1. The Non-finite forms of the verb.

General characteristics
Non-finite forms of the verb usually denote a secondary action or a
process related to the one expressed by a finite verb.
 Fiona decided to leave on Monday. (‘decided’ – primary action; ‘to
leave’ – secondary action)
The verbals have a double nature: nominal and verbal
participle I and II = verb + adjective
 I saw a smiling girl in the window.
gerund / infinitive = verb + noun
 Learning foreign languages is hard work.
The verbals do not express person, number or mood.
The verbals have the following distinctions /categories:
a) aspect (Indefinite (Common/ Simple) or Continuous) Helen may
come tomorrow.
b) correlation (Non-Perfect or Perfect) Tom seems to enjoy his new
job.
c) voice (Active or Passive)
The verbals seldom function as predicates but are often used as part
of predicates, e.g.
 You might have encouraged the kid before the exam.
(compound verbal modal predicate with infinitive)
 Jim was painting the bedroom when his wife came home
from work. (simple verbal predicate with participle I)
 After that heated discussion the girls looked angry and
frustrated. (compound nominal predicate with participle II)
 Kate kept on laughing and splashing water on Jake.
(compound verbal aspect npredicate with gerund)

2. The gerund. Its verbal characteristics

is a non-finite form of the verb; names an action without pointing out its
person, number and mood; has a double nature combining nominal and
verbal characteristics; is formed by adding the ending -ING to the stem of
the notional verb.
 3. The gerund. Its nominal characteristics

is a non-finite form of the verb; names an action without pointing out its
person, number and mood; has a double nature combining nominal and
verbal characteristics; is formed by adding the ending -ING to the stem of
the notional verb.
4. The infinitive. The tense and voice distinctions
The infinitive is the non-finite form of the verb which names a process in a
most general way. It is the initial form of the verb and its special marker is
the particle “to”. It was to be necessarily done. There are cases when the
infinitive is used without the particle “to” and then it is called “bare
infinitive”, e.g. The teacher saw one of the students cheat at the exam.
Bare infinitive is used in the following cases:
 After auxiliary verbs in some forms of simple verbal predicates:
 Lisa doesn't like going to big parties.
 After modal
verbs: can, may, must, should, would, need, dare, shall, will:
 Shall I bring you a glass of water?
 After some verbs in the infinitive construction 'Complex Object':
 I will not have you keep the dog in the house!
 After the question word 'why' in negative and negative-
interrogative sentences:
 Why not do it together, it's hard work.
 After the expressions had better, would rather, would sooner,
cannot but, nothing but:
 I would rather not meet him alone, he frightens me.
 I cannot but smile every time I see this cute baby.
The tense distinctions of the infinitive are relative. They mostly show
whether the action expressed by the infinitive is simultaneous with or prior
to the action of the finite verb. Each form of the infinitive has its meaning.
 The Indefinite infinitive denotes an action simultaneous with the action
expressed by the finite verb.
I am always glad to talk to such a clever person.
 The Continuous infinitives hows an action in progress simultaneous with
the action of the finite verb.
I am so glad to be talking to you now.
 The Perfect infinitive shows an action prior to the action of the finite
verb.
I am so glad to have talked to you about it.
 The Perfect Continuous infinitive shows an action which has some
previous duration.
I am very glad to have been talking to such a famous person for two hours.
The Voice Distinctions of the Infinitive
The infinitive of transitive verbs has forms of Active and Passive voice
The infinitive of intransitive verbs can be used only in the Active voice
 In most cases the infinitive is used with the particle TO which is
called the TO – Infinitive.
 But there are cases when the infinitive is used without the particle TO
which is called the Bare infinitive.

5. The infinitive. The functions in the sentence

The infinitive is the non-finite form of the verb which names a process in a
most general way. It is the initial form of the verb and its special marker is
the particle “to”. It was to be necessarily done. There are cases when the
infinitive is used without the particle “to” and then it is called “bare
infinitive”, e.g. The teacher saw one of the students cheat at the exam.
Bare infinitive is used in the following cases:
 After auxiliary verbs in some forms of simple verbal predicates:
 Lisa doesn't like going to big parties.
 After modal
verbs: can, may, must, should, would, need, dare, shall, will:
 Shall I bring you a glass of water?
 After some verbs in the infinitive construction 'Complex Object':
 I will not have you keep the dog in the house!
 After the question word 'why' in negative and negative-
interrogative sentences:
 Why not do it together, it's hard work.
  After the expressions had better, would rather, would sooner,
cannot but, nothing but:
 I would rather not meet him alone, he frightens me.
 I cannot but smile every time I see this cute baby.

Nominal features of the Infinitive

The nominal features of the infinitive are only syntactical. Like a noun the
infinitive can function in the sentence as:
1. subject, To forget and forgive his behaviour was impossible.
2. predicative (To be To mean) Tom’s greatest wish was to finish with all
that unpleasant business as soon as possible.
3. object That was all Tina wanted (what?) to find out.
4. attribute I saw the chance (what kind of chance?) to escape into the
garden. (Nouns Pronouns Ordinal numerals Adj. LAST)
5. adverbial modifier (It is used after conjunctions)I merely came back
(what for?) to water the roses. (adverbial modifier of purpose)

Other functions of the Infinitive

1. predicate, e.g. Why not go for a walk? The day is lovely!

2. part of a compound verbal modal predicate, e.g. We were to meet at
seven, but he must have forgotten about it.
3. part of a compound verbal aspect predicate, e.g. Molly began to feel
rather hungry.
4. part of a Complex Object, e.g. I have never seen you speak like this
before.
5. part of a Complex Subject, e.g. The girl was reported to have been
found in the forest.
 6. parenthesis, e.g. To tell the truth, I disliked the man at once. To be
honest, I like him. To begin with, it’s unforgivable to be rude. All his
clothes were scattered about the room, to say nothing of the books
and newspapers.

6. The use of the gerund and the infinitive

Gerunds and infinitives are both verb forms that can act like nouns in a
sentence, but they have some key differences:

Form:

• Gerund: A verb form ending in "-ing" that acts like a noun. (e.g.,
reading, walking, talking)

• Infinitive: The base form of a verb, usually preceded by "to" (e.g., to

read, to walk, to talk). There's also the bare infinitive, which doesn't have
"to" (e.g., can sing, make laugh).

Function:

• Gerunds:

◦ Can function as the subject of a sentence (e.g., Reading is my favorite

hobby.)

◦ Can be the object of a verb (e.g., I enjoy reading mysteries.)

◦ Can follow prepositions (e.g., She insisted on leaving immediately.)

• Infinitives:

◦ Can function as the object of a verb (e.g., I want to travel the world.)

◦ Can follow some adjectives (e.g., She's eager to learn French.)

◦ Can be used after modal verbs (e.g., I can speak Spanish.)

7. Participle 1 and Participle 2

Formation: Add “-ing” to the base verb (e.g., “run” → “running”).

◦ Function:

Attribute: Describes the noun it modifies (e.g., “a boy running towards the
river”).

Adverbial Modifier: Indicates circumstances (e.g., “He opened the door,

thinking about possible consequences”).

Predicative: Acts as the main verb (e.g., “She left, crying”).

Part of a Complex Object: Forms part of a compound object (e.g., “I saw

her reading a book”).

Parenthesis: Used in introductory phrases (e.g., “Considering the weather,

we stayed indoors”).

◦ Example:

▪️Yesterday, I saw a boy running towards the river.

▪️He opened the door, thinking about possible consequences.

2 Participle II (Past Participle):

◦ Formation:

Regular verbs: Add “-ed” to the base verb (e.g., “talk” → “talked”).

Irregular verbs: Use the third form (e.g., “speak” → “spoken”).

◦ Function:

Attribute: Describes the noun (e.g., “a spoken promise”).

Adverbial Modifier: Indicates circumstances (e.g., “He left, exhausted”).

Predicative: Acts as the main verb (e.g., “The cake was baked”).
Part of a Complex Object: Forms part of a compound object (e.g., “I found
the book hidden under the bed”).

◦ Example:

▪️The spoken words touched my heart.

▪️She left the room, exhausted from the long day.

Participle I is active, while Participle II is passive. Participle I provides

qualitative characteristics, while Participle II indicates the object’s
susceptibility to an action.

8. Predicative constructions with the infinitive

Predicative constructions with the infinitive use the infinitive form of a

verb to express a predicate (what is being said about the subject) within a
sentence.

What is a predicative construction?

• A predicative construction functions like a complete predicate in a

sentence. It tells you something about the subject.

• The core of a predicative construction is usually a verb (e.g., "She runs").

How are infinitives used in predicative constructions?

• Infinitives are verb forms that don't act as independent verbs but can
function like nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.

• In predicative constructions, infinitives take the place of a verb to convey

what's being said about the subject.

Types of predicative constructions with infinitives:

There are two main types of predicative constructions with infinitives in

English:

1 Subject + linking verb + infinitive

◦ This type uses a linking verb (like "be," "seem," "become") followed by
an infinitive to describe the subject.

◦ Examples:

▪️The cake is easy to bake (Infinitive describes the subject "cake").

▪️She seems happy to help (Infinitive describes the subject "She").

2 Verb + object + infinitive

◦ This type uses a verb followed by an object (usually a noun or pronoun)

and an infinitive to express what the object does or experiences.

◦ Examples:

▪️ I saw him leave the house (Infinitive expresses the action of the object
"him").

▪️ We made them wait for hours (Infinitive expresses the experience of the
object "them").

9. Modal verbs: general characteristics

Modal verbs are a special class of verbs that add grammatical mood to a
sentence. They express a speaker's attitude or judgment about the
likelihood, ability, permission, obligation, or necessity of an action.

• Modality: Modal verbs indicate the modality of an action, which is the

speaker's attitude or judgment about it. For example, the sentence "She can
speak French" expresses the speaker's belief that she is able to speak
French.

• No tense: Modal verbs do not have different forms for different tenses.
They are always used in their base form,regardless of the tense of the main
verb. For example, "She could speak French" (past), "She can speak
French" (present), and "She will be able to speak French" (future) all use
the base form "can."

• Base verb: Modal verbs are followed by the base form (infinitive) of
another verb, without the "to." For example,"I must go" (not "I must to
go").

• Limited meaning: Modal verbs have little meaning on their own. They
take on meaning in combination with the main verb. For example, the word
"can" by itself does not tell us much. But in the sentence "I can fly," it tells
us that the speaker is able to fly.

• Can: ability, possibility

• Could: ability (past), possibility (past or present)

• May: permission, possibility

• Might: possibility (less likely than may)

• Must: obligation, necessity

• Should: obligation, advice

• Would: request, habit (past), prediction (past)

• Ought to: obligation, advice (formal)

 10. Modal verbs to express ability

Modal verbs are a helpful tool to talk about a person's ability to do

something. Here are some common ones:

Can: This is the most general modal verb for present and future ability.

◦ Examples: "I can speak French." "She can run very fast."

Could: This is used for past ability or to ask for permission politely.

◦ Examples: "I could speak French when I was younger." "Could I borrow
your pen?"

Be able to: This is another way to express ability, and it can be used in
any tense.

◦ Examples: "I was able to finish the race." "We will be able to help you."

• May and might can also indicate possibility, which can be related to
ability.

◦ Example: "He may be able to fix the car." (This suggests it's possible but
not certain.)

11. Modal verbs to express possibility, logical deduction and probability

1. Expressing Possibility

Modal verbs used: can, could, may, might

 Can: Used to express a general possibility.

o Example: "It can rain in the evening during this season."
 Could: Used to express a possibility that is less certain than "can."
o Example: "She could be at the library; she often studies there."
 We use may and might to talk about things that are possibly true, but
we don’t know for sure.

 He’s more than 2 meters tall. He might be a basketball

player. (=perhaps he is)
  He says Betty is his friend, but I think she may be his girlfriend.

2. Expressing Logical Deduction

Modal verbs used: must, can't, should

 Must: Used to express a logical conclusion based on evidence.

o Example: "She must be at home because her car is parked
outside."
 Can't: Used to express a negative logical deduction, indicating
something is not possible.
o Example: "He can't be the culprit because he was with me the
whole time."
 Should: Used to express a reasonable expectation.
o Example: "This plan should work if we follow all the
instructions."

3. Expressing Probability

Modal verbs used: will, would, should

 Will: Used to express a high probability or certainty.

o Example: "It will probably rain tomorrow."
 Would: Used to express a probable outcome based on a condition.
o Example: "If I were you, I would take the job offer."
 Should: Used to indicate an expected probability.
o Example: "The new policy should improve employee
satisfaction."
 12. Modal verbs to express arrangements, suggestions
and offers

1. Expressing Arrangements

Modal verbs used: will, shall, can

 Shall: Used, particularly in British English, for formal arrangements

or to offer suggestions.
o Example: "Shall we schedule the meeting for next Monday?"
 Can: Used to express the ability to arrange something.
o Example: "I can pick you up from the airport."

2. Expressing Suggestions

Modal verbs used: should, ought to, shall, could, might

 Should: Used to give advice or suggest something as the right thing

to do.
o Example: "You should try the new Italian restaurant
downtown."
 Ought to: Similar to "should," used to suggest a recommended
action.
o Example: "You ought to see a doctor if the symptoms persist."
 Shall: Used to offer suggestions, especially in questions.
o Example: "Shall we go for a walk?"
  Could: Used to suggest possible actions or ideas.
o Example: "You could join us for dinner tonight."
 Might: Used to suggest something as a possibility.
o Example: "You might want to check the weather before
leaving."

3. Expressing Offers

Modal verbs used: can, will, shall, would

 Can: Used to offer help or services.

o Example: "Can I help you with your bags?"
 Will: Used to make a spontaneous offer.
o Example: "I will lend you my book if you need it."
 Shall: Used in formal or polite offers.
o Example: "Shall I open the window for you?"
 Would: Used to make polite offers.
o Example: "Would you like some tea?"
13 Modal verbs to express obligation and necessity and absence of
obligation and necessity

1. Expressing Obligation and Necessity

Modal verbs used: must, have to, need to, should, ought to

 Must: Indicates a strong obligation or necessity, often from the

speaker's perspective.
o Example: "You must finish your homework before you can
play."
 Have to: Indicates an external obligation or necessity, often imposed
by rules or laws.
o Example: "I have to wear a uniform at my job."
 Need to: Indicates a necessity or requirement.
o Example: "You need to see a doctor about that cough."
 Should: Indicates a mild obligation or recommendation.
o Example: "You should check the oil in your car regularly."
 Ought to: Similar to "should," used to indicate a moral or logical
obligation.
o Example: "You ought to apologize for what you said."

2. Expressing Absence of Obligation and Necessity

Modal verbs used: don't have to, needn't, don't need to

 Don't have to: Indicates that there is no obligation to do something.

o Example: "You don't have to come if you don't want to."
 Needn't: Indicates that something is not necessary (more formal).
o Example: "You needn't worry about the test; you'll do fine."
 Don't need to: Indicates that there is no necessity to do something.
o Example: "You don't need to bring any food; we have plenty.
14. Modal verbs to express prohibition and criticism

1. Expressing Prohibition

Modal verbs used: mustn't, can't, may not

 Mustn't: Indicates something is strictly prohibited.

o Example: "You mustn't smoke in this building."
 Can't: Indicates that something is not allowed.
o Example: "You can't park here; it's a no-parking zone."
 May not: Indicates formal or polite prohibition.
o Example: "You may not enter the restricted area."

2. Expressing Criticism

Modal verbs used: should have, ought to have, could have, might have

 Should have: Indicates that something was expected or required but

was not done, expressing mild criticism.
o Example: "You should have called me when you arrived."
 Ought to have: Similar to "should have," used to express disapproval
about something that wasn't done.
o Example: "You ought to have apologized for your mistake."
  Could have: Indicates that there was a possibility or opportunity that
was missed, often implying criticism.
o Example: "You could have finished the project on time if you
had started earlier."
 Might have: Similar to "could have," suggesting that something
could have been done differently.
o Example: "You might have been more careful with your
words."

15. Modal verbs to ask for permission and to give (refuse) permission

. Asking for Permission

Modal verbs used: can, could, may, might

 Can: Used to ask for permission in an informal or casual context.

o Example: "Can I borrow your pen?"
 Could: Used to ask for permission in a polite or formal context, or to
make a request more tentative.
o Example: "Could I leave work early today?"
 May: Used to ask for permission in a formal or polite context.
o Example: "May I use your phone?"
  Might: Used to ask for permission in a very polite or tentative
manner, though less common in modern usage.
o Example: "Might I suggest an alternative?"

2. Giving Permission

Modal verbs used: can, may

 Can: Used to give permission in an informal or casual context.

o Example: "You can use my computer."
 May: Used to give permission in a formal or polite context.
o Example: "You may leave the table."

3. Refusing Permission

Modal verbs used: can't, may not, mustn't

 Can't: Used to refuse permission in an informal or casual context.

o Example: "You can't go out tonight."
 May not: Used to refuse permission in a formal or polite context.
o Example: "You may not enter the room."
 Mustn't: Used to refuse permission and indicate a strict prohibition.
o Example: "You mustn't touch that."