章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

Lecture 19-20THE INFINITIVE

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

19.1 Forms of the infinitive1) Grammatical forms – The infinitive has no tense distinctions, nor person or number contrasts. But they can be passive and take the simple (to write), progressive (to be writing), perfective (to have written) and perfective progressive (to have been writing) forms. A negative infinitive is formed by adding not or never immediately before the infinitive sign to. The passive infinitive is formed by to be +ed-participle or to have been + ed-participle.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

2) To-infinitive and bare infinitive

types: There are two types: to-infinitive and bare infinitive. infinitive. The bare infinitive is just the infinitive without to, which is identical in form with the verb. base of the verb. P223 Ex.19A

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

19.2 Notes on the use of the infinitive sign1) The infinitive sign used alone: To avoid repetition, the infinitive sign can sometimes be used alone, i.e. the base in the to-infinitive can be omitted, even together with its complementation, especially in informal style, e.g.: George says he is going to leave Shanghai, but I don’t think he really wants to. We should like Jane to get a good degree, but we don’t really expect her to.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

If the base of the infinitive is the verb be or have, it should be retained, even though its complementation is omitted, e.g.:A: Are you the manager? B: No, I don’t want to be.

In some contexts, both the to-infinitive and its complementation can be omitted so that no trace remains of the infinitive, e.g.:I’d like to do it now, but I haven’t got the time (to

do it).You will make it if you try (to).

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

2) Ellipsis of the infinitive sign: When two to-infinitives are coordinated by and or or, the second to is usually omitted, e.g.: She asked me to telephone or wire to her on Monday. When there is a contrastive meaning, the second to must be retained, e.g.: To be or not to be, that is the question. The infinitive sign cannot be omitted if there is no coordinator between the coordinate infinitives, e.g.: Please go to the seaside to swim, to get suntanned. Nor can any infinitive sign be omitted if a sequence of 3 or more infinitives occur in a parallel construction, e.g.: Read not to contradict or confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider. – Francis Bacon

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

3) Infinitive to or preposition toa) Verb + preposition to b) Verb + noun/pronoun + preposition to c) Verb + ed-participle + preposition to d) Verb + adverb particle + preposition to e) Adjective + preposition to f) Noun + preposition to g) Complex prepositions ending in to

P229 Ex.19D

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

20.1 Adjective + infinitive“Adjective + infinitive” refers to the combination that acts as complement in SVC patterns. Let’s look at the following 3 examples: 1) Henry was happy to hear it. (= Henry was happy when he heard it.) 2) Mary is easy to teach. (= It is easy to teach Mary.) Compare: Mary is eager to teach. (= Mary i

s eager to teach [other people].) 3) The clothes are easy to wash. (= It is easy to wash the clothes.)

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

Semantically, these combinations fall into 3 types, each of which contains several sub-types. Type I – The subject of the main clause is also the logical subject of the (dynamic) infinitive: a) Adjectives showing emotional feelings, e.g.: – He is glad to help others. – We were sorry not to be there. – She wasn’t content to live a quiet life. – John was very pleased to be given the job. – I was surprised to see how angry he was.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

b) Adjectives showing good or bad luck, e.g.: – He was lucky to find it. – He was fortunate to escape being injured. c) Adjectives showing mental state or personal attitude, e.g.: – He is anxious to see her. – I’m determined to finish the work tonight. If the subject of the main clause is not the logical subject of the infinitive, the logical subject should be expressed with an introductory for, e.g.: – I’m quite willing for your brother to come with us. – I’m afraid for her to go swimming alone.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

d) Adjectives showing character / behavioral trait, e.g.: – She is foolish to date him again. – He was careless to break the cup. – They were thoughtful to come home early. These sentences can be transformed into a corresponding IT- sentence pattern, e.g.: – It is foolish of her to date him again. – It was careless of her to break the cup. – It was thoughtful of them to come home early.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

Type II – The subject of the main clause is the logical object of the infinitive. The adjectives are generally stative adjectives, e.g.: – That question is difficult to answer. This first subtype can be transformed into: – To answer that question is difficult. – It is difficult to answer that question. But there are also constructions in Type II that cannot be so transformed: – The coffee is bitter to taste.(*To taste the coffee is bitter.) – They are both attractive to look at.(*To look at them both is very attractive.)

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

Type III – The subject of the main clause may be the logical subject or logical object of the infinitive, e.g.: The clothes are easy to wash. = The clothes wash easily. = It is easy to wash the clothes. He is quick to take offence. (= He takes offence quickly.) He is slow to react. (= He reacts slowly.) He was hesitant to take action. (= He took action hesitantly.) We can see from the above examples that in most cases, the adjectives can be turned into a corresponding adverb in deep structure.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

20.2 Noun (phrase) + infinitiveThe infinitive is used as postmodification in noun phrases. 3 points are worth mentioning. 1) Semantic relations: The noun (phrase) is the logical subject of the infinitive (subject–verb relation), e.g.: – Jim was the last guest to arrive ( = who arrived). – Have you got a key to unlock the door (= that can unlock the door)?

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

The noun (phrase) is the logical object of the infinitive (ver

b– object relation), e. g.: – He has a large family to support (= that he must support). – This is the best book to read (= that we can read / for us to read). In the case of an intransitive infinitive, an appropriate preposition should be added, e.g.: – Mary needs a friend to play with. – There is something important to write home about. The noun phrase is in apposition to the infinitive that follows, e.g.: – The boy had an impulse to jump over the fence. – He hit back the urge to tell a lie.

章振邦《新编英语语法》Lecture 19-20不定式教学课件

2) Infinitive – active or passive?As postmodification, the infinitive may appear in active or passive voice. In some contexts, both forms are possible, e.g.: – Give me a list of people to invite / to be invited. – The man to consult / to be consulted is Mr Johnson. But in other cases, an active form seems more natural than the passive, e.g.: – I have got a lot of letters to write. In still other cases, a passive form sounds more appropriate, e.g.: – The cases to be investigated must not be made public in press. – The question to be discussed at the next meeting will be a hard nut to crack.