GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

A gerund is a noun made from a verb by adding "-ing."

Example: smoking, swimming, learning, etc

Infinitives are the "to" form of the verb. The infinitive form of "learn" is "to learn."

Examples:

To learn is important. subject of sentence

The most important thing is to learn. complement of sentence

Gerunds can be made negative by adding "not." Example: Smoking is not good for your health.

Gerunds can be made negative by adding "not." Example: Smoking is not good for your health.

He enjoys not working.

The best thing for your health is not smoking.

Practice

Examples:

Learning is important. normal subject

To learn is important. abstract subject - less common

The most important thing is learning. normal complement

The most important thing is to learn. abstract complement - less common