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Onur2695 Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

gerund and infinitive after to be verb

How can I decide which one I should use after to be verb

For example;

The only thing we can do now is 1 (to kill this poor dog)
2 (kill this poor dog) ???
3 (killing this poor dog)

Option 2-3 is little nonsense to me

Or

My favorite activity for leisure is 1 (to sing) ???
2 (singing)

Does the conjugation here depend on the verb? or is there something else to learn?
  

Top answer

onur2695 The only thing we can do now is ... With forms of "do", the -ing form is used to echo the form "doing"; otherwise either the plain verb or the infinitive is fine. What he is do ing now is look ing for his lost wallet.

— CalifJim

  • onur2695 The only thing we can do now is ...
  • With forms of "do", the -ing form is used to echo the form "doing"; otherwise either the plain verb or the infinitive is fine.
  • What he is do ing now is look ing for his lost wallet.
  • What he needs to do is [to look / look] for his lost wallet.
  • What he did was [to look / look] for his lost wallet.
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3 Answers
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onur2695The only thing we can do now is ...
With forms of "do", the -ing form is used to echo the form "doing"; otherwise either the plain verb or the infinitive is fine.

What he is doing now is looking for his lost wallet.
What he needs to do is [to look / look] for his lost wallet.
What he
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onur2695 is there something else to learn?
Yes. There are specific verbs in English called catenative verbs. "Catenative" means "like a chain" because you can link them together. These verbs can be followed by a gerund or infinitive, but you have to memorize the patterns.
Here is a good resource:
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AlpheccaStarscatenative verbs
While that is indeed another topic worth learning, it doesn't speak specifically to the forms that might go after the linking verb be. (heading: "gerund an infinitive after 'to be' verb")

CJ
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