Impersonal forms of the English verb. Infinitive in English

• Verb forms: personal and impersonal
• Rules for use and use in speech
• Examples of sentences with personal and non-personal forms of the verb

Verbs are the main part of speech, without which it is impossible to build a sentence on English language. In English, there are personal and impersonal forms of verbs.

Personal forms of the verb are used in a sentence as a predicate that reflects the person, number, tense (present, past, future), voice (active or passive), mood and form.

I worked hard yesterday.

the past tense can be determined by the form of the verb

They were asked a lot of questions.

the form of the verb can be determined plural, past tense and passive voice

Non-personal forms verbs are not used as a predicate and do not express the categories of person, number, tense and mood. These verbs can be part of the predicate. Impersonal verb forms in English include the infinitive, gerund, and participle.

I must not discuss it with him.

(infinitive without to after modal verb‘must’)

I shouldn't discuss this with him.

I write - You write - She writes

• number(singular/plural)

will/shall- for the future

tobe– for a passive or prolonged

tohave- for the perfect

Service and semantic verbs form grammatical units as lexical wholes.

I have asked - I asked

Impersonal

Impersonal forms - 3 (infinitive, gerund, participle). Impersonal - these are verbal derivatives in the role of other parts of speech.

Infinitive– verbal adjective / adverb / noun of the type “ to+ verb stem.

Gerund- verbal noun with ending — ing.

Participle- verbal adjective with endings - ed/en/ing.

Grammar categories

Unlike personal forms, impersonal ones do not change in person/number and have similar grammatical features. They have aspect, voice and aspect (only for the infinitive).

Perfect impersonal forms express activity before another activity.

I'm glad to have helped you - Gladwashelpyou

Passive impersonal forms express activity over the subject.

I wanted to be asked that question - Iwanted, tothatquestionaskedto me

The continuous infinitive expresses activity in progress.

I like to be reading this story nowLikereadthisstorynow

Confusion

Impersonal forms can define and even be subject, but do not act as its verbs. Sometimes they are vainly substituted for verbs.

The main difference between impersonal forms and nouns/adjectives is that the former can take their own object.

building a houseis complicated – Constructionat home- a businesstroublesome

With impersonal forms there are 2 difficulties. Resembling verbs, they sometimes force you to write unfinished sentences. The second difficulty is the very subtle difference. Despite the same ending, the gerund and the present participle are different parts of speech with different approaches.

The impersonal forms of the verb (infinitive, gerund, participle) got this name because they do not have the categories of person, number, voice and cannot perform the function of a simple verbal predicate in a sentence. They all have common verbal properties, but perform different syntactic functions in a sentence, as they also have qualities typical of other parts of speech.

1) Infinitive (Infinitive)

The infinitive is a non-personal form of the verb that only names the action, not indicating persons or numbers. The infinitive answers the question what to do? what to do? For example: to buy - buy, to sell - sell. The infinitive in a sentence is used without the particle “to” if a modal verb is not used before it.

The infinitive in a sentence can serve as:

1. Subject:

To work much is difficult. Work a lot is hard.

To travel is pleasant. Travel- Nice.

2. The nominal part of the predicate:

My service was To deliver the goods. My duty was Deliver Products.

Their duty was To pass exams well. Their duty was Hand over exams are good.

3. Part of the compound predicate:

We wanted to sell the computers. We wanted Sell computers.

The manager decided To conduct talks. The manager decided Spend negotiation.

4. Supplement:

I asked him to finish the work. I asked him finish work.

The director told me To pay in advance. The director ordered me to pay in advance.

5. Definition:

It is the problem To be solved at once. Here's the problem you need immediately Decide.

I was the first to come. I Came first.

6. circumstance:

They developed a new model To get profit. They developed a new model to Get profit.

David went to the office to talk with the director. David went to the office to talk with the director.

Exercise 1. Determine the function of the infinitive in these sentences:

1. We want to increase our market share.

2. Grove offered to promote these products.

3. The secretary called Stella lorens to confirm the order.

4. His responsibility was to maintain business relations.

5. To succeed is difficult.

6. I had a problem to solve.

7. Rand asked the manager to help.

8. They advertised the goods to impress public.

9. To win is terrific.

10. He came to stay.

The infinitive has tense and voice forms:

To be developing
To have translated	To have been translated
Perfect Continuous To have been playing

2) Gerund (Gerund)

The gerund is an impersonal verb form that has both the properties of a noun and the properties of a verb. The form of the gerund coincides with the participle I: Reading; Selling; Making.

The gerund can serve in a sentence:

1. Subject:

2. The nominal part of the compound predicate:

3. Part of the compound verb predicate:

4. Definition:

5. Direct addition:

6. Prepositional indirect object:

7. circumstance:

An exercise. Determine the function of the gerund in these sentences:

1. Linda Lawson is proud of Running the company.

2. The main task is Satisfying consumers' needs.

3. Making plans is necessary in every business.

4. He is afraid of Running risks.

5. Printer is an instrument for Typing papers.

6. Our director likes Subscribing scientific journals.

7. We solved the problem by Writing the letter.

8. Arranging meetings is Sally's duty.

9. They are interested in Registration the company.

10. Rebecca continued Discussing the matter.

The gerund is often used after prepositions: after; before; instead of; for; of; by, etc., as well as verbs followed by prepositions: Be fond of; be tired of; think of And others.

Like the infinitive, the gerund is most often used in the complement function after the verb-predicate. It should be remembered after which verbs the gerund is used, and after which - the infinitive.

The infinitive is used after the following verbs:	The gerund is used after the following verbs:
Want - want	Enjoy - enjoy
Decide - decide	Continue - continue
Refuse - refuse (sya)	Be fond of - like
agree - agree	Be tired of - get tired
	Be afraid of– be afraid
Promise - to promise	Suggest - offer
Like * - love	Like* - love
Dislike * - do not like	Dislike * - do not like
Hate* - to hate	Hate* - to hate
Begin* - start	Begin* - start
Finish* - finish	Finish* - finish
Intend - to intend	Be good at - good luck
Plan - plan	Start - start
Try - try	Stop - finish
Would like - would like	Be interested in - be interested
Offer - offer	Be scared of - be afraid
Propose - offer	Be engaged of - to be busy
Forget - forget	Be busy - be busy
Manage - succeed	Be proud of - be proud
	Think of - think

If the sign * is used after the verb, then both the gerund and the infinitive can be used after this verb.

For example: The manager Likes meeting business partners.

The manager Likes To meet business partners.

For additional training in impersonal forms of the verb (gerund and infinitive), the following exercise is recommended: compiling a story about the company.

Exercise: match the verbs given in the left column with the verbs in the right column, using the latter as a gerund or infinitive:

For example:

Company “Simpson and Mason”

	Employ 10 clerks
Be interested in
	Produce new models

“Simpson and Mason” want to employ 10 clerks. They are afraid of losing money. They suggest producing new models. They try to raise profit. “Simpson and Mason” are interested in exporting goods.

Be interested in
	Participate in business meetings

	Control business
	Innovate production
	support goodwill
	Come to an agreement

	Take a bank loan
	Increase spending
	Render technical aid
	Perform functions well

	Elaborate electronic program
	Take a bank loan
	Produce low-quality production

	Tackle problems quickly
	Consult partners
	Satisfy customers' needs

Exercise 1. Open the brackets using the gerund or infinitive in the following sentences:

For example: The company intends (to cut down, cutting down) prices immediately.

Since the infinitive is used after the verb “intend”, the correct form of this sentence is: The company intends to cut down prices immediately.

1. They promised (to buy, buying) new equipment.

2. The director decided (to employ, employing) 5 clerks.

3. He is good at (to negotiate, negotiating).

4. This company is interested in (to attract, attracting) new customers.

5. We want (to place, placing) the advertisement in many papers.

6. Are you fond of (to develop, developing) new types of goods?

7. I hate (to pay, paying) taxes.

8. Jack Wilson offered (to include, including) this data into our program.

9. Would you like (to sell, sell) shares?

10. We prefer (to inform, informing) our clients.

An exercise 2. Fill in Passes AT Dialogue Next Verbs: To call, to discuss, to negotiate, to talk to, to continue, to develop Putting Them AT shape infinitive Or Gerund:

Hello. Can I speak with the General Manager? I would like … some problems with him.

Just a moment.

General Manager is on the line.

good morning. This is Larry Baker, the manager of the company “TSE Enterprise”. I tried … to you last week but you were in New York.

Good morning, Mr. Baker. How are you?

I’m O. K. It’s been a very successful year for our company and we increased profit and we intend … collaboration with your firm. We're interested in ….

Great. Do you want … any problems?

Certainly. I would like to see you about … new models.

well. When can we meet?

I think it will be convenient to meet next Monday at 3 p. m. in our office. Can you come?

OK. Thank you for … . We'll talk next week.

fine. Bye for now.

Exercise 3. Translate the following sentences from Russian into English using a gerund or an infinitive:

1. George promised to call after 6 pm.

2. The director refused to sign the documents.

3. They continued to discuss this issue for 2 hours.

4. Robert is interested in studying supply and demand.

5. The secretary forgot to tell you this news.

6. We managed to get a discount for this type of goods.

7. Mr. Davidson offered to buy a batch of computers.

8. Would you like to speak with the General Manager?

9. The students agreed to meet in the evening.

10. She is busy translating documents.

3 ) Participle (Participle)

A participle is an impersonal form of a verb that has the properties of a verb, adjective, or adverb.

The participle often serves as a definition for a noun, since it has the properties of an adjective (answers the question which one?).

For example: I delivered the goods Produced in this company.

I delivered the goods Produced in this company.

The Signed documents are on the desk.

Signed The documents are on the desk.

Since the participle can also have the properties of an adverb, in a sentence it can be a circumstance: answers the question What do you do?

We were talking long Discussing future plans.

We talked for a long time Discussing future plans.

He was preparing for the exam Typing Texts on the computer.

He was preparing for the exam Printing texts on the computer.

The participle has both active and passive forms:

PARTICIPLE FORMS

		Having been asked

Participle I – ParticipleI or present Participle(real participle) is formed by adding the ending – Ing to the verb in the infinitive form.

To buy - buy Ing; buy - buying.

For example: I looked at the directory Making the contract. I looked at the director Component Contract.

Past Participle – past participle or ParticipleII formed in the same way as Past Simple - by adding an ending – Ed to the verb stem (for regular verbs) and 3 forms verbs according to the table (for irregular verbs).

For example: order - order Ed(order - ordered). The ordered goods are in the warehouse.

write- Written(write - written). The Written Letter will be posted tomorrow.

Exercise 1. Open the brackets using the participleIor communionIIin the following sentences:

For example: We bought goods at ( Reduced; reducing) prices.

Reduced means reduced, abbreviated.

Reducing means reducing, reducing.

In the phrase reduced prices, the participle “reduced” is used in the form Participle II (past participle), i.e. it has the translation “reduced”, i.e. this phrase is translated as reduced prices. And the whole sentence is translated as follows - We bought goods at reduced prices.

1. All the (supplied; supplying) equipment is of high quality.

2. The (enclosed; enclosing) catalog includes all prices.

3. I was listening to the company director (talked; talking) about the contract terms.

4. I often met John (sold; selling) newspapers and magazines.

5. The article about problems of demand and supply (published; publishing) in “Daily Mirror” was very interesting.

6. I think the information (received; receiving) by you last week was wrong.

7. I saw Mary (made; making) a phone call.

8. We were sitting in the hall (waited; waiting) for the Managing Director.

9. Rusty Alexander signed the papers (brought; bringing) by the secretary.

10. He corrected the mistake (found; finding) by me.

Exercise 2. Fill in the gaps in these sentences with one of the participles below:

1. The students were talking … exams.

C) having discussed

2. We received a new … edition of the book.

C) having upgraded

3. Dorothy was reading a book … by her.

C) having bought

4. The director ordered computers ... by “Song”.

C) having produced

5. Everybody is pleased with the firm … this equipment.

C) having provided

6. The new models of TV sets … by this engineer are very popular.

C) having designed

7. The Chief Researcher was working much … that problem.

B) investigating

C) having investigated

8. You shouldn't buy goods ... in that company. Some of them are faulty.

9. I liked all the cosmetics … in the catalog.

C) having described

10. Stella translated all the texts … texts on economics.

C) included

Exercise 3. Translate these sentences from Russian into English using non-finite forms of the verb: gerund, infinitive, participle Iand communionII.

1. John Ray decided to provide a discount for this type of service.

2. He is tired of waiting for a decision.

3. The manager promised to deliver the goods on time.

4. The result of the business operation was satisfactory.

5. Managers argued over payment terms.

6. Tony Davis suggested compiling a product catalog.

7. Did you agree to help the chief engineer?

8. The director of this company is afraid to take risks.

9. We released this model to make a profit.

IV. Modal verbs (Modal verbs).

Modal verbs do not express action, but express their attitude to action: possibility, probability ( Can, Could, May), need( Must, have To) taking action. The action itself expresses the infinitive of the verb.

Modal verbs combined with an indefinite infinitive ( Indefinite Infinitive) expresses the possibility or necessity of performing an action in the present and future. The moment of this action is not precisely defined.

For example: He May come any moment. - He Maybe come at any moment.

You Must learn this subject well. - You Must learn this subject well.

Modal verbs with a continued infinitive express the likelihood or necessity of performing an action at the present moment; consist of a modal verb, the infinitive of the verb “ To Be” without particle “ To" and CommunionsI.

For example: The director Must Be Talking with the Chief accountant now. - Must be, director now talking with the chief accountant. They May Be Analyzing the problem now. - Maybe, they are now Analyze this problem.

In the interrogative form, the modal verb is used before the subject:

For example: Must the director be talking with the chief accountant?

May they be analyzing the problem now?

Modal verbs with a perfect infinitive mean that the action has already been completed. Such constructions consist of a modal verb, auxiliary verb have (Has) and CommunionsII.

The company Must have conducted the market research. - Must To be company Spent market research.

Jason could have already Gathered The necessary information – Jason could already Collect necessary information.

In interrogative form, the modal verb is used before the subject.

Could Jason have already gathered the necessary information?

Exercise 1. Open the brackets by using the desired modal verb with the infinitive:

For example: They are very busy now. They ( must discuss; must be discussing; must have discussed) the payment terms.

The 1st sentence is translated as follows - They are very busy now. In this offer there is a link to the present moment ( Now), i.e. in the next phrase you need to use Must with continued infinitive ( continuous Infinitive): They Must Be Discussing the payment terms. - Must be, they Discuss terms of payment.

1. The Managing Director (can sign; can be signing; can have signed) the documents at this moment. He is working in his office.

2. This company has increased profit 3 times this year. They (must develop; must be developing; must have developed) new models of goods.

3. Lisa (may go; may be going; may have gone) to America. Her sister will work in New York.

4. My friends (can buy; can be buying; could have bought) a new car. They are going to the sea-side tomorrow.

5. The supplier (must provide; must be providing; must have provided) us with all the necessary things.

6. The “Success” (can improve; can be improving; can have improved) the quality of their cosmetics. Everybody likes it.

7. I think you (should reduce; should be reduced; should have reduced) prices. Your goods are too expensive.

8. The manager (must meet; must be meeting; must have met) the foreign partners. All the delegates are in the conference hall.

9. I suppose Robert (may spend; may be spending; may have spent) much money. He will go to Rome next week.

10. We (must test; must be testing; must have tested) the device before we start producing it.

Exercise 2. Translate these sentences from Russian into English:

1. Prices may go down next month.

2. They must have already booked a hotel room.

3. The accountant must prepare a report.

4. Maybe Sam is saving money. He wants to buy a car.

5. We should study supply and demand.

6. David can solve this problem. She's not complicated.

7. The director must have extended the delivery time of the cargo. We will receive the goods in 2 weeks.

8. I think the director can sign a contract with your company. We have solved all problems.

9. The president must have already arrived. I saw his car.

10. This company can provide a discount. I will ask them.

Exercise 3. Correct the errors in the following sentences:

For example: Linda should to come soon. – Particle “ To” is not used after the modal verb “ should". This sentence should be written like this: Linda should come soon.

1. Ray may negotiating with the Swedish company now.

2. The secretary may be make a phone call soon.

3. The economist may have already arrived.

4. You shouldn't forget this information.

5. Ben may listening to the president's speech now.

6. This company must rejected our proposal.

7. The joint venture may issue a lot of shares now.

8. We must distribute the duties among the clerks.

9. The director should appoint the date of the meeting.

10. They must have sell the goods.

In English, as in Russian, the verb denotes an action or a state perceived as an action.

The main function of the verb in the sentence is the function of the predicate:

Doesn't work at a factory.
Didn't sleep for 2 hours.

All verbs have personal and impersonal forms. Personal forms express mood, tense, pledge, and in a few cases - person and number. The personal forms of the verb appear in the sentence only as a predicate.

Doesn't go to college every day.

Impersonal forms of the verb differ from personal ones in that they do not express persons, numbers, moods and do not have the usual verb forms of tense. They cannot be predicated in a sentence. Impersonal forms include infinitive, gerund, participle.

Non-personal forms have both verbal and nominal features, combining the properties of both a verb and a noun (gerund and infinitive), as well as a verb and an adjective (participle).

The main forms of the English verb are: infinitive (to go) past indefinite tense (Past Indefinite) (went), second participle (II) (gone), first participle (I) (going).

The infinitive and participle forms take part in the formation of various complex verb forms (with auxiliary verbs).

According to the method of formation of the forms of the past indefinite tense and participle II, all verbs are divided into regular and irregular. verbs belongs to regular verbs.

Regular verbs form the past indefinite tense and participle II by adding a suffix -ed to the stem of the verb:

to work - worked - worked,
to stay - stayed - stayed.

Irregular verbs form the past indefinite tense and participle II in special ways.

The number of irregular verbs is small, but they include the most common verbs. Irregular verbs are recommended to be memorized in 3 main forms (see the table of irregular verbs, Appendix II).

The infinitive has a formal indicator - a particle "to", which has no independent meaning and does not take stress.

The infinitive corresponds in Russian to the indefinite form of the verb, which answers the question "what to do?":

to go, to see, to sit, to eat.

The circumstance of the goal is often expressed in the infinitive and is translated into Russian in an indefinite personal form with the union “to”, “in order to”.

I come here to study English.

I come here to study English.

Participle I and gerund are formed in the same way, by adding the suffix - ing to the stem of the verb:

to speak - speaking,
to play - playing.

Consider the spelling rules:

1. If the stem of the verb ends in one consonant letter preceded by a short stressed vowel, then the consonant letter before the suffix -ing doubles:

to stop - stopping, to cut - cutting.

2. If the stem of the verb ends in "l", then the letter "one" doubles regardless of accent:

to travel - travelling.

3. If the stem of the verb ends in "mute" "e" with a preceding consonant, then when adding a suffix -ing final "e" discarded:

to drive - driving,
HO: to see - seeing.

4. If the stem of the verb ends in -ie, then -ie changes to -y before the suffix:

to lie - lying,
to tie - tying.

5: When adding a suffix -ing for verbs ending in "at", it does not change:

to play - playing,
to study - studying.

Despite the outwardly identical form, the functions of the sacrament I and the gerund in the English sentence are different.

Gerund performs the same functions in a sentence as nouns. So, for example, a gerund can serve in a sentence:

1) subject to:
Reading is my favorite pastime.

2) the nominal part of the compound predicate:
Her greatest pleasure is reading.

3) addition:
I remember reading it. I'm fond of reading.

Gerund can be combined with prepositions of, after, before, on:
I think of going to the South.
He insists on coming here.

The constructions in which the gerund is used include: to be fond of, to be proud of, to feel like, to be late for, what about, to depend on, to insist on, to enjoy, to begin, to finish, to stop, to like and etc.

Impersonal forms of the verb in English is one of the vast topics, the detailed consideration of which will take time.

General information

• She was tired of rowing. She is tired of rowing.
• Reading is her favorite amusement. - Reading is her favorite pastime.
• I have no objection to you seeing her. "I don't mind if you see her."
• I want to make a good progress in understanding Spanish. - I want to achieve good results in understanding the Spanish language.

Participle

Although the participle has a similar lexical meaning to the corresponding verb, it differs significantly from the personal form, as well as from the infinitive or gerund. English form Participle in Russian corresponds to participle and participle.

Participles are formed in the following way:

Like other non-finite forms of the verb in English, Participle includes the properties of the verb and other parts of speech.

The participle can have the characteristics of an adjective and play the role of a definition in a sentence:

• She saw a broken plate on the table. She saw a broken plate on the table.
• He is owner of a leading company. - He is the owner of a leading company.

Also, having the characteristics of an adverb, it can act as a circumstance:

• She stayed at the window thinking. She stood at the window thinking.

Features of combining various verbs with impersonal forms

In addition to the rules for the formation and use of various forms, there is another important aspect, which includes the grammar of the English language. Non-finite forms, such as the infinitive and gerund, have some features of combining with verbs. A certain group of words can only be combined with an infinitive, while another group can only be combined with a gerund.

Lexical units followed by only gerunds:

• admit - recognize, confess, admit, allow;
• adore - worship, adore;
• avoid - avoid, evade, shun;
• can "t stand - do not endure,
• delay - delay, slow down;
• deny - refuse, reject, deny;
• discuss - discuss, discuss;
• escape - run away, escape;
• fancy - imagine, like, love;
• finish - complete, bring to an end;
• imagine - imagine mentally, imagine;
• involve - cover, involve;
• mention - refer, mention;
• postpone - give a delay;
• practice - apply, practice;
• quit - leave, stop;
• recall - recall, reproduce in memory;
• resent - to be indignant, express indignation;
• resist - resist;
• risk - take a risk, dare;
• understand - comprehend.

Words followed by the infinitive only:

• afford - to be able to;
• allow - allow (something through an oversight), allow, admit;
• agree - agree, comply;
• aim - set as your goal, strive;
• arrange - arrange, classify;
• attempt - make an attempt;
• ask - inquire, ask;
• decide - intend, make a decision;
• deserve - to be worthy, to deserve;
• expect - anticipate, plan, expect;
• fail - not to be successful, not to justify hopes;
• guarantee - give a guarantee, guarantee;
• hope - express hope, anticipate;
• learn - to study, discover;
• manage - to be brought, to cope with;
• offer - offer;
• prepare - prepare, prepare;
• pretend - pretend to play;
• promise - make a promise, commit;
• refuse - reject, refuse;
• tend - to have a habit;
• threaten - threaten, portend (in a negative sense);
• undertake - to accept responsibility.

Impersonal forms of the verb in English is a topic that includes many nuances and requires detailed consideration and consolidation of theoretical material in practice.