The Infinitive Form

“What are you going to do for work?”
“I used to think I wanted to become a lawyer. But now, I’ve decided that I want to make art, to paint.”

The Infinitive Verb Form

Also known as the base-form of a verb, the infinitive form is the verb form you see in the dictionary: to run, to walk, to talk. The infinitive form of a verb is unconjugated, meaning it hasn’t changed to reflect a subject, or a time-related tense. 

Usually when people speak of the infinite form, they mean the present infinitive, the most common form. However, there are four other forms of the infinitive: the perfect infinitive, the perfect continuous infinitive, the continuous infinitive, and the passive infinitive. 

The Present Infinitive Has Two Forms:

The Negative Form of the Infinitive

To make an infinite verb into its negative form, add not before the infinite verb.

• My dad said not to eat before everyone’s ready.
• I’d prefer not to go to school today.
• You should not work, and instead hang out with me.
• We would prefer not to run all the way.
• She told us to not talk during school.

Inserting Adverbs

To insert an adverb and modify the infinitive form of a verb, place the adverb right before or right after the base verb. If using the to-infinitive, place the adverb between the to- and the base verb, or after the base verb.

• I am going to happily eat this pizza.
• She is going to run as quickly as she can.
• You would rather walk carefully than walk quickly.
• We must frequently change locations, so as not to get spotted.
• Are you going to mention again how we should progress?

Uses for the to-Infinitive

The to-infinitive, or the base-form of a verb with the word “to” preceding it, has the following uses:

1. After auxiliaries, as a sentence’s object or subject’s primary action

In this form, the to-infinitive action follows an auxiliary verb (wants to go, have to leave) but serves as a subject’s main action and the sentence’s object. 

• We have to go.
• He wants to work here.
• I need to eat.
• I do not plan to stay very long.
• You should listen to him.

2. To indicate an action’s purpose or reason

When the to-infinitive is not the subject’s primary action, but serves to modify and give the purpose for the action.

• We should work to live, not live to work.
• He eats to prepare for the long journey ahead.
• You exercise to improve your physical fitness.
• I made this poster to ask you to Homecoming.
• Our family gets together to celebrate Mom’s birthday.

3. To explain a noun’s function

In this case, the to-infinitive either directly follows or closely relates to a noun, showing the function of that noun.

• I need a soda to quench my thirst.
• You need a shirt to cover up so much skin.
• My kids need a friend to play with.
• Our basketball team needs a player to step up.
• My grandma needs a cane to help her walk.

4. To make a commentary or judgment about an action

In this case, the sentence starts with some form of to be, followed by an adjective, followed by the infinitive action.

Subject + to be form + adjective + to infinitive

5. To make a commentary or judgment, or explain the purpose of, a noun

In this case, the to-infinitive follows a noun phrase that includes an adjective that expresses judgment about the noun. Keep in mind that the noun phrase expresses the judgment, the to-infinitive just explains the function of that noun phrase.

The to-infinitive with amount-related adverbs 

The to-infinitive form frequently follows amount-denoting adverbs such as too much, too many, a sufficient amount, or enough. Used after these adverbs, the to-infinitive shows what these subjective amounts measure or quantify, what they are enough to do.

• I have enough cheese to make a pizza.
• My daughter has enough intelligence to beat our whole family in jeopardy.
• He has a sufficient amount of speed to win the race.
• There are too many people here, for us to enjoy ourselves. 
• This house is too small for you to play.
• There’s too much play and not enough work to make Jack a dull boy.
• To scrimmage requires many more people than we have.

The to-infinitive with question words

When using the relative pronouns who, what, where, when, why, and how, the to-infinitive frequently follows these question pronouns, both in question and statement form.

• Can you show me where to go?
• I don’t know when to talk in groups.
• Please show me how to hold chopsticks. 
• She never explained what artwork to frame.
• He never tells me why to run, just that I should.

Uses for the Zero Infinitive

The zero infinitive, known as the bare verb, is the base form of a verb that’s not preceded by the participle “to.” You can use it in the following ways:

1. After auxiliaries

Zero infinitive verbs often follow auxiliaries. Auxiliaries are verbs that set up primary verbs.

2. As a question, following why

Zero infinitive verbs often follow questions starting with why.

• If I want to marry you, why wait?
• Why not buy it?
• Why run when you can walk?
• Why try when you don’t see the point?
• Why should I play?

Following simple verbs that imply a further action: 

When simple verbs imply a further action, that action often involves a noun doing a zero infinitive verb. Simple verbs that imply further action include let, help, and make.

Perception verbs, such as hear, watch, see, feel, smell, observe, notice, and record, also imply a further action that typically takes the zero infinitive form. The phrase structure is the same as above.

The infinitive form is the basic form of any verb, but that doesn’t mean learning any verb form is basic – it’s challenging, because verbs modify so much. But if you keep reading and writing, and consulting guides like this one when you feel stuck, your verb usage will improve, and your writing will gain complexity and clarity. Keep on writing, and enjoy the process.