Infinitive Phrase
A. What is an
infinitive?
*
An infinitive will almost always
begin with to followed by the simple form of the verb, like this:
to + verb =
infinitive
An infinitive is a verbal consisting
of the word to plus a verb (in its simplest "stem" form) and
functioning as a noun, adjective, or adverb. The term verbal indicates
that an infinitive, like the other two kinds of verbal, is based on a verb and
therefore expresses action or a state of being. However, the infinitive may
function as a subject, direct object, subject complement, adjective, or adverb
in a sentence. Although an infinitive is easy to locate because of the to
+ verb form, deciding what function it has in a sentence can sometimes be
confusing.
==> Important Note:
Because an infinitive is not a verb, you cannot add s, es, ed, or ing to the end. Ever!
- Noun
Examples:
- To sleep is the only thing Eli wants
after his double shift waiting tables at the neighborhood café.
- No matter how
fascinating the biology dissection is, Emanuel turns his head and refuses to look.
- To
succeed is not easy.
- To wait seemed foolish when
decisive action was required.
b.
Adjective
Examples:
-
Wherever Melissa goes, she always brings a book to read in case conversation lags or she has a long
wait.
-
Richard braved the icy rain to
throw the smelly squid eyeball stew into the apartment dumpster.
-
The quiet environment of the library encourages the
desire to study.
-
He
lacked the strength to resist.
c.
Adverb
Examples:
-
Students are wise
to work hard.
-
I come to study.
-
She wants to
write fast.
-
We
must study to
learn
==> Recognize an infinitive even when it is missing the to.
An infinitive will almost always begin with to.
Exceptions do occur, however. An infinitive will lose its to when it follows certain verbs. These verbs are feel, hear, help, let, make, see, and watch.
The pattern looks like this:
Special verb +
direct object + infinitive - to
Examples:
- As soon as Theodore felt the rain splatter
on his hot, dusty skin, he knew that he had a good excuse to return the lawn
mower to the garage.
- When Danny heard the alarm clock buzz, he slapped the snooze button
and burrowed under the covers for ten more minutes of sleep.
- Although Dr. Ribley spent an extra class period helping us understand logarithms, we still bombed the test.
- Because Freddie had never touched a snake, I removed the cover of the
cage and let him pet Squeeze,
my seven-foot python.
- Since Jose had destroyed Sylvia's spotless kitchen while baking
chocolate-broccoli muffins, she made him take her out for an expensive dinner.
- I said a prayer when I saw my friends mount the
Kumba, a frightening roller coaster that twists and rolls like a giant sea
serpent.
- Hoping to lose her fear of flying, Rachel went to the airport to watch
passenger planes take off and land, but even this exercise did not convince her that jets were
safe.
B. What is an
infinitive phrase?
*
An infinitive phrase consists of an
infinitive — the root of the verb proceeded by to — and any modifiers or
complements associated with it.
a.
Noun
Examples:
-
To finish her
shift without spilling another pizza into a customer's lap is Michelle's
only goal tonight.
-
To work at
nights was just impossible for him, since he grew tired by 10 PM.
-
To watch Uncle Billy tell
this story is an eye-opening experience.
-
To know her is to love her.
- Adjective
Examples:
-
The best way to
survive Dr. Peterson's boring history lectures is a sharp pencil to stab in
your thigh if you catch yourself drifting off.
-
The lecturer used as jokes to fit his topic in order to keep his class awake.
-
Janice and her friends went to the mall to flirt with the cute guys who congregate
at the food court.
-
Her plan to subsidize
child care won wide acceptance among urban politicians.
- Adverb
Examples:
-
Kelvin, an aspiring comic book artist, is taking
Anatomy and Physiology this semester to
understand the interplay of muscle and bone in the human body.
-
To avoid burning
another bag of popcorn, Brendan pressed his nose against the microwave
door, sniffing suspiciously with every breath.
-
The professor spoke at length to instruct his class about the evils of capitalism.
-
Juan went to college to
study veterinary medicine. [tells us why he went, so it's an
adverb]
è
Remember how to use punctuation in infinitive phrase
Infinitive phrase +, + main clause.
Start of main clause +, + interrupter (appositive)+, +
end of main clause.
-
Those basketball shoes, to be perfectly
honest, do not complement the suit you are planning to wear to the
interview. (infinitive phrase as appositive.
Main Clause + Ø + infinitive phrase.
* Points to remember
- An infinitive is a verbal consisting of the word to plus a verb; it may be used as a noun, adjective, or adverb.
- An infinitive phrase consists of an infinitive plus modifier(s), object(s), complement(s), and/or actor(s).
- An infinitive phrase requires a comma only if it is used as an adverb at the beginning of a sentence.
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