Try, love, start, hate, stop, etc. + ing/to

Question

Which of these sentences are correct and why? Are there any rules?

1) I tried to get a job.
2) I tried getting a job.

3) I'm trying to play football.
4) I'm trying playing football.

5) I'm trying to do my homework.
6) I'm trying doing my homework.

7) I tried to do my homework.
8) I tried doing my homework.

9) I often try to build a sentence.
10) I often try building a sentence.

And in generally, what's the difference for example between: I love being with you and I love to be with you.?
Are both correct? Others: I stopped smoking; I stopped to smoke. I started to work; I started working.

Thank you.
LS

Dimsumexpress · Accepted Answer

louiST1) I tried to get a job.

louiST3) I'm trying to play football.

louiST5) I'm trying to do my homework.

louiST7) I tried to do my homework.

louiST9) I often try to build a sentence. -- It sounds a little odd to me.

They are basically the same sentence. Try - usually is followed by infinitive. There aren't clean-cut rules when to use gerunds, likewise; infinitives. To make it worse, sometimes, both can be used, as in the case of "love"; i.e. I love to eat.
I love eating.

Anonymous · Answer

1), 2), 5), 7),  and 8) are correct.  3) is grammatically correct but doesn't make sense in real world speech if you're talking about American style football.  4) and 6) are awkward and would not be used:  the adjacent pairs of words with "ing" endings,  "trying playing" and "trying doing," just don't sound right.  9) and 10) are grammatically correct but are not realistic - you would never say such sentences in real world speech.

Dimsumexpress · Answer

Oh, I missed the last questions, sorry!

louiSTAnd in generally, what's the difference for example between: I love being with you and I love to be with you.?

Being- is a state. I love being with you. - expresses a state of enjoying the feeling of your you presence.
Sometimes the contexts decides which suits best. In the following sentence, "being" doesn't work, at least from the semantic level. I love to be with you (but I have to work late tonight to finish my project). The infinitive " to be" expresses a desire to fulfill ( if you will), rather than a "being". In a different context: I love being with you ( because you always make me feel laugh). I hope my explanation is good and clear enough to demonstrate the difference....
But in general: I love golfing and I love to golf both say pretty about the same thing.

louiSTAre both correct? Others: I stopped smoking, Not "to smoke"

I started to work; I started working. Both are correct.

Anonymous · Answer

"I love being with you." and "I love to be with you." are correct and mean essentially the same thing - the first sentence is more tender-sounding however.

"I stopped smoking." is correct - this means you stopped smoking cigarettes for health reasons. "I stopped to smoke." is correct - this means you stood still and smoked a cigarette,

"I started to work." is correct - this means that you started doing the things that are involved in the job at hand. "I started working." is correct. This can mean the same thing as "I started to work.", and it can also mean that you started in a new job after a period of unemployment.

Dimsumexpress · Answer

Anonymous"I stopped smoking." is correct - this means you stopped smoking cigarettes for health reasons. "I stopped to smoke." is correct - this means you stood still and smoked a cigarette,

I think the original question was about when to use gerund and when to use infinitive respectively ( If I understood it correctly) in the same context. I understand that "I stopped to smoke" is a grammatical structure, however it doesn't answer the intended question. Yes, you can say: I stopped (my car for a few minutes) to smoke ( a cigarette). But " I stopped to smoke" can not be compared to " I stopped smoking". Is that reasonable?

LouiST · Answer

Thank you all!!! Very nice and clear answers! :-)
I'm actually not sure what I exactly meant, lol. But now I'm almost an expert in this topic

Thanks!
LS

Try, love, start, hate, stop, etc. + ing/to

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