Gerund oder Infinitive: Häufige Fehler vermeiden

Unsicher bei der Verwendung von Verben mit Gerunds oder Infinitives? Hier ein kurzer Überblick mit Beispielen, die ich oft korrigiere.

Some verbs in English can be followed by either the -ing form (gerund) or the to + infinitive. The tricky part is that with some verbs (for example love) the meaning stays the same whether you use a gerund or the infinitive. With other verbs (see below), the meaning changes depending on whether you use a gerund or the infinitive. And then there are verbs which can only be used with a gerund or with an infinitive form.

Some verbs that change their meaning depending on whether you use an infinitive or a gerund.

• Remember

  • I remembered to go to the store. (I did it.)

  • I remember going to the store. (I have the memory of it.)

• Stop

  • She stopped to look at the view. (She paused in order to look at the view.)

  • She stopped looking at the view. (She didn’t look at the view anymore.)

• Try

  • He tried to eat it. (He made an attempt but couldn’t manage it.)

  • He tried eating it. (He experimented to see if he liked it.)

Common learner mistakes: Using the wrong verb form

• ❌ Wrong: I enjoy to swim 

  ✅ Right: I enjoy swimming.

• ❌ Wrong: Alice learned riding a bike. ✅ Right: Alice learned to ride a bike.

Wenn Sie Ihre englischen Texte auf typische Fehler wie diese überprüfen lassen möchten, stehe ich Ihnen gerne zur Verfügung!