下列动词或词组都可以用不定式:
afford
aim
agree
arrange
ask
decide
bother
care
choose
demand
desire
determine
elect
endeavor
hope
fail
help
learn
long 渴望
mean
manage
offer
plan
pretend
refuse
tend
undertake
expect
hate
intend
例如:
The driver failed to see the other car in time. 司机没能及时看见另一辆车。
He offered to help me. 他表示愿意帮助我。
需要省略to的不定式的情况有:
1) 情态动词 ( 除ought 外) 后。
2) 使役动词 let, have, make后,感官动词 see, watch, look at, notice , observe, hear, listen to, smell, feel, find 等后。
注意:被动语态中不能省去to。例如:
I saw him dance. 我看见他跳舞。
=He was seen to dance.
The boss made them work the whole night. 老板让他们整夜干活。
=They were made to work the whole night.
3) would rather,had better句型后
4) Why… / why no…句型后
5) help 后可带to,也可不带to, help sb (to) do sth:
6) but和except后。but前是实义动词do时,后面出现的不定式不带to。
比较:He wants to do nothing but go out. 他只想出去玩。
He wants to believe anything but to take the medicine. 除了吃这药,他什么都信。
7) 由and, or和than连接的两个不定式,第二个to 可以省去:
8) 通常在discover, imagine, suppose, think等词后作宾补时,可以省去to be。例如:
He is supposed (to be) nice. 他应该是个好人。
一些重要的区分:
1) stop doing/to do
stop to do 停止,中断做某事后去做另一件事,stop doing 停止做某事。例如:
They stop to smoke a cigarette. 他们停下来,抽了根烟。
I must stop smoking. 我必须戒烟了。
2)forget doing/to do
forget to do 忘记要去做某事,forget doing 忘记做过某事。例如:
The light in the office is stil on. He forgot to turn it off. 办公室的灯还在亮着,他忘记关了。(没有做关灯的动作)
He forgot turning the light off. 他忘记他已经关了灯了。(已做过关灯的动作)
3)remember doing/to do
remember to do 记得去做某事,remember doing 记得做过某事。例如:
Remember to go to the post office after school. 记着放学后去趟邮局。
Don't you remember seeing the man before? 你不记得以前见过那个人吗?
4)regret doing/to do
regret to do 对将要做的事遗憾,regret doing 对做过的事遗憾、后悔。例如:
I regret to have to do this, but I have no choice. 我很遗憾必须这样去做,我实在没有办法。
I don't regret telling her what I thought. 我不为告诉她我的想法而后悔。
5)cease doing/to do
cease to do 长时间,甚至永远停做某事,cease doing 短时停止做某事,以后还会接着做。例如:
That department has ceased to exist forever. 那个系已不复存在。
The girls ceased chatting for a moment when their teacher passed by. 姑娘们在老师走过时,停了会聊天
6)try doing/to do
try to do 努力,企图做某事,try doing 试验,试着做某事。例如:
You must try to be more careful. 你可要多加小心。
I tried gardening but didn't succeed. 我试着种果木花卉,但未成功。
7)go on doing/to do
go on to do 做了一件事后,接着做另一件事,go on doing 继续做原来做的事。例如:
After he had finished his maths,he went on to do his physics. 做完数学后,他接着去做物理。
Go on doing the other exercise after you have finished this one. 作完这个练习后,接着做其他的练习
8)be afraid doing/to do
be afraid to do 不敢,胆怯去做某事,是主观上的原因不去做,意为"怕",be afraid of doing 担心出现doing的状况、结果。doing 是客观上造成的,意为"生怕,恐怕"。例如:
She was afraid to step further in grass because she was afraid of being bitten by a snake.
她生怕被蛇咬着,不敢在草丛中再走一步。
She was afraid to wake her husband. 她不敢去叫醒她丈夫。
She was afraid of waking her husband. 她生怕吵醒她丈夫。
9)be interested doing/to do
interested to do 对做某事感兴趣,想了解某事,interested in doing 对某种想法感兴趣,doing 通常为想法。例如:
I shall be interested to know what happens. 我很想知道发生了什么事。(想了解)
I'm interested in working in Switzerland. Do you have any idea about that?
我对在瑞士工作感兴趣。你想过这事吗? (一种想法)
10) mean to doing/to do
mean to do 打算、想,mean doing 意味着。例如:
I mean to go, but my father would not allow me to. 我想去,但是我父亲不肯让我去。
To raise wage means increasing purchasing power. 增加工资意味着增加购买力。
11)begin(start) doing/to do
begin / start to do sth /begin / start doing sth.
a) 谈及一项长期活动或开始一种习惯时,使用doing。例如:
How old were you when you first started playing the piano? 你几岁时开始弹钢琴?
b) begin, start用进行时时,后面动词用不定式to do。例如:
I was beginning to get angry。我开始生起气来。
c) 在attempt, intend, begin, start 后接know, understand, realize这类动词时,常用不定式to do。例如:
I begin to understand the truth。我开始明白真相。
d) 事物作主语时。例如:
The snow began to melt.雪开始融化了
12)感官动词 + doing/to do
感官动词 see, watch, observe, notice, look at, hear, listen to, smell, taste, feel + do表示动作的完整性,+doing 表示动作的进行性。例如:
I saw him work in the garden yesterday. 昨天我看见他在花园里干活了。(强调"我看见了"这个事实)
I saw him working in the garden yesterday.(强调"我见他正干活"这个动作)昨天我见他正在花园里干活。