Verb Patterns

-ing
 As a subject or object (or part of one of these)

 Perhaps being generous in the game means you want people to think
you are in real life.
 Doing is better than thinking.

 After a preposition (often part of a fixed phrase: look forward to, be used
to, be accustomed to, be keen on, instead of):
 But don´t make the mistake of thinking that Japanese are more generous
than Peruvians.
 I´m not used to getting up early. I´m looking forward to sleeping late
this weekend.

 Admit
 She admitted making a mistake.

 Avoid
 He tried to avoid answering my question.

 Consider
 Have you ever considered going to live in another country?

 can´t stand
 I´m very impatient. I can´t stand waiting in queues.

 Can´t bear
 I couldn´t bear not seeing him again.

 Come
 Dave came fishing with me.

 Deny
 They said they were innocent. They denied doing anything wrong.

 Discuss
 We sometimes discuss gardening.
 Enjoy
 I enjoy reading.

 End up
 The satnav died and we ended up going completely the wrong way.

 Fancy
 I don´t fancy going out this evening (= I´m not enthusiastic about it).
 Is there a city or country that you really fancy visiting?

 Finish
 I´ll do the shopping when I´ve finished cleaning the flat.

 Feel like
 Do you feel like coming to the gym with me?

 Give up (=stop)
 I´ve given up reading newspapers. I think it´s a waste of time.
 Is there anything that you think you ought to give up doing?

 Go on or carry on (=continue)
 Catherine doesn´t want to retire. She wants to go on working. ( or… to
carry on working).
 Do you think that you´ll carry on studying English next year?

 Go
 But shouldn´t you try and find out some more about him before you go
rushing off?

 Have trouble
 We´re having trouble finding a hotel.

 It´s no use
 It´s no use explaining- you never listen anyway.

 Imagine
 Can you imagine emigrating to another country?

 Involve
 The project will involve growing plants.
  Keep or keep on (=do something continuously or repeatedly)
 You keep interrupting when I´m talking! Or You keep on interrupting…

 Look forward to
 Is there a film you´re looking forward to seeing at the cinema?

 mind
 Would you mind closing the door?
 I don´t mind working late tonight if you want me to.
 I don´t mind waiting. I´m not in a hurry.

 Miss
 We really miss having a dog in the house.

 Postpone
 They´ve decided to postpone having a family for a while.

 Practise
 Today we´re going to practise parking.

 Put off (=postpone)

 Don´t let your failures put you off trying harder.

 Risk
 Would you ever risk eating something which was past its sell-by date?

 suggest
 Chris suggested going to the cinema.

 Think
 Are you thinking of buying a car?

 (be) worth
 Do you think it´s worth having a medical check-up every year?

infinitive+ to…
 As a part of a semi-fixed phrase, e.g. It´s important/ easy and the chance
 The game gives you the chance to act unselfishly or not.
 It´s important to someone to be seen as fair to act that way in the game
because it´s just a game.

 To express purpose
 Some people are playing to impress people.

 Afford
 I can´t afford to have a holiday this year.

 Agree
 Simon was in difficult situation, so I agreed to help him.

 Arrange
 They arranged to have dinner the following month.

 Ask
 I asked to see my accountant.

 Appear
 Things aren´t always what they appear to be.

 (be) allowed
 Sorry, you aren´t allowed to park here.

 (Be) able
 Will you be able to give me a lift to work tomorrow?

 Beg
 He begged her to stay, but she simply laughed and put her bags in the
car.

 claim
 I waved to Karen but failed to attract her attention.

 Decide
 It was late, so we decided to take a taxi home.

 Deserve
 They certainly deserved to win that game.
 Dare (to/ without to)
 I wouldn´t dare to tell him. OR I wouldn´t dare tell him. (-> but:
negotiation always without to (!): I daren´t tell him what happened).

 Enable
 Computerization should enable us to cut production costs by half.

 Expect
 We expected to be late.

 Encourage
 We were encouraged to learn foreign languages at school.

 Fail
 She failed to reach the Wimbledon Final this year.

 Force
 You can´t force her to make a decision.

 Get (=persuade)
 I didn´t move the piano by myself. I got somebody to help me.
 Do you ever get the chance to practise speaking English outside class?

 Hope
 I was hoping to leave work early today.

 Help (with or without to)

 Can you help me to move this table? Or can you help me move this table?

 Invite
 Her family invited me to stay with them for a few weeks.

 in order
 He came home early in order to see the kids before they went to bed.

 Learn
 How old were you when you learnt to drive?

 Manage
 Even though the snow was really deep, we managed to drive to the local
shop and back.
 Did you manage to finish the report before the meeting?

 Mean (=intend)
 I´ve been meaning to call you all week.

 Offer
 A young man kindly offered to carry my bags.

 Promise
 I promised not to be late.
 If I tell you secret, do you promise not to tell anybody?

 Plan
 What are you planning to wear to the party?

 Pretend
 Ann pretended not to see me when she passed me in the street.
 If you really hated your friend´s partner, would you pretend to like
him/her?

 Persuade
 He is trying to persuade local and foreign businesses to invest in the
project.

 Refuse
 On cold mornings the car always refuses to start.

 Remind
 Can you remind me to call Sam tomorrow?

 Recommend
 Are there any apps you´d recommend to get?

 Seem
 They seem to have plenty of money.

 Threaten
 We threatened to call the police if the boys didn´t stop throwing stones.
  Tend
 I like Dan, but I think he tends to talk too much.
 What kind of things do you tend to worry about?

 Tell
 I told her to go home.

 Teach
 Who taught you to drive?

 Want
 He doesn´t want to know.

 Would like
 Would you like to go now?
 Would you like me to help you with the dinner?

 Warn
 Joe said the switch was dangerous and warned me not to touch it.

 Would like/ would love/ would hate/ would prefer

!!! I would like to have done something= I regret now that I didn´t or couldn
´t do it.
 We´d like to have gone away, but we were too busy at home.

-ing and to+infinitive

Forget + to vs. forget -ing

 Forget+ to = not remember to do something that you have to do:

 Sorry, I forgot to do it.

 Forget + -ing= be unable to remember something that you did or that

happened in the past

 I´ll never forget seeing the Taj Mahal.

 I´ll never forget arriving in New York for the first time.
Go on -ing vs. go on to

 Go on doing something= continue an action, continue with the same

thing:

 The president paused for a moment and then went on talking.

 We need to change. We can´t go on living like this.

 Go on to do something= do or say something new, do something after

finishing something else, for a change of activity:

 After discussing the economy, the president then went on to talk about
foreign policy.

Like/love/hate/ prefer (negotiation with to)/ can´t stand/ can´t bear/

start/begin -> both are possible, but we use -ing (not to…) when we talk about
a situation that already exists (or existed). We use infinitive+ to to talk about
choices and habits.

 Paul lives in Berlin now. He likes living there (= he lives there and he likes
it).
 I like getting early in the morning in the summer.
 I love spending time with my grandparents.
 I hate writing/ to write by hand.
 I much prefer using/ to use a computer.

Need to vs. need -ing

 I need to do something= it is necessary for me to do it:

 I need to get more exercise.

 We need to practice speaking before the oral exam.

 Something needs doing= it needs to be done (passive voice):

 My phone needs charging.

Remember -ing vs. remember to

  I remember doing something= I did it and now I remember this. To have
or keep an image in your memory of something you did or that
happened in the past. You remember doing something after you have
done it:

 I know I locked the door. I clearly remember locking it.

 He could remember driving along the road just before the accident, but
he couldn´t remember the accident itself.

 I remembered to do something= I remembered that I had to do it, so I

did it. To not forget to do something; to do what you have to do. Do
something that is one´s responsibility. You remember to do something
before you do it.

 I remembered to lock the door, but I forgot to shut the windows (=I
remembered that I had to lock it and so I locked it).
 I must remember to pay the electricity bill (= I must not forget to pay it).

Regret -ing vs. regret to say/tell/Inform

 I regret doing something= I did it and now I´m sorry about it:

 I now regret saying what I said. I shouldn´t have said it.

 We regretted going to the party. It was awful.
 Do you regret not going to college?

 I regret to say/ to tell you/ to inform you= be sorry about something you
are about to do, I´m sorry that I have to say:

 (from a formal letter): We regret to inform you that your application has
been unsuccessful.
 BA regrets to announce a delay of flight BA5276.

Try to do vs. try doing

  Try to do= make an attempt to do, make an effort to do something
difficult:

 I was very tired. I tried to keep my eyes open, but I couldn´t.

 Could you try not to be late tomorrow?

 If try (with this meaning) is followed by a verb, we say try -ing.

Experiment with an activity, use, do, or test something in order to see if
it is good, suitable, etc.:

 Try pressing the green button.

 If the computer doesn´t work, try turning it off and on again.

!!! I can´t help doing something= I can´t stop myself doing it:
She tried to be serious, but she couldn´t help laughing.

I couldn´t help laughing when my brother fell off his bicycle.

Is there a TV programme you can´t help watching even though you don´t think
it´s very good?

Stop -ing vs. stop to

 Stop doing= finish an action or activity

 My father stopped driving when he was eighty.

 Stop to do= finish an action in order to do another (infinitive of purpose)

 We stopped to have some lunch.

Only infinitive
 After let someone or make someone

 …but most people let their partner have a share of the money.
 It´s good that some parents make their children work from an early age.

 After modal verbs

 True, some people would keep everything.

 Interestingly, most five-year-olds will share at least half of the money.

 They might be late.

 After had better, would rather

 My opinion is that deep down most human beings would rather

cooperate.
 You´d better take an umbrella- it looks like rain.