Dunarea de Jos University of Galati Faculty of Letters Dept.

of English Language and Literature

NON-FINITE FORMS OF THE ENGLISH VERB

Associate Professor Steluta Stan, PhD

Introduction. FINITE/ NON-FINITE

The forms of the English verb (the base form, the s form, the ing form, the ed/en form) and the phrases they are part of are usually classified into two broad types, based on the kind of contrast in meaning they express. The notion of finiteness is the traditional way of classifying the differences. This term suggests that verbs can be limited in some way, and this is in fact what happens when different kinds of endings are attached to them. The finite forms are those which limit the verb to a particular number, tense, person, or mood. If there is a series of verbs in the verb phrase, the finite verb is always the first, as in I was being given. The non-finite forms (infinitive, gerund, participles) do not limit the verb in this way. For example, when the ing form is used, the verb can be referring to any number, tense, person, or mood, as in Seeing what happened, I/you/he called for the police. As the examples show, a nonfinite form stays the same in a clause, regardless of the grammatical variation taking place around it.

Chapter 1: THE INFINITIVE

It expresses an action or a state in its general sense, without any strict reference to person, number or mood, and is considered the first basic form of a verb. The infinitive has two main forms:

- the to-/long infinitive, and - the short/bare/plain infinitive. *The Split Infinitive
Grammarians have identified and described a class of auxiliary adverbs, such as almost, already, always, ever, just, merely, still, utterly, etc.; they appear in front of the main verb (if there is no auxiliary), or after the first auxiliary (when there is one or more than one auxiliaries in the sentence): He still loves the Chinese civilization. You can always say that. They already been working for five hours. have

Things are similar in the infinitive clause/phrase. If there is no auxiliary, the adverb appears in front of TO, or between TO and the verb. The latter is called the split infinitive (infinitiv cu adverb intercalat), which, though frowned upon by conservative grammarians, is gaining ground in contemporary English. The construction is mainly used when the speaker/writer wants to stress the action/state expressed by the infinitive, or to avoid more ambiguous or obscure constructions. I want you to clearly understand that I wont tolerate such a behaviour any longer. It is foolish to even think of such a solution.

1.1. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INFINITIVE

It combines the characteristics of a verb with those of a noun, with the latters typical syntactic functions.

1.1.1. Verb characteristics of the infinitive

a) it has grammatical categories specific to a verb, i.e. voice, tense, aspect; b) it can combine with auxiliaries or modals to form different types of predicates; c) it may have modifiers as any other predicative mood. a) Grammatical categories of the infinitive VOICE/ TENSE present ACTIVE VOICE indef. progr.aspe asp ct ect to take to be taking PASSIVE VOICE indef. progr.aspe aspect ct to be taken to be being taken

perfect

to taken

have to have to have to have been taking been taken been being taken

The forms of the infinitive in the passive voice, progressive aspect, are hardly ever used. Generally speaking, depending on the context, the present tense of the verbals/non-finites indicates time simultaneous or future with reference to the time expressed by the main verb. This also applies to the infinitive. Im trying to understand you. (simultaneous in the present) He invited me to come in. (simultaneous in the past) They will ask you to make a contribution to the project. (simultaneous in the future) The perfect indefinite infinitive expresses time prior to that of the main verb, so the relationship between the two is one of anteriority. It indicates actions completed before a certain moment or action in the past, present or future.
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anteriority to a present action: I am really glad to have put an end to this story. anteriority to a past action: He proved to have read the whole novel. anteriority to a future action: When I wake up Ill be happy to have forgotten this nightmare.

Note that when the perfect indefinite infinitive follows: - a present modal verb, it expresses a past action: She must have felt really lonely in London if she came back so soon. They may have told me about it, but Ive forgotten. - a past modal verb, it expresses an action that did not take place: You could have told me about it, (but you didnt). You should have accepted the offer; its a pity you didnt. b) The infinitive as part of different types of predicates simple verb predicates (different auxiliaries and an infinitive) Did you watch the football match yesterday? He will tell you the whole story. modal/aspectual compound verbal predicates Jane could climb trees when she was a child. You ought to have helped them. They continued to talk for two more hours. Look! Its just beginning to rain. Note that aspectual verbs are frequently followed by the gerund in spoken English, but not when they are in the progressive aspect; in this case, the infinitive is preferred to avoid the annoying repetition of ing forms.
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As part of a predicate, the infinitive can have different types of objects or modifiers: D(irect) O(bject): I am delighted to see you again. I(ndirect) O(bject): I told you to give him the telegramme. Adverbial Modifier Of Time: I promised to be back in a few days. Adverbial Modifier Of Place: I dont think they used to live here. Adverbial Modifier Of Manner: Sheila asked me to walk faster.

1.1.2. Noun characteristics of the infinitive

The I(nfinitive) P(hrase) is often the subject of a sentence, especially when the subject complement is also an infinitive: To know her is to love her. To know all is to forgive all. Not to have invited them would have offended them. To speak English fluently is difficult for undergraduates. As a subject, the infinitive alternates with the gerund. It is impossible to formulate hard-and-fast rules of choice between the two forms, but it is often suggested that the gerund is of a more general, abstract, character than the infinitive, which refers to something restricted to a particular moment. In a sentence, the infinitive can have the syntactic functions of a noun: 1) subject: To drink a cup of coffee in the morning is very refreshing. To forget is more than natural. Note that in current speech, it is more frequent to anticipate the subject expressed by an infinitive with anticipatory/preparatory IT, or replace it by gerunds or verbal nouns: It It It It is very refreshing to drink a cup of coffee in the morning. seems strange to me to take everything for granted. takes patience to get used to living with someone. doesnt cost anything to be polite.

Note that if the infinitive has a subject of its own, that one is usually introduced by for: Its difficult for me to find a solution to this problem. 2) attribute, when the infinitive determines a noun or an indefinite pronoun, following them as a postmodifier: She is not the woman to forget that. There is nothing to be done in this matter. He doubted my ability to do it.
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The infinitive may also postmodify nouns denoting time, place and manner: I had no time to do it. It will take some time to complete. Its a nice place to live in. Is this the best way to do it? The infinitive often retains the preposition used in the construction V+O: He is not a man to trifle with. There is nothing to worry about. 3) subject complement, when the infinitive follows a link verb, especially to be: To sympathize is to understand. The most important thing is for us to reach an agreement before the deadline. 4) prepositional object, when the infinitive construction starts out as a prepositional object after certain verbs and adjectives: apply for, bother about, care for, consent to, fail in, hesitate about, insist on, long for, persist in, plead for, proceed with, etc.; able, afraid, angry, anxious, careful, certain, concerned, content, eager, fit, glad, pleased, prepared, proud, ready, sorry, welcome, willing, etc. Note that the preposition of the verb is omitted if it immediately precedes the infinitive clause/phrase: What we decided on was for him to speak on our behalf. (but: We decided for him to speak on our behalf). Dont trouble to look for my glasses. 5) direct object. Infinitives often function as DOs with simple transitive verbs (arrange, attempt, decline, endeavour, learn, manage, omit, refuse), with verbs of liking/disliking and intention (desire, dislike, expect, hate, intend, like, mean, prefer, want, wish), with verbs of mental perception, with verbs of linguistic communication (ask, claim, conclude, threaten). Some of the verbs followed by an infinitive as direct object can also be followed by a THAT clause: He claimed to be an expert in such matters. He claimed that he was an expert in such matters. Note that we distinguish between groups of verbs that can have as object only an infinitive, only a gerund, both an infinitive and a gerund, with/without changes in meaning (see the sub-chapter Gerund/Infinitive) 6) adverbial modifier of purpose. The idea of purpose may be emphasized by in order or so as: We went to the hospital to make sure she was all right. He opened the door for her to go out.
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1.2. GERUND/ INFINITIVE

As already mentioned above, some verbs may be used with both the infinitive and the gerund, sometimes depending on the meaning to be expressed.
a)

after the following verbs, either the infinitive or the gerund may be used without any difference in meaning: begin, start, continue, cease

+ infinitive = involuntary action + gerund = deliberate action He started/began speaking when he saw me. He started to speak louder without even realizing it. Due to the thick fog, the planes ceased/stopped taking off. The British Empire ceased to exist. Note that verbs of knowing/understanding are followed by an infinitive. - when BEGIN/START are used in the continuous tenses, the infinitive is preferred to avoid the repetition of ing forms; - SET ABOUT (=begin) + gerund As soon as the floods went down, we set about repairing the damage. - START OUT (=take steps as intending) + infinitive He started out to write another novel. attempt, intend, cant bear + infinitive (more usual) The prisoners attempted to escape but failed. What do you intend to do today? need, want (=need), require + gerund (much more frequent in spoken English)/ + to be en/V3 My shoes need mending/to be mended. advise, allow, permit, recommend + infinitive (if the person concerned is mentioned)/ + gerund (if the person concerned is not mentioned) Please allow me to introduce myself. He does not allow smoking/He does not allow you to smoke.
b)

after verbs expressing like/dislike and preference, the gerund is used for general statements, whereas the infinitive is preferred in statements about a particular situation. He likes jogging in the morning. He doesnt like to jog today, on such a cold weather.

*like + infinitive (= think wise/right); like + gerund (= enjoy) I like to go to the dentist twice a year (I think its wise); that doesnt mean I like doing it (I enjoy it). **like + infinitive (=perfective action); like + gerund (=imperfective action) He likes to smoke a cigarette and then go for a walk. He likes smoking a cigarette by the fireplace. ***like + infinitive (=refers to the subject of the sentence); like + gerund (= may also refer to some other agent) I dont like to trifle with serious matters (myself). I dont like trifling with serious matters (either myself or when somebody else does it)
c)

the following verbs have different meanings, according to whether they take an infinitive or a gerund:

remember, regret + infinitive refers to the future; + gerund - refers to the past. must remember to buy some food. remember seeing her when she was a child. regret to say that I have no news for you. regret not having seen this film.

I I I I

forget + infinitive = fail to remember; + gerund = lose the memory of. I forgot to post those letters you gave me. I forgot posting them. (I did it, but did not remember that I did it.) stop + infinitive = halt; + gerund = cease. We stopped talking because we realized that bothered the others. We stopped to talk since we hadnt seen each other for a very long time.

mean + infinitive = intend/have in view; + gerund = involve/have as a consequence. I didnt mean to offend Jane; that was not my intention. I wont give up this idea even it means waiting my whole life.

try +infinitive = make an attempt; + gerund = test/make an experiment. Try to answer/Try and answer all the questions if you want to score high. Have you ever tried driving in Bucharest during the rush hours?

go on + infinitive = do/say next, proceed; + gerund = continue. He went on to talk about the influence of the media in Romania (the subject was introduced for the first time). He went on talking about the influence of the media in Romania (he continued doing the same thing, i.e. talking about the influence).

1.3. USES OF THE SHORT INFINITIVE

a) in combination with auxiliary verbs to form compound tenses (the interrogative and negative of the present, past and future tenses, the indicative, conditional, subjunctive and imperative moods): Do you understand what Im saying? He would leave sooner if he could find tickets. They will be waiting for you as long as its needed. b) after modal verbs, with the exception of those followed by a toinfinitive (be to, ought to have to). Note that when DARE and NEED are used as regular verbs, they will take a to-infinitive. Under the circumstances, he should do as he is told. The project could be worked out in a specialized institute. He wouldnt dare (to) say so to my face (but He dared me to tell him the truth). You need not worry so much, everything will be just fine (but I need to go now).
c)

after the verb to bid (bade-bidden/bid), but only with the simple forms, not with the compound ones, or with such verbs as forbid, followed by the long infinitive. His parents bade him find a job as their financial situation was rather difficult. He has not bid us to start work yet. He says the new law forbids us to smoke in public areas.

d) after the verbs TO LET and TO HELP, the latter one in spoken English not in Written English. The children wouldnt let me go. Would you help me find a reliable traveling agency?
e)

after the verbs to make and to have, when they act as causatives, and are in the active voice. The news made her cry for joy. I promise Ill have him answer for his carelessness. after verbs expressing physical perception, such as feel, hear, see, observe, perceive, watch. I felt him start when his name was uttered. You heard her speak on the subject. She saw him come earlier. Note that the passive voice of the verbs in c), d), e), f) is followed by the to-infinitive. She was heard to call your name, so she must have needed you badly. I was never made to do something I didnt want to.

f)

Note also that this infinitive is part of a complex subject (the infinitival construction the nominative with the infinitive), having the syntactic function of subject complement.
g)

after such modal expressions as had better/best/rather/sooner, would rather/sooner, better/rather/sooner/more than, cannot but, do nothing but. She would rather stay in tonight, cause she doesnt feel like going out. I had better go now, its getting late and the streets are not secure. He would sooner speak than do something. Rather than suffer, I would tell him how I feel.

1.4. USES OF THE LONG INFINITIVE

after the modal verbs ought, have, be, and also after such modal expressions as be (un)able/anxious/bound The letter ought to reach them within a fortnight. I am really anxious to learn the truth if you will tell it to me. To my mind she is bound to succeed in her attempt.
a) b) after nouns, such as pity, folly, madness, time, mistake It would be sheer madness to give up everything you have and just leave. - adjectives, such as (un)usual, difficult, easy, necessary, safe. You must admit openly that it is not so easy to part from someone you love. - certain verbs, as require, take, need (when used as a regular verb) I think you should all know it will take us a lot of time and energy to set things right again.

Note that the IP is introduced by preparatory/anticipatory IT, and has the syntactic function of a subject. after nouns, such as man, person, girl, woman She just is not the woman to act on the spur of the moment. - ordinal numbers: first, second, last Even if you find it hard to believe, I was the first to reach the top of the mountain. - adjectives in the superlative As far as we know, dr. Hill is the first to (have) performed such an operation.
c)

after intransitive verbs, such as care, hesitate, trouble, come, proceed, bother I must admit I just hesitated to take a definite decision on the matter at issue. Nobody bothered to ask me what I wanted. - transitive verbs, such as remind/assist/condemn somebody, want, learn, offer, refuse, decide We assisted him to get the job done. They couldnt refuse to participate in the conference.
d)

after some transitive/ intransitive verbs, when the infinitive may also be introduced by in order, so as We stopped in order/so as to take a little rest. f) in correlation with too, enough, soas She is too angry to admit she was wrong. To my disappointment, he was not wise enough not to go there again looking for trouble. Would you be so kind as to help me with this?
e)

in parenthetical/incidental constructions, having no syntactic relation with the rest of the sentence: so to say/speak, to speak/tell the truth, to be honest/more precise, to put it bluntly To put it bluntly, I dont trust him any more than you do. It was, to say the least, very careless of him. h) in special complex constructions, called infinitive/infinitival constructions, the Nominative with the infinitive, the Accusative with the infinitive, the infinitive with for-to, all of which are to be dealt with in the following chapter.
g)

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