Verbos seguidos de infinitivo

to + infinitivo

Muitos verbos em inglês pedem infinitivo com 'to'. Estes verbos referem-se frequentemente a decisões, planos e sentimentos sobre o futuro.

Verbos comuns + to-inf.

Exemplos

want, need, decide, plan

I want to travel. / She decided to leave.

hope, expect, promise, refuse

He refused to answer.

manage, seem, appear, agree

They managed to escape.

offer, afford, fail, learn, pretend

We can't afford to buy it.

Verbos seguidos de -ing

gerund

Outros verbos pedem sempre o gerund (-ing). Referem-se geralmente a hábitos, sentimentos presentes e atividades em curso.

Verbos comuns + -ing

Exemplos

enjoy, finish, avoid, mind

I enjoy swimming. / She finished reading.

miss, consider, suggest, keep

They considered moving.

practise, imagine, admit

Keep practising.

deny, risk, delay

He denied stealing it.

Verbos com dois padrões — sem mudança de sentido

Alguns verbos podem usar infinitivo ou -ing sem mudar o sentido.

start

She started to rain / She started raining

begin

He began to worry / He began worrying

continue

They continued to work / They continued working

prefer

I prefer to walk / I prefer walking

love/hate/like

She loves to cook / She loves cooking

Verbos com dois padrões — COM mudança de sentido

remember, forget, stop, try

Estes verbos mudam de sentido conforme são seguidos de infinitivo ou -ing. Este é um ponto muito testado em exames.

remember + -ing

I remember meeting her. (lembro-me de ter encontrado)

remember + to-inf.

Remember to call him. (não te esqueças de ligar)

forget + -ing

I'll never forget seeing that. (não esquecerei de ter visto)

forget + to-inf.

I forgot to buy milk. (esqueci-me de comprar)

stop + -ing

He stopped smoking. (deixou de fumar)

stop + to-inf.

He stopped to smoke. (parou para fumar)

try + -ing

Try adding more salt. (experimenta acrescentar)

try + to-inf.

I tried to fix it. (tentei arranjar)

Verb + object + infinitive

Alguns verbos pedem um objeto antes do infinitivo: verb + someone + to do.

want s.o. to

I want you to listen carefully.

ask s.o. to

She asked him to help her.

tell s.o. to

He told me to wait.

allow s.o. to

They allowed us to leave.

make/let (no to)

She made him apologise. / Let me explain.

Importante: 'Make' e 'let' são seguidos de infinitivo SEM 'to': make him do / let her go.

Erros comuns

As armadilhas clássicas para falantes de português

Estes são os erros mais frequentes dos falantes de português neste ponto.

She enjoys to read.

→

She enjoys reading.

'enjoy' é sempre seguido de -ing.

I want going to Paris.

→

I want to go to Paris.

'want' pede to-infinitivo.

He stopped to smoke (intended 'deixou de').

→

He stopped smoking.

'stopped to smoke' = parou para fumar; 'stopped smoking' = deixou de fumar.

She made me to apologise.

→

She made me apologise.

'make' + obj. + inf. SEM 'to'.

Resumo: Verb + Infinitive Patterns

to-infinitivo

want, decide, hope, need...

I decided to leave.

-ing (gerund)

enjoy, avoid, finish...

She avoids eating sugar.

Ambos (mesmo sentido)

start, begin, continue

She started crying/to cry.

remember -ing

memória do passado

I remember meeting him.

remember to-inf.

obrigação futura

Remember to call!

make/let + inf. (sem to)

causativo

She made him wait.

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