Ing and to

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Hi there I want to ask a question.Do the following sentences have the same meaning?Cos I use V-ing instead of to Verb .Could somebody explain me more on this ?Thanks."He feels uncomfortable using this system.He feels uncomfortable to use this system. "

Philip · Accepted Answer

In this case, only -ing sounds natural.

Goodman · Answer

In grammatical terms

to Verb = Bare.infinitive
V-ing = Prepsent participle / gerund, depending on its placment in a sentence

What looks grammatically correct does not mean it is semantically sound, as it the case of the 2nd sentence.
That said, there are scenarios where present participle and bare infinitive can both be possible

i.e.1 He loves to travel - Bare Infinitive
2 He love traveling - Gerund (traveling becomes a noun)
3 John is a truck driver traveling hundreds of miles everyday. - Traveling in this case is a present participle
offering additional information to the main sentence.

Or, from another angle, we can view the green part as a participle clause modifying the main sentence (John is a truck driver). But the v+ing form in this function has a adverbial property.

Hope this can help!

CalifJim · Answer

untoldpainCould somebody explain me more on about this ?

You have to learn by memory which adjectives are followed by the -ing form and which are followed by the to form.

... uncomfortable using ...
... comfortable using ...

... reluctant to use ...
... eager to use ...

And so on.

CJ

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