Teacher's Resource Book

Gerunds and infinitives

Gerunds and infinitives
We use gerunds after prepositions (e.g. without,
before) and after certain verbs (e.g. enjoy, can’t
stand, afraid of).
She left without saying goodbye.
He enjoys going rollerblading at the weekend.
We use infinitives after certain verbs (e.g. want,
hope, offer).
Paul offered to repair Sue’s bike.
After some verbs (e.g. like, love, hate, prefer,
start, continue) we can use either the gerund or
infinitive with no change in meaning.
I like playing tennis.
I like to play tennis.
1 Rewrite the sentences using gerunds.
Tim cycled into town. He didn’t stop.
Tim cycled into town without stopping.
1 Rachel lost the race. She was very angry.
Rachel was angry about ……………………
………………………………………………
2 We didn’t go to the cinema, we watched a
video at home.
Instead of …………………………………..
………………………………………………
3 Ivan passed his driving test because he
practised every weekend.
By …………………………………………
………………………………………………
4 Gillian read the newspaper then she phoned
her friend.
Before ………………………………………
………………………………………………
5 They left the disco and went for a coffee.
After ………………………………………
………………………………………………
6 Jake has split up with his girlfriend.
He’s upset.
Jake is upset about …………………………
………………………………………………
2 Choose the correct forms.
1 Tony wants to go / going travelling before he
goes to university.
2 He promised to buy / buying her a diamond
ring for their anniversary.
3 Have you ever considered studying / to study
abroad?
4 He agreed to buy / buying the motorbike
for £2,000.
5 John has been a farmer for twenty years. He’s
used to getting up / get up early.
6 It’s cold today. You shouldn’t go out without
wearing / to wear your coat.
3 Complete the story with gerunds or
infinitives.
A haunted house
When I was a child I used to spend my holidays
at my aunt and uncle’s old country house.
One summer I remember having (have) a
strange experience.
  It was a hot afternoon, and my cousins
suggested 1……………… (play) hide-and-seek.
But instead of 2……………… (go) outside, we
decided 3……………… (play) in the attic. After
4
……………… (turn off) all the lights, we all
hid in different places. I managed
5
……………… (hide) behind an old sofa.
  Then something odd happened. In the darkness
we heard footsteps come into the room. The
footsteps seemed 6……………… (walk) towards
the sofa. I wanted 7……………… (move), but I
couldn’t. I expected something terrible
8
……………… (happen). Then suddenly the
footsteps stopped and the door slammed shut.
After 9……………… (wait) for a few seconds,
we jumped up and ran downstairs without
10
……………… (stop).
  We told my aunt and uncle, but they refused
11
……………… (believe) us. Mysteriously the
house burned down a year later. The fire started
in the attic.