing form
and -ed form by means of form, functions and uses within verb phrase morphology, phonology,
syntax, semantics and usage to set it up within the linguistic theory, going through the location of
non-finite forms in syntactic structures, to a broad presentation of the main grammatical categories
involved in it. Students should be able to understand the relevance of handling correctly the
expression of non-finite forms to successfully communicate in everyday life.
 5. Conclusion

Although the question “What is a non-finite form?” may appear simple, it implies a broad
description of non-finite forms in terms of form, function and use to get to the paradigms of
morphology, phonology, syntax, semantics and use.
In this study I have attempted to take a fairly broad view of non-finite forms since we are also
assuming that there is an intrinsic connection between its learning and successful communication.
The correct expression of non-finite forms is currently considered to be a central element in
communicative competence and in the acquisition of a second language since students must be
able to use and distinguish these forms in their everyday life to avoid embarrassing situations.
The expression of these verbal paradigms in form, use and function, proves highly frequent in our
everyday speech, and consequently, we must encourage our students to have a good managing
of it.

6. Bibliography

 Council of Europe (1998) Modern Langua A Common European Framework of Reference.

 Quirk & Greenbaum, A University Grammar of English
 Thomson, A.J. & Martinet, A.V. A Practical English Grammar
 Leech & Svartvik, A Communicative Grammar of English