Gerund or infinitive part 4

Quiz time! Which sentence is correct in each pair?

1a It started to rain.
2b It started raining.

2a You must continue to practise.
2b You must continue practising.

3a I prefer to walk.
3b I prefer walking.

4a He loves cooking.
4b He loves to cook.

Keep reading to check your answers!

​Some verbs can be followed by either the gerund or the infinitive and the meaning is the same. So A and B are both correct in all of the above sentences.

After these verbs, you can use either the gerund or the infinitive:
begin   continue   prefer   start

For example:
It started to rain / It started raining.
You’ll continue to improve with practice / You’ll continue improving with practice.

There are some exceptions, however, which are mostly about just what sounds better.
For example:
We say: It’s starting to rain.
(We don’t say: It’s starting raining, probably because it sounds strange if we use -ing twice.)

It’s also unusual to use the -ing form for non-action verbs. (Non-action verbs describe states and not actions, for example understand, know, want, believe.)
For example:
We usually say: I began to understand what he wanted.
(Not: I began understanding what he wanted.)

We can say I prefer walking or I prefer to walk.
But if comparing two things, say I prefer walking to running.
(Not: I prefer to walk to to run. That sounds very awkward!)

After these verbs you can also use either the gerund or the infinitive:
like   love   hate   can’t stand   can’t bear

However, there are a couple of things you should know.
In British English, it’s more common to use the -ing form whereas Americans use the infinitive more often.
For example:
UK: I love cooking.
USA: I love to cook.

In British English, I like + infinitive sometimes (not always) has a different meaning. We use it to talk about choices and habits.
I like cooking. = I enjoy cooking in general.
I like to cook at the weekends. = It’s my habit. Maybe I enjoy it too.
I don’t like going to the dentist. = I don’t enjoy it.
I like to go to the dentist twice a year for a check-up. = It’s my habit. I think it’s important but that doesn’t mean I enjoy it!

You can read part 1, part 2 and part 3 by clicking on these links.
Part 5, the final part, is here!

Click the buttons below to get my e-book which covers this topic in more detail, including practice exercises, and my free verb list.
​

FREE gerund or infinitive verb list

Gerund and Infinitive e-book