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A1
Beginner
39 lessons
Common Greetings Present Simple Tense Listening Skills: Tips and Strategies Telephone and Video Call English Articles: A, An and The Numbers, Dates and Time Asking Simple Questions The Verb To Be Classroom and School Vocabulary Personal Pronouns: I, You, He, She Plurals: Regular and Irregular Nouns Possessives: My, Your, His, Her Family Members and Relationships Food and Drink Basics Days, Months and Seasons Reading: A Short Email to a Friend Colours, Shapes and Sizes Reading: Short Personal Profiles Reading: Signs and Notices Reading: Product Labels Using Capital Letters and Full Stops Reading: A Simple Menu Reading: A Basic Timetable Writing Your First Email in English Writing About Yourself Writing a Simple Message Writing a Shopping List Writing Numbers and Dates Correctly Listening: Numbers and Prices Listening: Greetings and Introductions Listening: Simple Instructions Listening: Spelling Names and Words Greeting People and Saying Goodbye Listening: Days and Times Listening: Short Conversations at a Shop Asking for Directions Introducing Yourself in English Ordering Food and Drinks Talking About Your Daily Routine
A2
Elementary
25 lessons
Past Simple Tense Reading: A Day in London Writing Paragraphs Food and Drink Vocabulary The Present Continuous Tense Describing People: Appearance and Personality At the Airport Reading: A Famous City Writing Simple Sentences Comparatives and Superlatives Simple Past Tense: Regular Verbs Simple Past Tense: Irregular Verbs Can and Can't: Ability and Permission How Much and How Many Work and Jobs Vocabulary Transport and Travel Vocabulary Sports and Hobbies Health and Body Parts Shopping and Money Vocabulary Reading: A Short News Story Reading: A Holiday Postcard Reading: A Job Advertisement Reading: A Simple Recipe Reading: A Hotel Review Writing About Your Weekend
B1
Intermediate
14 lessons
Reading: The Future of Work Understanding Accents and Dialects Countable and Uncountable Nouns The Present Perfect Tense Phrasal Verbs: Top 30 Health and Medicine Vocabulary Listening Strategies for Podcasts Job Interview English Writing a Formal Letter First and Second Conditional Modal Verbs: Should, Must, Might Environment and Nature Vocabulary Passive Voice in Present and Past Gerunds and Infinitives
B2
Upper Intermediate
13 lessons
Business Email Writing Reading: The Art of Listening Passive Voice Discourse Markers and Linking Words Academic Writing: Paragraphs and Essays Debate and Discussion Language Reading: Understanding Opinion Pieces Relative Clauses: Defining and Non-defining Academic Vocabulary: Word Families Inversion for Emphasis Cleft Sentences for Emphasis Reading: Academic Journal Extracts Environment and Climate Change Vocabulary
C1
Advanced
10 lessons
Nominalisation in Academic English Advanced English Idioms Hedging Language in Formal Writing Advanced Collocations and Word Partnerships Reported Speech Critical Listening: Analysing Arguments Persuasive Speaking and Rhetoric Reading: Literary and Cultural Texts Advanced Passive Structures Advanced Conditionals and Wishes
Lessons Grammar
🎯

Gerunds and Infinitives

Grammar Intermediate ~2 min

Understand when to use gerunds (-ing) vs infinitives (to + verb) in real conversations and writing.

📖 Lesson

What You Will Learn

You'll master the difference between gerunds (verb + -ing) and infinitives (to + verb), and know exactly which one to use in different situations. This is one of the trickiest parts of English grammar, but once you get it, you'll sound much more natural.

Explanation (with real-life context)

Here's the truth: both gerunds and infinitives are verbs in disguise. They just look different.

Gerunds (-ing form) act like nouns. Think of them as "the activity itself":
- Swimming is my favorite hobby. (swimming = the activity)
- I enjoy reading before bed. (reading = the activity)

Infinitives (to + base verb) often express purpose, intention, or potential:
- I want to learn French. (intention/goal)
- She went to the store to buy milk. (purpose)

The tricky part? Some verbs take gerunds, some take infinitives, and some take both with different meanings.

Examples (natural sentences from daily life)

Verbs that take GERUNDS:
- I stopped smoking last year. (not "stop to smoke")
- She's considering moving to Dubai. (not "considering to move")
- He admitted stealing the office supplies. (confession context)

Verbs that take INFINITIVES:
- I need to finish this report by 5pm. (not "need finishing")
- She promised to call me later. (not "promised calling")
- They decided to cancel the meeting. (not "decided canceling")

Verbs that take BOTH (with different meanings):
- I remembered to lock the door. (remembered first, then locked)
- I remembered locking the door. (recalled the past action)
- She stopped smoking. (quit the habit)
- She stopped to smoke. (paused her activity in order to smoke)

Common Mistakes

❌ "I enjoy to watch movies" → ✅ "I enjoy watching movies"
❌ "I want playing football" → ✅ "I want to play football"
❌ "She's avoiding to see him" → ✅ "She's avoiding seeing him"

Quick Tips

  • After feeling words (enjoy, like, hate, love): use gerunds → I hate waking up early.
  • After "want, need, decide": use infinitives → I want to sleep more.
  • When something is the subject: gerunds feel more natural → Learning languages takes time.
  • When showing your goal/reason: infinitives → I'm studying to pass the exam.
Follow Along reads paragraph by paragraph with highlighting. Hover underlined words for quick definitions.

🃏 Key Vocabulary — tap to flip

8 words
gerund
/ˈdʒerənd/
Intermediate
Tap to see definition →
Definition
A verb form ending in -ing that acts as a noun in a sentence.
"Swimming is great exercise for your muscles."
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preposition
/ˌprepəˈzɪʃən/
Intermediate
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Definition
A word showing the relationship between a noun/pronoun and other words (in, at, about, for).
"I'm interested in learning guitar, not piano."
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verb phrase
/vɜːrb freɪz/
Intermediate
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Definition
A verb and its related words that work together to express an action or state.
"She's planning to move to a new apartment next month."
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intention
/ɪnˈtenʃən/
Intermediate
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Definition
Your plan or purpose for doing something in the future
"My intention is to finish university before moving abroad."
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purpose
/ˈpɜːpəs/
Intermediate
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Definition
The reason why you do something; your goal or objective
"She went to the gym for the purpose of getting fit."
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to admit
/ədˈmɪt/
Intermediate
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Definition
To confess or acknowledge that something (usually negative) is true
"He admitted making a mistake in the calculation."
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to avoid
/əˈvɔɪd/
Intermediate
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Definition
To stay away from something; to not do something deliberately
"I'm avoiding eating sugar because I'm on a diet."
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to consider
/kənˈsɪdər/
Intermediate
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Definition
To think carefully about something before deciding
"She's considering taking a new job in London."
Tap to flip back

✏️ Fill in the Blank

Type the missing word to complete each sentence.

My ___ is to finish university before moving abroad.
She went to the gym for the ___ of getting fit.

✅ Check Your Understanding

Quick Check
3 questions · no login needed

1. Which sentence correctly uses a gerund after the verb 'avoid'?

2. What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences? (1) 'I remembered to call my mother.' (2) 'I remembered calling my mother.'

3. Which sentence correctly uses an infinitive to express purpose?

🧠 Practice Quizzes

Test Your Knowledge: Gerunds and Infinitives
5 questions · 10 min
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