Gerunds and Infinitives with Verbs: Video and Gapfill Worksheet

Video: Gerunds and Infinitives with Verbs

Worksheet: docs, pub

I used this video from Easy English when introducing gerunds and infinitives following certain verbs.

The video is quite long, but I only play the first 2 and a half minutes.

As a lead-in, I introduce the term work-life balance, and I get students to talk about what work-life balance is like in their country.

Then, I play the video with the gist question "What is Susan's work-life balance like?"

Then we play the video again with the specific information questions.

Then a gap-fill and then a sorting activity for the noticing phase.

Don't Forget to Live Your Life- Gerunds and Infinitives with Verbs

https://youtu.be/PT85QlyEjQI?si=JREELkdpDI8M4RT7

What time does Susan wake up every day?

What time does Susan go to sleep?

What does Susan aspire to be in the next five years?

What does Susan need to raise money to buy?

Who does Susan miss living with?

Who does Susan miss joking around with?

What time does Susan wake up every day?

What time does Susan go to sleep?

What does Susan aspire to be in the next five years?

What does Susan need to raise money to buy?

Who does Susan miss living with?

Who does Susan miss joking around with?

https://youtu.be/PT85QlyEjQI?si=JREELkdpDI8M4RT7

Hi Maria.

Hi Susan 

It's so good________ you. I'm trying________  when the last time I saw you was.

Oh, I don't know. But every time I suggest ________ , you have some excuse. Are you trying ________  me?

You know I always look forward ________  you! I’ve been meaning ________  you a visit, but I just couldn't find the time. I love ________ time with you.  You're my best friend. But I've been very busy with my job. I want ________  promoted and earn more, but promotions take a lot of work. Imagine________   ________  up at 5 am every day and ________ ________  at midnight! I aspire ________  a CEO in the next five years and I'll work towards ________ my dream a reality.

If you continue ________  so hard, you risk ________ sick.

I need ________ money________  a bigger apartment and a new car. I have lots of plans and dreams that I need ________ .

You always need ________  money for something and you neglect ________  life to the fullest. You never get ________  enough time with the people you love. And time passes by.

That's true. I don't get ________  my family as often as I'd like. I miss ________ with my parents. I remember ________ in and ________ up to a home-cooked breakfast. I miss ________ my parents out in the garden every day ________ after their vegetable plants. I also miss ________ around with my brother. I plan ________ them next month. I've been so busy lately that I struggle ________  in touch with them.

Hi Maria.

Hi Susan 

It's so good to see you. I'm trying to remember when the last time I saw you was.

Oh, I don't know. But every time I suggest meeting, you have some excuse. Are you trying to avoid me?

You know I always look forward to meeting you! I’ve been meaning to pay you a visit, but I just couldn't find the time. I love spending time with you.  You're my best friend. But I've been very busy with my job. I want to get promoted and earn more, but promotions take a lot of work. Imagine having to get up at 5 am every day and going to sleep at midnight! I aspire to be a CEO in the next five years and I'll work towards making my dream a reality.

If you continue to work so hard, you risk getting sick.

I need to raise money to buy a bigger apartment and a new car. I have lots of plans and dreams that I need to achieve.

You always need to raise money for something and you neglect to live life to the fullest. You never get to spend enough time with the people you love. And time passes by.

That's true. I don't get to see my family as often as I'd like. I miss living with my parents. I remember sleeping in and waking up to a home-cooked breakfast. I miss seeing my parents out in the garden every day looking after their vegetable plants. I also miss joking around with my brother. I plan to visit them next month. I've been so busy lately that I struggle to stay in touch with them.

Sort these words into two categories

aspire, continue, get, go, good, have, imagine, look forward to, love, mean, miss, need, neglect, plan, raise money, remember, risk, suggest, struggle, try, want, work towards,

words that are followed by an infinitive (to+V1)	words that are followed by a gerund (Ving)

Look at this sentence:

It’s so good to see you.

What do you think the rule is?

1. adjectives are followed by gerunds

2. adjectives are followed by infinitives

There is a crisis for people to monitor the disaster

(Grammar Questions I Couldn't Answer)

This one puzzled me for a long time, but I think I've actually worked it out now.  Let me know what you think.

We were playing a Make Sentences game with the new vocabulary from Unit 2, Impact 4, and we were on slide 4 of the game (see here), and one of the students wrote on the board "There is a crisis for people to monitor the disaster."

My native speaker intuition of course immediately told me that the sentence was wrong, and that it should be, "There is a crisis for the people to monitor."  But why?  Monitor is a transitive verb, so it should have an object after it, right?  So why was my native-speaker intuition telling me that "to monitor the disaster" was wrong in this case?

I wrote the sentence down, and have been thinking about it for several days, and I think I've got it now.  It's because "to monitor" is an infinitive of purpose.  So in the same way that we would say, "I have a pizza to eat" without putting on object after "eat", so we wouldn't put an object after "monitor".  

Or perhaps, more specifically, the object of "monitor" is already in the sentence--it's "a crisis", so we don't need to say it again in the infinitive.

How did I do?  Does that sound right?

Lesson on Infinitives With and Without "to"

(TESOL Worksheets--Infinitives)
Google Drive Folder HERE
Slideshow: slides, pub
Worksheets: doc, pub
[Notes: I used this to supplement Impact 3, Unit 2, Grammar p. 36.  The context (holding a rat), the specific word patterns, and many of the example sentences all come from that page.  Nevertheless, I also believe this lesson can stand independently of the textbook, and can be used by anyone who wants a lesson on infinitives.
The freer practice at the end (question cards) is a based on a similar activity from TeachThis,  but I've modified it so that it only reflects the word patterns taught in Impact 3, Unit 2, Grammar p. 36.
For the Youtube video, start it at 18:48, and play it for about 2 minutes.

Make 5 Sentences about the video using the word “hold”

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Make 5 Sentences about the video using the word “hold”

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

He went to the pet store ___________ a rat.  

At this pet store, the boy can ___________ a rat.
The boy wanted ___________ the rat.

He was excited ___________  the rat.
His mom watched him ___________ it.

___________  a rat looks fun.

That’s the rat ___________ .
They had the father ___________ another rat.
His parents let him ___________ the rat.  They even helped him ___________ the rat.

He went to the pet store to hold a rat.  

At this pet store, the boy can hold a rat.
The boy wanted to hold the rat.

He was excited to hold the rat.
His mom watched him hold it.

To hold a rat looks fun.

That’s the rat to hold.
They had the father hold another rat.
His parents let him hold the rat.  They even helped him hold the rat.

He went to the pet store to hold a rat.  

At this pet store, the boy can hold a rat.
The boy wanted to hold the rat.

He was excited to hold the rat.
His mom watched him hold it.

To hold a rat looks fun.

That’s the rat to hold.
They had the father hold another rat.
His parents let him hold the rat.  They even helped him hold the rat.

Infinitives
to + infinitive (to hold)	infinitive without to (hold)

Infinitives
to + infinitive (to hold)	infinitive without to (hold)
the reason for going somewhere	can _______
want _______	watch (person) _______
after an adjective	have (person) _______
as the subject of the sentence	let (person) _______
That’s (object) _______	help (person) _______

pizza / want / he / eat ________________________________________

John / clean / the house / help / his mother ________________________________________

the stuff / buy / that’s ________________________________________

sing / her / he / watch ________________________________________

let  / watch / me / my mother / T.V. ________________________________________

can’t / car / drive / John ________________________________________

store / go / buy / he /  book ________________________________________

fun / book / read / is  ________________________________________

on vacation / I / go / excited ________________________________________

What do you want to do in the future?	What do you not want to do?
What is something that your parents let you do?	What is something that your parents don’t let you do?
What is something that you are excited to do?	What is something that is boring to do?
What is something that you find difficult to talk about in English?	Why do tourists come to Vietnam?
Why do you go to school?	What do you want to do today?
What is something that is important to teach young children?	What is something you wanted to be when you were younger?
What is something that your parents help you do?	What is something that your friends help you do?
What is something that your parents have you do?	What is something that you watch your friends do?
What things are important to do for a healthy life?	What things are important to do at school?

Present Simple, Infinitive, Base Form

(TESOL Worksheets--Teacher Training, Present Simple, Infinitives, Verb Forms, General Verb Tenses)
Google: docs, pub
[Note: I designed this during my time in teacher training for new teachers who were confused about what the difference was between present simple, infinitive, and the base form of the verb.  This could also be student facing, however.]

Present Simple, Infinitive, Base Form

I want to make him cry.

want= present simple

to make= infinitive

cry= base form

The infinitive, the present simple, and the base form can all look alike.  So why do we give them different names?

The main reason is that the base form and the infinitive are not affected by changes in time or subject.  But the present simple is.

For example, the 3rd person singular “s” only attaches itself to the present simple, not the infinitive or base form.

I want to make him cry.

He wants to make him cry.

The present tense can also change into the future or the past if the time reference changes.  But the infinitive and the base form are “outside of time”.  (Hence the name infinitive---outside of finite time.)

I want to make him cry.

I wanted to make him cry.

I have wanted to make him cry.

I will want to make him cry.

etc.

Infinitives. A tale of inconsistent terminology.

Unfortunately, the definition of infinitive is not always the same between different textbooks.  This leads to confusion for both teachers and students alike.

Traditional definition	...but in other textbooks	...and in other textbooks
Infinitive= to +base form I want to make him cry. want= present simple to make= infinitive cry= base form	infinitive is the same as base form I want to make him cry. want= present simple to make= to + infinitive cry= infinitive	There is a “full infinitive” and a “bare infinitive” I want to make him cry. want= present simple to make= full infinitive cry= bare infinitive

Some textbooks also don’t distinguish between present simple, base form and infinitive, and call all 3 forms by the same name.

When you’re using a textbook, check to see how they define the infinitive.  Don’t be confused if the terminology is slightly different than the textbook you were using before.