A
Look at these examples:
– I enjoy reading. (not I enjoy to read)
– Would you mind closing the door? (not mind to close)
– Sam suggested going to the movies. (not suggested to go)
After enjoy, mind, and suggest, we use -ing (not to…).
Some more verbs that are followed by -ing:
stop
postpone
consider
admit
finish
avoid
imagine
deny
quit
risk
miss
recommend
- Suddenly everybody stopped talking. There was silence.
- I’ll do the shopping when I’ve finished cleaning the apartment.
- He tried to avoid answering my question.
- Have you ever considered going to live in another country?
The negative form is not -ing:
– When I’m on Vacation, I enjoy not having to get up early.
B
We also use -ing after:
give up (= stop)
put off (= postpone)
go on (= continue)
keep or keep on (= do something continuously or repeatedly)
- Paula has given up trying to lose weight.
- Jenny doesn’t want to retire. She wants to go on working.
- You keep interrupting when I’m talking! or You keep on interrupting …
C
With some verbs you can use the structure verb + somebody + -ing:
– I can’t imagine George reding a motorcycle.
– “Sorry to keep you waiting so long.” “That’s all right”
Note the passive form (being done/seen/kept, etc.):
– I don’t mind being kept waiting. (= I don’t mind people keeping me waiting.)
D
When you are talking about finished actions, you can say having done/stolen/said, etc.:
– They admitted having stolen the money.
But it is not necessary to use having (done). You can also say:
– They admitted stealing the money.
– I now regret saying (or having said) what I said.
E
After some of the verbs on this page (especially admit/deny/suggest), you can also use that …
– She denied that she had stolen the money. (or She denied stealing …)
– Sam suggested that we go the movies. (or Sam suggested going …)
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