FluencyLab
GrammarHub
Choose bare infinitive, to-infinitive or -ing form after common verbs, modals, prepositions and expressions.
Overview
Choose bare infinitive, to-infinitive or -ing form after common verbs, modals, prepositions and expressions.
Form and rules
Modal verbs take the base form without to: can go, should study, might leave.
Many verbs take to + infinitive: decide to go, hope to see, manage to finish.
Many verbs take -ing: enjoy reading, avoid driving, suggest meeting.
Prepositions take -ing when followed by a verb: interested in learning, before leaving.
Some verbs can take different patterns with a meaning change, such as stop doing vs stop to do; learn those patterns separately.
A closer look
Prepositions take -ing when followed by a verb: interested in learning, before leaving.
Some verbs can take different patterns with a meaning change, such as stop doing vs stop to do; learn those patterns separately.
Examples
We decided to leave early.
She avoids driving at night.
You should ask first.
I'm interested in learning Japanese.
He stopped smoking last year.
Common mistakes
Manage is followed by to + infinitive.
Avoid is followed by -ing.
Ready to practise?
The test combines multiple choice, gap completion, error correction, and sentence building so students have to recognise and produce the grammar, not simply reread the rule.