Infinitives | Chapter 20 | English Grammar | Benjamin Hathaway

1001 Questions and Answers on English Grammar by Benjamin Hathaway Infinitives 1. What is the rule for infinitives? Infinitives have the construction of nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. 2. Give five sentences containing infinitives used as nouns. 1. To err is human. 2. His aim is to excel. 3. Children love to play. 4. To break a promise is dishonorable. 5. I desire to hear her. 3. Give five sentences containing infinitives used as adjectives. 1. He had leave to go. 2. A structure soon to fall. 3. The army had orders to march. 4. Flee from the wrath to come. 5. Have a desire to improve. 4. Give five sentences containing infinitives used as adverb. 1. He went to see the show. 2. The gods are hard to reconcile. 3. I shall not stop to assist you. 4. The man waited to state his case. 5. We were anxious to see you. 5. When several infinitives come together, is the sign of each expressed? It is often omitted before all except the first, as he came to see, hear, and learn for himself. 6. Should another word ever become between the infinitive and its sign? Nothing should ever come between them, as he advised me not to go, rather than he advised me to not go. 7. Correct the following. I never cheated a man and I never intend to. Intend to do so. The sign to should never be used for the infinitive. How does the infinitive differ in its modification from other verbs? It lacks person and number. 9. How is an infinitive parsed? First, as a verb, and then its construction of some other part of speech is given. 10. Give the program for parsing an infinitive. 1. Name the verb. 2. Give its classes, regularity and transitivity. 3. Give principal parts. 4. Give voice, mode, and tense. 5. Name its construction. 6. Give two rules, one for construction and the other for relation or agreement. 11. Parse an infinitive subject of a verb. To do justice is acceptable. To do is a verb, irregular, transitive, active, infinitive, present. Construction of a noun in the subject with is acceptable. Rules. 12. Parse an infinitive in the predicate. My hope is to succeed. To succeed is a verb, regular, intransitive, active, infinitive, present. Construction of a noun in the predicate, after the verb is, referring to the same thing as its subject, hope, rule. 13. Parse an infinitive object of a verb. One must begin to love somewhere, and to do good somewhere. To love is a verb, etc. construction of a noun, object of must begin, rules. 14. Parse an infinitive object of a preposition. My friend is about to take his departure. To take is a verb, etc., construction of a noun, object of the preposition about, rule. Fifteen, parse an infinitive used as an adjective, have a desire to improve. To improve is a verb, etc., construction of an adjective, limiting desire, rules. Sixteen, parse an infinitive modifying a verb, I came not here to talk. To talk is a verb, etc., construction of an adverb, modifying came, rule. 17. Parse an infinitive, modifying an adjective. He is too lazy to study. To study is a verb, etc., construction of an adverb, modifying lazy, rules. 18. Parse an infinitive, modifying an adverb. She is old enough to go to school. To go is a verb, etc., construction of an adverb, modifying enough. rules nineteen parse an infinitive used as a noun in apposition this is my intention to practise economy to practise is a verb regular transitive active infinitive present construction of a noun in apposition with intention rules twenty are infinitives capable of being used as nouns in all cases in all except the possessive in the section twenty