Infinitive as adjective

Question

how can i recognize infinitive as adjective. plz ............ explain me it

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

ajay_dep721infinitive as adjective

It would have to follow a noun.

a rule to remember
an issue to debate
a sandwich to eat
a book to read
a difficulty to overcome

fish to fry
things to do

people to meet
guests to invite

a principle to guide you
a comedian to amuse the crowd
words to inspire the citizens

CJ

Ajay_dep721 · Answer

hi

you have explain me that if noun is followed by infinitive then it is recognized as adjective. here are some sentence in which noun is followed by infinitive but it look like a adverbial infinitive

1 They brought a mobile to talk her.

They brought a mobile to talk her = why did they bring mobile?.................. to talk her.

here infinitive follow the noun but it is as adverbial

CalifJim · Answer

ajay_dep721~~you~~ You have explained me that if a noun is followed by an infinitive then it is recognized as an adjective. Here ~~here~~ are some sentences in which a noun is followed by an infinitive but it looks like an adverbial infinitive.

Maybe you misunderstood my explanation. I was showing you examples where an infinitive is used as an adjective. If an infinitive is used as an adjective, it has to come after the noun it modifies. You can't infer from that that all instances of infinitives after nouns are adjectival. There are certainly many cases where infinitives come after nouns and are not adjectival, and your example is just one of them.

In brief, I said, "If an infinitive is adjectival, then it comes after a noun".
You mistakenly inferred from this, "If an infinitive comes after a noun, it is adjectival".

CJ

Ajay_dep721 · Answer

thanks you sir for giving me better solution
i have understood it well.

but sir sometimes infinitives looks like adjective and adverb at same time in a same sentence when it is difficult to recognize it as adjective or adverb.
for example

1 I brought a mobile to talk her.
here infinitive as adjective and adverb . can you explain me both are possible

I brought a mobile to talk her = why did i brought mobile?.................... to talk her (adverb)

I brought a mobile to talk her = what is mobile for?.............................. to talk her(adjective)

which is correct?

CalifJim · Answer

Theoretically, both are possible. Yes. That's correct.

It's highly doubtful however that what is meant is that you brought a special kind of mobile -- the kind that allows you to talk to her. I don't think different kinds of mobiles like that are even made.

So if I had to choose, I would say that to talk to her is not adjectival. It is adverbial -- an infinitive of purpose.

CJ

Ajay_dep721 · Answer

thank you sir for giving me better solution . sir how can i improve my vocabulary and pronunciation of
English.

Anonymous · Answer

In English an infinitive can be used as either a sustantive (noun or noun equivalent), adverb, or adjective. When it is being used as an adjective it is answering the questions that adjectives answer: which one, how much, whose, etc. And it also modifies (describes or complements) nouns or pronouns just like any other adjective does.

This may sound great in theory, but you asked the question probably because you couldn't think of any examples; or perhaps, the examples you heard sounded like adverbs. This is understandable considering the adjective infinitive is not the most obvious of the three possible parts of speech; but once you catch on, it becomes easy to spot and create.

Following are some examples of infinitives/infinitive phrases being used as adjectives:

I need a truck to transport onions. ("to transport onions" modifies "truck")

I want a pen to write. ("to write" modifies "pen")

I need a dog to protect my house. ("to protect my house" modifies "dog"

Do you have an application to complete? ("to complete" modifies "application")

The infinitives or infinitive phrases used above are all adjectives. In the first example I shared, you might be thinking, "'but, to transport onions' is an adverb because it answers 'why?'" This would be an incorrect way of deglossing the sentence. What I need is a truck. Truck is a noun. What kind of truck? A truck to move onions. As opposed to a truck that transports engines, or a truck to show off in an autoshow, or any other truck. What you really want is a truck, but not any truck -- you want a truck that transports onions. "To tranport onions" is modifying "truck," making it an adjective.

The second infinitive demonstrates what kind of pen you want.

The third infinitive (phrase) tells what type of dog you need. Not a dog to sit on my lap, not a dog to brush, not a dog to breed, but a dog to protect my house.

The fourth infinitive states what kind of application. Not an application that's already complete, but an application to complete.

I hope this answers your question fully. If not, maybe I could be of further assistance.

Infinitive as adjective

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