Before you read this post, make sure to read our general post on infinitive verbs in English. That post will teach you to form infinitives and give you a more basic overview.
English Articles
English verbs that “take infinitives”: What are they and how to use them?
By: Isabel McKay Thu Sep 12 2024
We often say that certain English verbsNo definition set for verbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. “take infinitives” or that they take “infinitive complements.” This means that the meaning of the verb is somehow “completed” by an infinitive verbNo definition set for infinitive verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. or a phrase that contains an infinitive verb. For example:
verbinfinitive complement (with 'to')infinitive complement (bare infinitive)
I want to show you my movie collection.
She asked Maria to pick up some salami at the store.
We heard the lion roar at the zoo today!
In this post, we’ll teach you all about how and when to use infinitives after English verbs. We’ll start by looking at verbs that take “full” infinitives (with to) and then we’ll look at verbs that take “bare” infinitives (without to) instead. Along the way, we’ll give you lists of verbs you can use in different situations and different types of sentences.
Are you hoping to learn a thing or two about infinitives? I think I can help you reach your goals!
Tip
Table of Contents
When to use the infinitive with ‘to’ after a verb?
In English, we use the infinitive with to after some specific verbs. These are mostly verbs of desire, thinking, feeling, planning, and speech. But they can also be linking verbs.
Verbs that come before infinitives can follow three different patterns. Some verbs can be used in more than one way:
Some verbs are used directly before the infinitive with to:
verbinfinitiveI hope to learn English.
Some verbs use this structure: verb + objectNo definition set for objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. + infinitive:
verbobjectinfinitiveI told Paul to clean the kitchen.
And some others use this structure: verb + for + object + infinitive:
verbobjectinfinitiveShe arranged for Maria to attend college.
There is no real way to predict what pattern a verb will follow. Learning which verb to use in which pattern will take some practice!
Let’s look at each group more closely!
Tip
You can use an infinitive verb with to to show the purpose or goal of any action, regardless of the verb. For example:
I went to the concert to listen to some music.
The “infinitive of purpose” is different because the infinitive does not complete the meaning of the main verb, it just adds extra information about why the action happened. To learn more about this use of infinitive verbs, check out our post on how to say why something happened in English.
Verbs that come directly before infinitive with ‘to’
Here are some common verbs that are used directly before infinitives with to:
want
hope
wish
desire
long
pretend
manage
go
happen
intend
expect
choose
forget
remember
learn
arrange
demand
mean
proceed
start
love
like
hate
prefer
condescend
swear
decide
volunteer
cease
have
fail
yearn
afford
tend
try
aim
plan
hesitate
chance
ought
ask
beg
threaten
refuse
agree
promise
offer
attempt
continue
end
hurry
hasten
seem
appear
prepare
intend
consent
begin
get
think
When a verb is used directly before an infinitive with to, the subjectNo definition set for subjectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. of the two verbs is the same.
main verb
infinitive with to
Maria volunteered to lead the discussion.
→ Maria volunteered. Maria will lead the discussion.
Andre asked to go first.
→ Andre asked. Andre will go first.
Luke pretended to lose.
→ Luke pretended that Luke lost.
Exception!
In spoken English, the verb said is sometimes used before an infinitive with to to report that someone gave an order. In this case, we understand that the subject of the two verbs is never the same:
Paul said to clean up this mess.
→ Paul commanded others to clean up the mess.
But be careful! Not all verbs that represent actions you do to a verb can take an infinitive object. Some will take gerunds (root + -ing) instead:
❌ I enjoy to walk.
✅ I enjoy walking.
Check out this list of English verbs that take gerunds vs. infinitives to learn more!
Important
There are also some verbs that can come either before an infinitive with to or before a gerund:
✅ I like to walk.
✅ I like walking.
What is the difference?
With most verbs (e.g. love, like, hate, prefer, try, begin, cease, continue, start) there no real difference between using the infinitive or the gerund.
With some verbs that have more than one meaning, like remember, the infinitive is used with one meaning and the gerund is used with another.
I remembered to turn off the oven.
→ Before I left the house, I did not forget to turn off the oven.I remembered turning off the oven.
→ I imagined what it looked like when I turned off the oven.
Verbs that are used before an object + an infinitive with ‘to’
Here are some common verbs that are used with an object + an infinitive with to:
want
need
wish
prepare
intend
expect
pressure
help
choose
select
force
teach
beg
permit
would love/like
would prefer
convince
volunteer
ask
beg
permit
encourage
invite
persuade
remind
warn
instruct
tell
command
order
request
advise
mean
When there is an object between the verb and the infinitive, we understand that the objectNo definition set for objectLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. of the main verb is the subject of the infinitive verb. Here are some examples:
main verb
object
infinitive with to
Maria forced Bill to lead the discussion.
→ Maria forced. Bill will lead the discussion.
Andre taught Bill to sew.
→ Andre taught. Bill will sew.
Luke wanted Bill to turn in his homework.
→ Luke wanted. Bill will turn in the homework.
Exception!
A few verbs, most commonly ask, beg, and promise, are a little different when they come before object + to be.
Luke asked / begged his boss to be promoted.
→ Luke wants Luke to be promoted.Maria promised her mother to be good.
→ Maria promised that Maria will be good.
However, usually these verbs are used without an object.
Verbs that are used with ‘for’ + object + infinitive with ‘to’
Here are some common verbs that are used with for + object + infinitive with to:
plan
beg
would hate
intend
arrange
argue
aim
would like/love
prepare
push
would prefer
wish
fight
ask
long
mean
We always assume that the object after for is the subject of the infinitive verb, just as above:
main verb
for + object
infinitive with to
Kendra planned for her son to attend Harvard.
→ Kendra planned. Her son will attend.
We prepared for the meeting to end.
→ We prepared. The meeting will end.
Bill would hate for Andre to be lonely!
→ Bill would hate. Andre would be lonely.
Exception!
The verb said is sometimes used before an infinitive with to. This is used to talk about instructions someone gave. In this case, we understand that the subject of the two verbs is never the same:
Paul said to clean up this mess.
→ Paul commanded others to clean up the mess.
When to use a bare infinitive after an English verb?
We use bare infinitives (infinitives without to) to complete the meaning of a few types of verbs in English: modal verbsNo definition set for modal verbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., most verbs of perception, and some causative verbsNo definition set for causative verbsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum..
Tip
In English, present subjunctive verbs look just like bare infinitives. Some verbs that report commands and suggestions can have their meaning “completed” by present subjunctive clauses:
main verbpersent subjunctive
Marianne demanded that Kendra come with her.
These look a bit like verbs that take bare infinitive complements, but we won’t talk about verbs like demand here. You can learn more using the present subjunctive in reported speech from our post on reported speech in English!
Let’s look at each of these cases!
After modal verbs
We use bare infinitive verbs after English modal verbs, like can, could, will, would, shall, should, might, may, and must:
bare infinitiveMaria can run.
Kendra should go to the party.
He must be our teacher!
The phrases would rather and had better are not true modal verbs, but they also follow this pattern.
I would rather clean my room than do the dishes.
You had better do your homework!
Tip
Many of the phrases we sometimes use in place of modals (sometimes called “semi-modals”) are verbs or adjectives that are used before an infinitive with to. For example:
He has to come to the party. (He must come...)
He ought to come to the party. (He should come...)
He was able to come to the party. (He could come...)
He was allowed to come to the party. (He could come...)
After verbs of perception
Most verbs of perception take bare infinitive complements, using this structure:
perception verb
object
bare infinitive
I saw the prisoner escape!
Bill heard the car start.
Andre felt his heart beat.
Some common verbs of perception that go with bare infinitives:
see
taste
hear
watch
feel
listen to
notice
sense
overhear
smell
Important
Often, you can use these verbs of perception before a present participle (verb + -ing) as well!
✅ I saw him cry.
✅ I saw him crying.
Using the bare infinitive implies that you perceived a complete event, while the participle implies that you only saw part of the event. You saw the object while they were doing the action.
✅ I watched her bake the cake.
→ I watched until the cake was finished.✅ I watched her baking the cake.
→ I watched her during the time while she was baking.
A few verbs of perception can only be used with a present participle:
✅ I stared at him crying.
❌ I stared at him cry.
After a few verbs of causation
We use bare infinitives after the English causative verbs let, make, and bid. These follow the structure below:
causative verb
object
bare infinitive
I let the fish go.
Andre made his son attend school.
We bade the servant serve the food.
→ very old-fashioned!
The verb help can be used either with a bare infinitive (more common) or with a full infinitive (more formal).
main verbbare infinitivefull infinitive
✅ We'll help you reach your goals!
✅ We'll help you to reach your goals!
In all cases, the object of the causative verb is the subject of the bare infinitive.
Exception!
When causative verbs are passive, they don’t take bare infinitive complements.
When make and bid are passive verbs, they are followed by an infinitive with to!
passive verbfull infinitiveBill was made to do the dishes.
The servant was bidden to serve the food.
The verb help technically follows the same pattern in the passive, but most speakers will re-word their sentence instead:
🆗 He was helped to complete his homework.
→ Odd phrasing!✅ He received help with his homework
→ Best phrasing!
The verbs let and help are uncommon as passives.
Usually we use allowed / permitted + full infinitive instead of be let:
He was allowed to leave.
And we use phrases like received help with… or be given help with…, instead of be helped:
He received help with his homework.
He was given help with his homework.
Summary
In this post we’ve covered the main cases where you’ll use infinitives in the complements of English verbs. We saw that…
Certain English verbs can take infinitive complements, which means that an infinitive verb (or a phrase containing an infinitive verb) completes the meaning of the verb.
Verbs that take infinitives with to follow three patterns:
main verb + infinitive with to
main verb + object + infinitive with to
main verb + for + object + infinitive with to
There is no strict rule for which pattern a verb will follow, so it will take some memorization and practice.
A smaller group of verbs take complements containing bare infinitives (without to) instead:
modal verbs (can, might, should, may, ...)
verbs of perception (see, hear, feel, ...)
three causative verbs (let, make, bid)
Ready to practice? Try out our English verbs that take infinitives activities!
