| Learn to
Write English Clearly and Correctly
Lesson 22 |
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Lesson 22, To ING or not to ING, that is the question.:
"Are you finished cooking supper?" " I decided to order a pizza."
Why did we say 'finished cooking' and 'decided to order'? For some reason we will not even try to figure out, when two English verbs are used together in a sentence, the second verb will either be an -ing form or an infinitive form (to + verb). It is not as important to know the reason for this as it is to know which verbs use which form.
| Need -ing verbs | Example | Use TO + verb | Example | |
| imagine | Can you imagine owning a Porsche? | offer | Did you offer to mow the grass? | |
| admit | Henry admitted robbing the store. | promise | Politicians promise to fix our problems. | |
| finish | I am almost finished cooking dinner. | hope | Inga hoped to enter the Olympics. | |
| risk | Investors risk losing their money. | afford | Bob could not afford to miss work. | |
| practice | Ellen practices singing every day. | fail | David failed to stop for the red light. | |
| delay | Don't delay sending your payment. | decide | The driver decided to change lanes. | |
| consider | Will you consider staying home? | aim | We aim to earn much money next year. | |
| deny | Fred denied cheating on the test. | learn | Joe will learn to type someday. | |
| involve | The contest involved writing an essay. | deserve | Mikie deserves to have a treat. | |
| stop | Please stop kicking my chair. | plan | Roy plans to retire early. | |
| postpone | Mary postponed having the party. | arrange | They arranged to fly home. | |
| avoid | Sam avoided signing the contract. | attempt | Don't attempt to get out of bed yet. | |
| miss | I miss playing tennis in the summer. | manage | Can you manage to climb the ladder? | |
| put off | Many kids put off taking their baths. | forget | Will Sally forget to bring a salad? | |
| carry on | We must carry on doing the right thing. | refuse | Willy refused to finish his vegetables. | |
| give up | You should give up smoking today. | threaten | The man on the roof threatened to jump |
People who grow up in English-speaking countries seem to learn these patterns without knowing that they have. They just know that some things 'sound right' and other things do not. If you have grown up speaking another language, then each one of these verbs will be a problem because there is no pattern or system to learn. Every example must be memorized. However, the more you read and listen to English, the closer you will come to being able to 'feel' which usage is right. Practice, practice, practice.
Exercise A: Circle the correct verb form in the following sentences.
1. Grace could not imagine (to wear) (wearing) her hair in curlers when she leaves the house.
2. Mark agreed (to wash) (washing) the dishes after supper.
3. Most hikers avoid (to walk) (walking) in bare feet.
4. The store manager offered (to pay) (paying) for the Christmas party.
5. A nurse should not fail (to give) (giving) the correct medicine to her patients.
6. Betty's new job involved (to lift) (lifting) heavy boxes.
7. Jim's little brother admitted (to break) (breaking) the model airplane.
8. Have you decided (to go) (going) fishing with us?
9. Mother said, "Will you please stop (to slurp) (slurping) your soup!"
10. The little old lady attempted (to cross) (crossing) the busy highway on foot.
Exercise B: Think of three verbs that could be used with each of the verbs in the left column. Write the verbs you think of in the boxes opposite the first word. Put them in their proper form (-ing or to).
| Example: They deny | dropping | closing | seeing |
| Example: They plan | to arrive | to buy | to drink |
| 1. threaten + | |||
| 2. hope + | |||
| 3. risk + | |||
| 4. offer + | |||
| 5. forget + | |||
| 6. miss + | |||
| 7. finish + | |||
| 8. admit + | |||
| 9. promise + | |||
| 10. refuse + |
Examination: Put a correct verb form in the blanks in the following sentences. The answers may vary.
1. Donald managed ___________________ the difficult problem.
2. The baseball player stopped __________________________ on the ground during the games.
3. The doctor decided ________________________the operation before it was too late.
4. Many drivers forget __________________________ before they turn right.
5. One should not delay ___________________________ a doctor after an automobile accident.
6. Can you afford _____________________________ a new car this year?
7. When will you finish ___________________________ the walls?
8. The old man offered ___________________________ my windshield while I waited for the traffic light to change.
9. Can you imagine __________________________ in an old castle during the winter?
10. Parents often wonder if their children will ever learn ______________________ their own shoes.
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