The non-personal forms of the verb in the English language are one of the extensive topics, a detailed examination of which will take time.
General information
Non finite verb forms have a number of features:
- They mean an action, without indicating a person or number. For this reason, they cannot be in the role of a predicate.
- Combine the characteristic features of the verb and any other parts of speech.
- If time is expressed, then only in relation to a certain moment of action conveyed by the main verb. Personal forms, by contrast, can express time in relation to the moment of speech.
Infinitive
One of the subspecies that includes non - personal verb forms in the English language is the infinitive. It expresses only action, without conveying a person or number. Answers the question: "What to do?"
Infinitive education
| Types of Infinitive | Education example |
| Plain | She likes to write articles.
She likes to write articles. |
| Continued (continuous inf.) | She must be writing sometning.
She must be writing something. |
| Perfect or perfect | She is happy to have written the book.
She is happy that she wrote a book. |
| Perfect continuous | She must have been writing that article since 5 o'clock.
She must have been writing this article since five o'clock. |
| Simple inf. in passive voice | This message seems to be written in pencil.
This message seems to be written in pencil. |
| Continued inf. in passive voice | That article must have been written by now.
That article must have been written by now. |
Gerund
In Russian there is no analogue of this form. Gerund expresses the name of the process or action and, due to its dual nature, combines the verb features and functions of the noun. Formed by adding the -ing suffix. It coincides in form with the participle of the present tense (Participle 1).
- She was tired of rowing . - She's tired of rowing.
- Reading is her favorite amusement. - Reading is her favorite pastime.
- I have no objection to your seeing her. “I do not mind you seeing her.”
- I want to make a good progress in understanding Spanish. - I want to achieve good results in understanding the Spanish language.
Participle
Despite the fact that the participle has a similar lexical meaning with the corresponding verb, it differs significantly from the personal form, as well as from the infinitive or gerund. The English Participle form in Russian corresponds to the sacrament and participle.
The formation of the participles is as follows:
| Communion 1 (Present) | Communion 2 (Past) |
| Regular verbs | Adding the -ing suffix to the base | The -ed ending is added to the word base. |
| Irregular Verbs | As with regular verbs | The third column in the irregular verbs table |
Like other non-personal verb forms in English, Participle includes the properties of the verb and other parts of speech.
The participle may possess the characteristics of an adjective and fulfill 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, possessing the characteristics of an adverb, circumstances can act as:
- She stayed at the window thinking . - She stood at the window, lost in thought.
Features of the combination of various verbs with non-personal forms
In addition to the rules of education and the use of various forms, there is another important aspect, which includes the grammar of the English language. Non-personal forms, such as the infinitive and gerund, have some peculiarities of combination with verbs. A certain group of words can only be combined with the infinitive, while the other with gerund.
Lexical units, after which only gerund is applied:
- admit - recognize, confess, admit, allow;
- adore - to adore, adore;
- avoid - avoid, dodge, keep clear;
- can't stand
- delay - delay, slow down;
- deny - refuse, deny, deny;
- discuss - discuss, discuss;
- escape - to run away, to escape;
- fancy - to imagine, to like, to love;
- finish - finish, finish to the end;
- imagine - imagine, imagine;
- involve - embrace, engage;
- mention - refer, mention;
- postpone - give a respite;
- practice - apply, practice;
- quit - to leave, to stop;
- recall - recall, reproduce in memory;
- resent - to be indignant, to express indignation;
- resist - to counteract;
- risk - take risks, dare;
- understand - comprehend.
Words after which only the infinitive is used:
- afford - to be able to;
- allow - allow (overlooked something), allow, recognize;
- agree - agree, comply;
- aim - set as your goal, strive;
- arrange - organize, classify;
- attempt - make an attempt;
- ask - inquire, ask;
- decide - to set out, make a decision;
- deserve - to be worthy, to deserve;
- expect - anticipate, plan, expect;
- fail - not have success, not live up to expectations;
- guarantee - give a guarantee, vouch;
- hope - express hope, anticipate;
- learn - learn, discover;
- manage - bring, deal with;
- offer - offer;
- prepare - prepare, prepare;
- pretend - pretend to play;
- promise - make a promise, undertake;
- refuse - reject; refuse;
- tend - to be used;
- threaten - threaten, portend (in a negative sense);
- undertake - accept responsibility.
Non-personal forms of the verb in English is a topic that includes many nuances and requires a detailed consideration and consolidation of theoretical material in practice.