16.8 The to-infinitive or the '-ing' form?16.8C
Study:
изVerb + to- or '-ing': different meanings: 'remember to post/posting'
[> LEG 16.59]The to-infinitive and -ing never mean the same when used after these verbs:
remember, forget, regret, try, stop, go on.To refers to the present or future and -ing refers to the past in:
Remember to post my letter. I remember posting your letter.
You mustn't forget to ask. Ha ve you forgotten meeting me years ago?
I regret to say I feel ill. I regret saying what I said.
We can also refer to the 'future seen from the past': I remembered to post your letter.2 Try to (= make an effort):
Try + -ing (= experiment):3 Stop to (= infinitive of purpose [> 16.2C]):
Stop + -ing [> 16.6]:4 Go on + to (= do something different):
Go on + -ing (= continue [> 16.7D3]):Try to understand.
Try holding your breath for more a minute.We stopped to buy a paper.
Stop shouting.We went on to discuss finance.
Go on talking.Write: Supply the correct forms (to-infinitive or -ing) of the verbs in brackets.1a I remember Paris when I was very young, (visit)
1b Please remember the door on your way out. (lock)
1c Did you remember Jim last night? (phone)
2a I shall never forget taken to see the Moscow State Circus, (be)
2b Don't forget how many are coming on Saturday, (find out)
2c I forgot to the chemist's on my way home, (go)
3a We all tried him, but he just wouldn't listen to any of us. (stop)
3b If you want to stop coughing, why don't you try some water? (drink)
4a She got annoyed because her husband stopped in every shop window, (look)
4b Just stop and listen for a moment, (talk)
5a If we hadn't turned the music off they'd have gone on till morning, (dance)
5b She got a degree in Physics and then went on a course in Applied Maths, (take)
6a I regret you that there's been an accident, (tell)
6b He regretted in the same job for so long, (stay)16.8D Context
Write: Put in the correct forms.Letterbox Finger
SNAP!
Postmen have stopped (delivei) letters to the new houses in our
area. They object to the letterboxes on the front doors. They hate (push)(^2) letters through them, because the letterboxes snap shut. If you
try (push)^3 a letter through, you can't get your fingers out! You try
(push)^4 a letter into one of these boxes and see what happens!
You quickly regret (have)^5 tried! They have been designed to stop
burglars (open)^6 your front door from the outside, but postmen
dread (use)^1 them as well. The painful condition known as
Letterbox Finger is just as bad as Housemaid's Knee or Tennis Elbow!