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Surfer Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
verb to be? verb to have?
Why do we say the verb to be, and not just the verb be?
Thank you.
Thank you.
Top answer
To be is the full form (full infinitive) of the verb.
- To be is the full form (full infinitive) of the verb.
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5 Answers
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Many of us do not say that 'to be, to have', etc are infinitives.
We consider the verb-form alone to be the infinitive. It's quite common to speak of the bare infinitive ('be, have') and the to- infinitive ('to be, to have')
We consider the verb-form alone to be the infinitive. It's quite common to speak of the bare infinitive ('be, have') and the to- infinitive ('to be, to have')
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Say someone is standing at the door asking for your brother, you go to your brother and say:
-A man to see you.
Would that be correct? What about:
-A man is to see you?
Is there any difference between the two?
Thank you.
-A man to see you.
Would that be correct? What about:
-A man is to see you?
Is there any difference between the two?
Thank you.
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The first is casual, the second, in this context, unnatural.
The most natural would be, "There is a man to see you".
The most natural would be, "There is a man to see you".
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fivejedjonThe first is casual, the second, in this context, unnatural.The most natural would be, "There is a man to see you".About the full infinitive, I read:
"It can be used like an adjective or adverb, expressing purpose or intent."
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the full infinitive in "A man is to see you" is an adverb, right?
the full infi
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