Download Infinitives

Verbs– principal parts of verbs and tenses
April 19, 2012
Get your yellow journal and set up a Type 2 response.
*Identify all the verbs in the sentences below. (Be sure to
include any helping verbs.)
The girls wanted to win their basketball game last night.
They won the league championship.
The trophy will be presented to them on Friday.
The girls can’t wait to receive it!
Infinitives
An infinitive will almost always begin with “to” followed by
the simple form of the verb, like this:
 “to” + verb = infinitive
 examples:
 to sneeze
 to smash
 to cry
 to shriek
 to jump
 to read
 to eat
 to be
Infinitives
An infinitive is a verb form that can be used as a noun,
an adjective, or an adverb.

To leave now would be rude.


She is the candidate to watch.


(Noun – subject of the sentence)
(Adjective –describing the noun “candidate”)
We came to sing.

(Adverb – describing the verb “came” and why we came)
Infinitives
Do not confuse an infinitive with a prepositional phrase
that begins with “to.”
Infinitives:
Prepositional phrases:
•to go
•to forget
•to graduate
•to them
•to the mall
•to the nearest exit
(Remember: An infinitive is
“to” + verb)
(Remember: A preposition
has a noun or pronoun as its
object.)
Principal Parts of Verbs
There are four principal parts of a verb:
• infinitive (the base form)
• present participle
• past
• past participle
Infinitive/base
Present Participle
Past
Past Participle
(to) live
(is) living
lived
(have) lived
(to) run
(is) running
ran
(have) run
Principal Parts of Regular Verbs
 All verbs form the present participle in the same way:
add –ing to the infinitive/base form.
 A regular verb forms its past and past participle by
adding –d or –ed to its infinitive/base form.
Infinitive/base
Present Participle
Past
Past Participle
(to) live
(is) living
lived
(have) lived
(to) fix
(is) fixing
fixed
(have) fixed
(to) plan
(is) planning
planned
(have) planned
Principal Parts of Irregular Verbs
 All verbs form the present participle in the same way:
add –ing to the infinitive/base form.
 An irregular verb forms its past and past participle in some
way other than by adding –d or –ed...
 You might change vowels, change consonants, change
vowels and consonants, or change nothing.
Infinitive/base
Present Participle
Past
Past Participle
(to) sing
(is) singing
sang
(have) sung
(to) lend
(is) lending
lent
(have) lent
(to) buy
(is) buying
bought
(have) bought
(to) cost
(is) costing
cost
(have) cost
Verb Tenses
The tense of a verb indicates the time of the action.
The following are three verb tenses:
1. Past tense
2. Present tense
3. Future tense
FUTURE
PRESENT
PAST
existing or
happening in
the past
existing or
happening
now
existing or
happening
in the future
Verb Tenses – past tense
• Past tense – an action or state of being that occurred in
the past.
• Examples:
I stayed at the library until it closed.
I was staying at the library until it closed.
I did stay at the library until it closed.
Verb Tenses – present tense
• Present tense – an action or state of being that is
occurring now.
• Examples:
Ashley and Brendan wait patiently for the bus.
Ashley and Brendan are waiting patiently for the bus.
Ashley and Brendan do wait patiently for the bus.
Verb Tenses – future tense
• Future tense – an action or state of being that will occur.
• Examples:
I will attend camp this summer at the YMCA.
I will be attending camp this summer at the YMCA.
I am going to attend camp this summer at the YMCA.
Shift in Verb Tenses
• Be careful not to shift verb tense in a sentence. Stick to
the verb tense you start with.
• Incorrect:
Allen talked about going to the movies, but then he goes
to the mall.
• Better:
Allen talked about going to the movies, but then he
went to the mall.
Shift in Verb Tenses
• Be careful not to shift verb tense in a sentence. Stick to
the verb tense you start with.
• Incorrect:
The young boy constantly asks to go outside, but then he
always wanted to come back in.
• Better:
The young boy constantly asks to go outside, but then
he always wants to come back in.
Shift in Verb Tenses
• Be careful not to shift verb tense in a paragraph. Stick to the verb
tense you start with.
• Incorrect:
• Last summer, my family went on a weekend trip to Lake Erie. We
packed our bags in the evening and left early the next morning.
When I asked my dad which direction we were going, he told me to
look at the map. I find my hometown of Pittsburgh and make a line
with my finger to the lake. We were driving north. It takes us a little
over two hours to get there.
• Better:
• Last summer, my family went on a weekend trip to Lake Erie. We
packed our bags in the evening and left early the next morning.
When I asked my dad which direction we were going, he told me to
look at the map. I found my hometown of Pittsburgh and make a
line with my finger to the lake. We were driving north. It took us a
little over two hours to get there.
Homework
 Worksheet 