Look at these examples:
- I enjoying spending time outdoors. (not I enjoy to spend)
- Would you mind opening the window? (not mind to open)
- She suggested meeting her earlier. (not suggested to meet)
After enjoy, mind and suggest, we use –ing (not “to + infinitive”).
We write “-ing” with a hyphen to show that it is a verb ending, not a separate word.
After these verbs, we use -ing (not “to + infinitive”).
| stop | avoid |
| finish | risk |
| postpone | imagine |
| consider | fancy |
| admit | keep |
| deny | practise |
Examples:
- Suddenly everyone stopped laughing. The room became quiet.
- I’ll call you when I’ve finished preparing the report.
- They postponed starting the project.
- She is considering applying for a new job.
- Have you ever considered moving to a different city?
- He admitted making a mistake.
- He denied taking the documents.
- She tried to avoid answering the question directly.
- You risk losing your data if you don’t save your work.
- Can you imagine living in another country?
- I don’t fancy staying at home tonight.
- She keeps forgetting her keys.
- He practises speaking English every day.
- They suggested going for a walk after dinner.
Negative Form
The negative form is: not + -ing
Examples:
- When I’m free, I enjoy not checking my emails all the time.
- They admitted not telling the truth.
- He considered not accepting the offer.
We also use –ing after:
- give up (= stop)
- put off (= postpone)
- go on / carry on (= continue)
- keep / keep on (= do something continuously or repeatedly)
Examples:
- I’ve given up drinking coffee in the evening.
- They decided to put off making a decision.
- She goes on working even after everyone leaves. (or: carried on working)
- He keeps asking the same question. (or: keeps on asking)
With some verbs, we can use the structure:
verb + somebody + -ing
Examples:
- I can’t imagine him driving in that traffic.
- You can’t stop me doing what I want.
- I don’t remember her saying anything about it.
- Sorry to keep you waiting.
- I heard someone knocking at the door.
- She saw him crossing the street.
- We watched them playing in the park.
Passive form
We also use the passive form: being + past participle (being done / seen / kept etc).
Examples:
- I don’t mind being kept waiting.
- She doesn’t like being told what to do.
- He hates being interrupted while he is working.
Having + past participle (finished actions)
When we talk about actions that happened before another action, we can use:
having + past participle (having done / said / stolen, etc.)
Examples:
- They admitted having taken the money.
- She denied having seen him before.
- He regretted having said those words.
Alternative (more common)
It is not necessary to use “having”. We often use the –ing form instead:
- They admitted taking the money.
- She denied seeing him before.
- He regretted saying those words.
Same meaining.
Both forms are correct. The meaning is the same:
- I regret saying what I said.
- I regret having said what I said.
“Having + past participle” emphasizes that the action happened before.
Verb + that (alternative structure)
After some verbs (especially admit, deny, suggest), we can also use a “that” clause.
Examples:
- They denied that they had taken the money.
(or: They denied taking the money) - She denied that she had seen him before.
(or: She denied seeing him before). - They suggested that we try a different approach.
(or: They suggested trying a different approach). - Paul suggested that we go to the cinema.
(or: Paul suggested going to the cinema) - He admitted that he had made a mistake.
(or: He admitted making a mistake)
Additional verbs (same structure)
Agree, claim, say
Examples:
- They agreed that it was a good idea.
- He claimed that he had completed the task.
- She said that she was feeling tired.
The “that” structure is more formal. The –ing form is often more common in everday English.
