Dear Caroline,
I‟m afraid we can‟t meet you tomorrow.
The weekly meeting (1. finish) ………. at 17:00 and I have to be at the airport at 17:30.
You see, my mother (2. come) to visit. Her plane (3. arrive) ……… in London at 17:30 and I (4. pick) her up form the airport.
Then, in the evening I (5. take) ………. her to the theatre. The play (6. begin) at 20:00 and it (7. not finish) ………. until 22:30.
But I (8. not work) ………….. this Monday, so we can meet then if you‟re not busy.
What do you say?
Love, Amanda
P.S. The art exhibition (9. open) ……… next week. Do you want to go?
34 UNIT 8. VERB FORMS
I. To – infinitive and bare infinitive 1. To V + seem/ be/ appear + adj (1) e.g. To pass this exam appears difficult
To put your hands out of the car window is dangerous To save money now seems impossible
- (1) = It + seem/ be/ appear +adj + to do e.g. It appears difficult to pass this exam
It is dangerous to put your hands out of the car window It seems impossible to save money now.
2. S + V1 + to V2
V1 = agree*, aim, appear*, arrange*, ask, attempt, be about, be able, be determined*, bother, care, choose, claim*, decide*, demand*, determine*, do one‟s best, do what one can, fail, forget*, happen, hesitate, hope*, learn*, make up one‟s mind, make an/ every effort, manage, neglect, offer, plan, prepare, pretend*, promise*, refuse, remember*, seem, swear*, threaten, turn out, try one‟s best, volunteer, vow …
e.g. She agreed to pay $50.
They failed to contact their boss
I managed to put the fire out before the Fire Brigade arrived The tenants refused to move
I was just about to leave when the phone rang He isn‟t able to afford to live in the city center She made every effort to pass the exam
Don‟t bother to wait for me. I may be late - The starred verbs can be used with “that clause”
e.g. I promise to wait = I promise that I will wait
He pretended to be angry = He pretended that he was angry
They decided to divide the profit equally = They decided that the profit should be divided equally.
They arranged to meet the guests at the airport = They arranged that the guests should be met at the airport.
3. S + V1 + (O) + to V2
V1 = ask, beg, expect, help, (would) hate, (would) like/ love, prefer, want, wish ….
e.g. He likes to eat well
He would like everyone to eat well She asked to speak to Mr. Brown.
She asked me to speak to Mr. Brown
I begged to go (= I said “Please, let me go”) I begged him to go (= I said “Please, go”) 4. S + V1 + O + to V2
V1 = advise, allow, command, compel, enable, encourage, entitle, forbid, force, instruct, invite, oblige, order, permit, persuade, require, remind, warn, urge, train, show, teach, tell …
e.g. She encouraged me to try harder
35 They persuaded us to go with them
Her parents forbade her to leave the house He showed me how to use this telephone He told me how to do the exercise He told me to do it
She taught me how to behave 5. S + V1 + O + V2
V1 = hear, see, watch, let, make, help, feel e.g. I heard him sing this song yesterday
They made us lie on the floor They let us go home once a week
6. S + to do + anything/ nothing/ everything + but/ except + V + sth e.g. He does nothing but complain
Can‟t you do anything but ask this silly questions?
There‟s nothing to do but wait My dog can do everything but speak 7. Noun + to V
e.g. His ability to get on well with other people made him popular Their plan to rebuild the town was protested
She was annoyed by his unwillingness to do his share of the work 8. To V used with adj or adv
a, too + adj/ adv + to V
e.g. You are too young to drive
The grass was too wet for us to sit on He spoke too quickly for me to understand b, adj/ adv + enough + to V
e.g. She is old enough to travel by herself The ice was hard enough to walk on I‟m not tall enough to reach the shelf
The student isn‟t clever enough to answer the question c, It + be + adj + O + to V
adj = (un)kind, (un)helpful, generous, mean, foolish, wise, careful, careless…
e.g. It‟s kind of you to wait for me
It was so careless of you to break my glasses It was generous of them to put us up for the night.
d, S + be/ feel + adj + to V
adj = glad, happy, delighted, angry, annoyed, furious, surprised, astonished, amazed, terrified, horrified, disappointed, sad ….
e.g. I was glad to get your letter this morning
He was angry to learn that his brother had damaged his cassette player Children are always delighted to get presents
II. Gerund 1. As a subject
36 e.g. Reading is a very popular pastime in the world
Jogging is very good for your health
Swimming in hot summer days is interesting 2. As an object (V1 + V2 – ing)
V1 = admit (to), appreciate*, avoid, consider*, delay, deny, detest, dislike, dread, enjoy, escape, excuse, fancy, imagine*, finish, forget, forgive, involve, keep, continue, loath, be afraid of, mean*, mind, miss, practice, prevent, propose*, suggest, recommend, remember, resist, risk, stop …
e.g. He admitted (to) taking the money Avoid overeating
Would you mind closing the window?
Would you consider selling the house?
He detests writing letters She kept complaining
Putting in a new window means cutting away part of the roof 3. Preposition + V-ing
e.g. She is fond of climbing mountains
I‟m afraid of travelling by car, I often get car sick We are not keen on gambling
I‟m tired of arguing - Some phrasal verbs:
+ to be good/ bad at
+ to be fond of / keen on/ interested in
+ to be afraid/ frightened/ terrified/ scared/ horrified +of + to be bored with/ tired of/ fed up with
+ to be for/ against + to feel like
+ to approve/ disapprove of
+ to have difficulty/ trouble/ problem + in + to get/ be/ become + used/ accustomed + to - Some structures
+ There‟s no point in … + It‟s no good/ use … + Can‟t/ couldn‟t help…
+ Can‟t/ couldn‟t stand/ bear/ put up with …
4. V1 + possessive adjectives/ noun ( with „s case) + V2 – ing
V1 = dislike, like, mean, mind, propose, remember, stop, suggest, approve of, disapprove of, insist on, object to …
e.g. Tom insisted on reading the letter Tom insisted on my reading the letter He dislikes working late
He dislikes his wife‟s working late Forgive my coming late for school today
37 III. Some special cases
1. Begin/ start/ continue + to V/ V-ing
e.g. I started to learn/ learning English 5 years ago.
They continued working/ to work on the project Look! It‟s starting to rain
2. See/ watch/ hear/ find + O + V/ V-ing
e.g. She saw a boy fall into the river
We often see him waiting for someone at the school gate 3. Stop + to V/ V-ing
e.g. Stop talking, it‟s so noisy in class We decided to stop to have some coffee He stopped to get some petrol
4. Remember/ forget + to V/ V-ing
e.g. They shall never forget living in slums Don‟t forget to lock the door before leaving
Do you remember to post the letter on the way home?
I still remember visiting the zoo when I was small 5. Try + to V/ V-ing
e.g. He tried to learn English well to pass the university examination next year He tried to open the door but failed. Then he tried putting some oil in the lock 6. Allow + to V/ V-ing
e.g. They don‟t allow us to cook in the hostel They don‟t allow cooking in the hostel Ex 1. Circle the correct answer
1. You can ask Peter drive/ to drive you to the station
2. Let me help/ to help you with that suitcase
3. Hi! I‟m so glad see/ to see you!
4. You‟d better hurry/ to hurry or we‟ll be late
5. Paul and Anne have decided get/ to get married
6. May I use/ to use your phone?
7. That was close! You‟re lucky be/ to be alive
8. We can‟t afford buy/ to buy a new car 9. Could you hold/ to hold this bag for me?
10. James has agreed lend/ to lend us the money
Ex 2. Rewrite the sentences using the word given