238 Form
Examples of infinitive forms*
Present infinitive
Present continuous infinitive
Perfect infinitive
Perfect continuous infinitive
Present infinitive passive Perfect infinitive passive
to work, to do
to be working
to be doing
to have worked, to have done
to haw been working
to have been doing
to be done
to have been done
B The full infinitive consists of two words, to + verb, as shown above. But after certain verbs and expressions we use the form without to, i.e. the ’bare infinitive’ (see 246): r
You had better say nothing. (See 120.) C It is not normally advisable to put any words between the to and the
verb, but see 248, split infinitives.
D To avoid repetition, an infinitive is sometimes represented by its to: Do you smoke? ~ No. but I used to (smoke). (See 247.)
239 Uses of the infinitive
A The infinitive may be used alone, We began to walk, or as part of an
infinitive phrase. We began to walk down the road. B The infinitive may be the subject of a sentence (see 240).
C The infinitive may be the complement of a verb:
His plan is to keep the affair secret. D The infinitive may be the object or part of the object of a vertx
It can follow the verb directly: He wants to pay (see 241. 243) or follow verb + how, what etc. (see 242) or follow verb + object: He wants me to pay (see 243, 244).
E be + infinitive can express commands or instructions (see 114). F The infinitive can express purpose (see 334).
G The infinitive can be used after certain adjectives: angry, glad, happy, sorry (see 26) fortunate, likely, lucky (see 27)
H I J K
23 Infinitive
H The infinitive can connect two clauses (see 249). I The infinitive can sometimes replace relative clauses (see 77. 250). J The infinitive can be used after certain nouns (see 251;.
K The infinitive can be used with too/enough and certain adjectives/adverbs (see 252).
L An infinitive phrase such as to tell the truth, to cut a long story short can be placed at the beginning or end of a sentence (see 253).
240 The infinitive as subject
A An infinitive or an infinitive phrase can be the subject of the verbs appear, be, seem. The infinitive can be placed first: To compromise appears advisable. To lean out of the window is dangerous. To save money now seems impossible.
B But it is more usual to place the pronoun it first, and move the infinitive or infinitive phrase to the end of the sentence: // appears advisable to compromise. It is dangerous to lean out of the window. It seemed impossible to save money.
it here is known as the introductory it. Note its use with interrogatives:
Would it be safe to camp here?
Wouldn ’t it be better to go on?
The it construction is necessary here. Would + to camp and Couldn’t + to go on would not be possible.
C Usually infinitive constructions of this type consist of it -t- be + adjective + infinitive. (See 26-7.) But sometimes a noun can be used instead of an adjective:
It would be a crime/a mistake/a pity to cut down any more trees. It is an offence to drop litter in the street. D cost/take + object can also be used:
// would cost millions/take years to rebuild the castle. H The gerund can be used instead of the infinitive when the action <s being considered in a general sense, but it is always safe to use an infinitive. When we wish to refer to one particular action we must use the infinitive:
He said, ’Do come.’ It was impossible to refuse. But // is not always easy to refuse invitations can be replaced by Refusing invitations is not always easy. Here the action is considered in 4
a general sense, and either gerund or infinitive is possible. (See also |
258.)
213
D
E
23 Infinitive
F An it + infinitive construction may be preceded by believe/consider/ discover/expect/find/think (that) and wonder (if):
He thought (that) it would be safer to go by train. After find used in this way we can omit that + the verb be, i.e. we can say:
He found (that) it was easy to earn extra money or
He found it easy to earn extra money.
He will find (that) it is hard to make friends or
He will find it hard to make friends. This is sometimes also possible with think:
He thought it safer to go.
After other verbs, however, the student is advised not to omit the be. (For similar gerund constructions, see 258.)
G The perfect infinitive can also be used as the subject of a sentence:
To have made the same mistake twice teas unforgivable. Similarly with it first:
// is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.
241 The infinitive as object or complement of the verb
A The most useful verbs which can be followed directly by the infinitive are:
agree**
be determined**
pretend*
aim
endeavour
proceed
appear*
fail
promise*
arrange**
forget*
prove*
ask**
guarantee*
refuse
attempt
happen*
remember*
bother
hesitate
resolve’*
care (negative)
hope
seem*
choose
learn*
swear*
claim**
long
tend
condescend
manage.
threaten*
consent
neafut\
trouble (negative)
decide* *
offer ’
try(~ attempt)
decline
Wan
undertake*
demand*’
prepare
volunteer
determine**
be prepared
vow
» *•££*-. a^fotowedbyanmcnjtjve
*%•:&« zz*~?szi-*<
<^<*aloa,tm ”’•”•?
..-*-*•**, r::t.’ri…….
23 Infinitive
•SeeD.
make ”P one’s mind* ( = deriH^ occur’+ to + ob-t { dec«te)
set out
take the trouble
*”»«*•(- prove to be;
• See D, •• see F.
Auxiliary verbs
be dare have must ough( will can do may need shall used
(For verbs taking object + infinitive, see 244.
For verbs taking infinitive or gerund, see chapter 25.)
214
C Examples of A and B
She agreed to pay £50.
Two men failed to return from the expedition.
I managed to put the fire out.
They are preparing (- getting ready) to evacuate the ana.
We are not prepared (= willing) to wait any longer.
The tenants refused to leave. Prices always tend to go up. She volunteered to help with Meals on Wheels. He is just about to leave, (on the point of leaving) We can’t afford to live in the centre. He didn ’t bother/trouble In answer personally. Opposite of the above:
He took the trouble to answer personally.
I) Starred verbs or expressions can also be used with a that-clause (see 346):
/ promise to wait = / promise that 1 will wait. He pretended to be angry = He pretended that he was angry. occur (used mainly in negative and interrogative) requires an introductory it both with an infinitive and a that construction:
// didn’t occur to me to ask him for proof of his identity. (I didn’t think of doing this.)
// occurred to me that he was trying to conceal something. (The idea came to me.)
appear, happen, seem, turn out, when used with a that construction, also require an introductory it:
// turned out that his ’country cottage’ was an enormous bungalow but
His ’country cottage’ turned out to be an enormous bungalow. (infinitive construction)
But a verb + infinitive does not necessarily have the same meaning as the same verb used with a that-clause. With learn, forget and remember the meaning will be different: He learnt to look after himself. He learnt (* was tokf) thai it would cost £100. He forgot to leave the car keys on the table. (He didn’t leave them.) He forgot that his brother wanted io use the car. remember could be used similarly with the opposite meaning. agree/decide + infinitive expresses an intention to act.
215
23 Infinitive iMMMHIHiilRHMi
^*^P?IPP*^^W^^^^^^^P^B^^^^P^^’*^
agree that. . . expresses an opinion.
decide that . . . expresses a conclusion or a decision not necessarily
leading to action.
F Verbs with two stars take an infinitive or a that . . . should ^, construction, that . . . should is particularly useful in the passive •!
(see 302). H
They decided’agreed to divide the profits equally. ^1
They decided that the profits should be divided equally. JH
/ arranged to meet/for Tom to meet them. ^1
/ arranged that Tom should meet them. -^1
/ arranged that they should be met |H
G The continuous infinitive is often used after appear, happen, RH pretend, seem:
I happened to be looking out of the window when they arrived.
He seems to be following us.
It is also possible after agree, arrange, decide, determine, hope, manage, plan and the auxiliary verbs (see 254).
H The perfect infinitive is possible after appear, hope, pretend, seem
and the auxiliary verbs (see 255).
242 Verb + how/what/when/where/which/why + infinitive
A The verbs most frequently used in this way are ask, decide, discover, find out, forget, know, learn, remember, see ( = understand/perceive), show + object, think, understand, want to know, wonder:
He discovered how to open the safe.
I found out where to buy fruit cheaply.
I didn ’t know when to switch the machine off.
1 showed her which button to press.
She couldn ’t think what to say.
• (Note that this construction is not usual after think in the simple present or past, but can be used after other tenses of think, or after think as a second verb, as in the last example above.)
B whether + infinitive can be used similarly after want to know, wonder:
/ wonder/wondered whether to write or phone
and after decide, know, remember, think when these verbs follow a negative or interrogative verb:
Ymi needn ’t decide yet whether to study arts or science.
He couldn’t remember whether to turn left or fight.
C ask, decide, forget, learn, remember can also be followed directly by the infinitive (see 241). But the meaning is not necessarily the same, learn how + infinitive = ’acquire a skill’: She learnt how to make lace
216
243
A
B
D
23 Infinitive though if the skill is a fairly usual one, the how is normally dropped:
She learnt to drive a car.
learn + infinitive (without how) can have another meaning: She learnt to trust nobody =
She found from experience that it was better to trust nobody. jit
Note also: I
/ decided to doit » / said to myself, ’I’ll do it.’ I
/ decided how to do it * I said to myself, Til do it this way.’ H
/ remembered to get a ticket. (I got a ticket.) H
/ remembered where to get a ticket. (I remembered that the tickets H
could be obtained from the Festival Office.) H
243 The infinitive after verb or verb + object H
A The most important verbs which can be used in either of these ways are ask, beg, expect, would hate, help, intend, like (= think wise or right), would like (= enjoy), would love, mean, prefer, want, wish:
He likes to eat well. He likes his staff to eat well. I want to ride. I want you to ride too.
6 ask and beg
ask + infinitive has a different meaning from ask + object -t- infinitive:
/ ashed to speak to Mrs Jones =
• / said, ’Could I speak tc Mrs Jones?’ but / asked Bill to speak to her = I said, ’Bill, would you speak to her?’
With beg there is a similar difference, though beg is not often followed directly by the infinitive:
/ begged (to be allowed) to go = I said, ’Please let me go.’ I begged him to go = I said, ’Please go.’ ask and beg can be followed by that. . . should (see 235).
Z expect -»• infinitive and expect + object + infinitive can have the same meaning:
/ expect to arrive tomorrow =
/ think it is likely that I will arrive tomorrow.
/ expect him to arrive tomorrow =
I think it is likely that he mil arrive tomorrow. But very often expect -t- object + infinitive conveys the idea of duty: He expects his wife to bring him breakfast in bed at weekends. (He thinks it is her duty to do this.)
expect can also be followed by that -f- subject -»-4^rb. Here there is no idea of duty. >
Fof examples of care, hate, like, love and prefer used with
jnfi/ubves or gerunds, see 294-8.
intend, mean, want can also be followed by gerunds (see 266). X
_ 217
\
23 Infinitive
244 The infinitive after verb + object
The most important of these
advise f°rbld
allow f°rce ^
bribe l”ar <b)
command implore
compel i^uce
enable instruct
encourage invite
entitle let (b) feel (b)
are:
make®)
oblige
order
permit
persuade
remind
request
w«(b)
. • 1C-* 9Afi
show how
teach/teach how
tell/tell how
tempt
train
urge
warn
watch (b)
t
245
A
(b) here means ’bare mnniuvc . v^.^. „,.,
advise, allow and permit can also be used with gerunds.
(For verbs of knowing and thinking, see 245.)
B Examples of verb + object + infinitive:
These glasses will enable you to see in the dark.
She encouraged me to try again.
They forbade her to leave the house or
She was forbidden to leave the house, (more usual)
Nothing would induce me to do business with them. _^
They persuaded us to go with them. •
They are training these dogs to sniff out drugs. ^g|H
C show/teach/tell + how ^^^1
show used with an infinitive requires how: III
He showed me how to change a fuse. w^^f
tell how + infinitive = ’instruct’:
He told me how to replace a fuse. (He gave me the necessary information or instructions.) But tell + object + infinitive = ’order’:
He told me to change the fuse = He said. ’Change the fuse.’
teach how:
We can teach someone (how) to swim, dance, type, ride etc.:
He taught me how to light a fire without matches. how is possible, but when the skill is a fairly usual one the how is normally dropped: He taught me to ride.
teach + object + infinitive (without how) can also mean to teach or train someone to behave in a certain way:
He taught me to obey all commands without asking questions.
D remind, show, teach, tell can also be followed by that:
He reminded me that the road was dangerous. _
He showed me that it was quite easy. IB
Note that tell + that does not have the same meaning as tell -t9
infinitive: H
He told (m ordered) me to go. ^
He told (- informed) me that I was late.
B
23 Infinitive
: E request can also be followed by that + should. This construction is I; chiefly used in the passive:
He requested that the matter should be kept secret.
245 The infinitive after verbs of knowing and thinking etc.
A assume, believe, consider, feel, know, suppose, understand can be followed by object + to be:
/consider him to be the best candidate. But it is much more common to use that + an ordinary tense:
I consider thatje is the best candidate. With think, estimate and presume the object + infinitive construction is extremely rare, a that-clause being normally used instead:
/ think that he is the best player.
It is estimated that this vase is 2,000years old.
B When, however, these verbs are used in the passive they are more often followed by an infinitive than by the that construction: He is known to be honest – It is known that he is honest. He is thought to be the best player – // is thought that he is… This vase is estimated to be 2,000 years old.
C Note, however, that suppose when used in the passive often conveys an idea of duty:
You are supposed to know the laws of your own country * It is your duty to know/You are expected to know . . . D The continuous infinitive can also be used:
He is thought to be hiding in the woods. (People think he is hiding.) He is supposed to be washing the car. (He should be washing it.)
E When the thought concerns a previous action we use the perfect infinitive:
They are believed to have landed in America. (It is believed that they
landed.)
suppose + perfect infinitive may or may not convey an idea of duty. They are supposed to have discovered America means ’It is thought that they did’. But You are supposed to have read the instructions would normally mean ’You should have read them’.
(For infinitive constructions after passive verbs, see also 306.)
” The bare infinitive after verbs and expressions A can, do, may,’must, shall, will:
They coutd do it today. I may as well start at once. He will probably object.
r\
need and dare, except when they are conjugated with do/did or will/would:
D
21H
219
23 Infinitive
You needn ’i say anything but You don’I/won’t need to say anything.
I dared not wake him but / didn ’t/wouldn’(dare (to) wake him. In theory the to is required in the last example but in practice it is often omitted. The theory is that if dare and used are treated as auxiliaries, they take the bare infinitive like most auxiliaries. If they are treated*as ordinary verbs, with do/did etc., they take the full infinitive like ordinary verbs.
C feel, hear, see and watch:
/ heard htm lock the door. 1 saw/watched him drive off. But see and hear in the passive take the full infinitive:
He was seen to enter the office. He was heard to say that. . . But feel, hear, see and watch are more often used with present participles:
/ heard them shouting. (See 273.)
D let takes the bare infinkive in both active and passive. But let in the passive is often replaced by another verb: They let me know . . . would be replaced in the passive by / was tcld . . . and They let him see the documents by He was allowed to see them.
The infinitive/infinitive phrase after let is sometimes dropped to avoid repetition:
She wants to go out to work but he won’t let her (go out to work). let is used without an object in the expression:
Live and let In* (For let us/let’s used for imperatives and suggestions, see 281. 289.)
E make i:
make in the active takes the bare infinitive: t
He made me move my car. But in the passive it takes the full infinitive:
/ was made to move my car.
Sometimes the infinitive after make (active) is dropped to avoid repetition.
Why did you tell him? ~ He made me (tell him)! An infinitive after make (passive) can be represented by its to:
/ was made to (tell him).
F would rather/sooner, rather/sooner than (see 297-8): Shall we go today? -I’d rather wait till tomorrow. Rather/Sooner than risk a bad crossing, he postponed his journey.
G had better (see 120):
’You had better start at once.’ he said.
H help may be followed by a full or bare infinitive: He helped us (to) push it.
I If two infinitives are joined by and, the to of the second infinitive is normally dropped:
/ intend to sit in the garden and write letters. .1 want you to stand beside me and hold the torch.
220
K
»>« and except take th. K 23 laa*^
”Twssr–^-*.
’&ztt£::’*Z!sS’-**»*~.- ^^p^«««««.”i….
-•*•*> »o out wait
*4Xl-j-««
”–**«££:£:*”*•’*•-
247 The infinitive represented by its to An infinitive can h- ~-
An -ftocnieo by its to
’
””^Jwaifc ’”•l>e«»’«l»a«IU»
•fi’~-i«^*/r ;*”*-»
S^^Sr–^
^^st^r7**-
* ^ to’*******.
248 Split infinitives
SSFtr.tX^i’K:’*’.-.
PClU|y* often pbced afters ^* rehwd
%:&££&?-**
*&£?fZ3SF~*
* *,££•-•«»«*.**
L. 221
250
A
23 Infinitive
B The infinitive can also be used as a connective Btft without only, and without any idea of misfortune:
He returned home to learn that his daughter had just become
engaged.
But this use is mainly confined to such verb* as find, hew, learn, •ee, be told etc., a* otherwise there might be confusion between an infinitive tmcd connc< lively and an infinitive of purpose.
50 The infinitive used to replace a relative clause A The infinitive can be usea after the first, the second etc., the las*, the only and sometimes after superlatives (see 77):
He loves parties; he is always the first to come and the last to lea#e.
(the first who comes and the last who leaves)
She was the only one to survive the crash, (the only one who
survived)
Infinitives used in this way replace subject pronoun + verb. Compare with infinitive used to replace object pronoun + verb, as in B below. Note that the infinitive here has an active meaning. When a passive sense is required a passive infinitive is used:
He is the second man to be killed in this way. (the second man who
was killed)
the best play to be performed that year (the best play that was
performed that year) Compare this with:
the best play to perform (the best play for you to perform/the play
you should perform) B 1 The infinitive can be placed after nouns/pronouns to show bow they can
be used or what is to be done with them, or sometimes to express the
subject’s wishes (see 77):
/ have letters to write, (that I must write)
Does he get enough to eat?
Have you anything to say? (that you want to say)
AT THE CUSTOMS: / have nothing to declare, (that I need to declare)
a house to let (a house that the owner wants to let)
Similarly with infinitives + prepositions:
someone to talk to a case to keep my records in
cushions to sit on a glass to drink out of
a tool to open it with a table to write on
2 Use of passive infinitive
There is plenty to do =»
(a) plenty of things we can do, i.e. amusements, or
(b) plenty of work we must do.
In the there -f be + noun’pronoun + infinitive construction, when there is an idea of duty, as ,n (b) above, a passive infinitive is possibM
There is a lot to be done. But the active infinitive is more usual. I
222 ^^^^
a» TfcMn*.e after certain,, *3’”«•*<
.ttS^ * ”- -* * * **».. SOTO or ambition desire *$”” n<tuest
=s :~- J. -X.
*-*»• ** sir –
failure
offer
plan
promise
refusal
request
scheme
willingness wish
252
A
1
„ – – – re/usal
His ability to get on with people is his chief asset. He made an attempt/effort to stand up. Failure to obey the regulations may result in disqualification. Their offer/plan/promise to rebuild the town was not taken seriously. She wa&annoyed by his unwillingness to do his share of the work.
2 The infinitive after too, enough and so … as
A too + adjective/adverb + infinitive
1 too + adjective + infinitive
(a) The infinitive can refer to the subject of the sentence. It then has an active meaning:
You are too young to understand. (You are so young that you cannot understand.)
He was too drunk to drive home. (He was so drunk that he couldn’t drive home.)
(b) The infinitive can also refer to the object of a verb, ft then has a passive meaning:
The plate was so hot that we couldn ’t touch it could be expressed:
The plate was too hot to touch, (too hot to be touched) Note that it, the object of touch in the first sentence, disappears in the infinitive construction, because the infinitive, though active in form, is passive in meaning.
Sometimes either an active or a passive infinitive may be used:
This parcel is too heavy to send/to be sent by post. But this is not always possible, so students are advised to stick to the active infinitive.
for -t- noun/pronoun can be placed before the infinitive in this construction:
The case was too heavy (for a child) to carry The case was too heavy to be carried by a child. (c) The infinitive can refer similarly to the object of a preposition: The grass was so wet that we couldn’t sit on it. The grass was too wet (for us) to sit on. The light is so weak that we can’t read by it. The light is too weak to read by.
223
if; »:
J
23 Infinitive
’ -its^ssstsa.
rrsgi&tasr.–*–’
3 -t^^-ss^-’-”^ ^:r-A—•»”••
•, SsSSS^”—–’-^
”ys^sSSt’”” •
w Or it can ’<*’’”^V « to «”» •
£tr»ra-r£r«i-**’-’”*~
A,,,, a /<»• «•«*« <£ ’ °J a preposition: (cU^an refer to teo^^^
Tfc< if« ”as fhlffe rlujrh to »od *”• ^^^ass^^^
2 ^sr-iSsr -SB^rr^-^–
^iEl’Si-^ES-..
»w»»;*°01”w» ««-»”•
, •-SSSsr.’s*
3 ~vs8£ff&**~
I r w^^ctive*”^^^^’’n’OC*’dn in Bl above, but note
sSg’SiSSSss*-
1 ^rs^5**”-
23 Infinitive
The so … as construction is not very often used as shown above, but it is quite common as a request form:
Would you be so good as to forward my letters? »
Would you be good enough to forward my letters? There is no difference in meaning here between the two forms. It is important not to forget the as. (For other adjective + infinitive constructions, see 26 – 7.)
253 Introductory or final infinitive phrases
Certain infinitive phrases can be placed at the beginning or sometimes at the end of a sentence and are then similar to sentence adverbs (see 40):
To be perfectly frank, you ’re a bad driver.
To be honest. I just don’t like him.
To be fair (to him), he wasn ’t entirely to blame.
To cut a long story short, we said ’No!’
To tell you the truth, I’ve never met him or
I’ve never met him, to tell you the truth.
254 The continuous infinitive A Form
to be + present participle: He seems to be following us. B Use
The continuous infinitive can be used:
1 After the auxiliary verbs:
They ’II be wondering where you are.
He may/might be watching TV. ~ He can ’t/couldn’/ be watching TV. There are no programmes today because of the strike. (negative deduction) He must be coming by bus. (deduction)
You shouldn ’t be reading a novel. You should be reading a textbook.
2 After appear, happen, pretend, seem:
He appears/seems to be living in the area = It appears/seems that he is living in the area. He appeared/seemed to be living in the area It appeared/seemed that he was living in the area. I happened to be standing next to him when he collapsed = It happened that 7 was standing next to him when he collapsed. He pretended to be looking for a book = He pretended that he was looking for a book.
3 After hope and promise and, but less usually, after agree, arrarige, decide, determine/be determined, plan, undertake: / hope/hoped to be earning my living in a year’s time = / hope I will/I hoped I would be earning etc.
225
23 Infinitive
determine/be determined, plan could replace hope above with
slight changes of meaning:
/ promised to be waiting at the door when he came out. agree, arrange, decide, determine/be determined, plan, undertake could be used instead of promise above with slight changes of meaning.
4 After believe, consider, suppose, think etc. in the passive: He is believed to be living in Mexico. (See 306.)
255 The perfect infinitive
A Form
to have + past participle: to have worked, to have spoken
_ \
B Use with auxiliary verbs
1 With was/were to express an unfulfilled plan or arrangement
(see 114):
The house was to have been ready today, (but it isn’t)
2 With should, would, might and could to form the perfect conditional
(see 223):
// / had seen her I should have invited her.
3 With should or ought to express unfulfilled obligation; or, in the negative, a wrong or foolish action (see 143):
He should have helped her. (but he didn’t) / shouldn’t/oughtn’t to have lied to him. (but I did)
4 With should/would like to express an unfulfilled wish (see 296 D): He would like to have seen it. (but it wasn’t possible) or He would have liked to see it. i.e. we can put either verb into the perfect infinitive without changing
the meaning.
5 With could to express past unused ability or past possibility:
7 could have made a lot of money, (but 1 didn’t)
We could/might have phoned her. (Perhaps he (has) phoned.)
(See also 134,138.)
6 With might/could to indicate that the speaker feels upset or indignant
at the non-performance of an action: He might/could have told me! = / am annoyed that he didn ’t tell me. (See 285 D.)
7 With may/might in speculations about past actions: •
He may/might hate left = H
It is possible that he (has) left. (See 133.) •
You might/could have been killed!
8 With can’t/couldn’t to express negative deduction (see 159): He can ’t/couldn ’i have moved the piano himself: We knew he couldn ’t have paid for it, because ht had no money.
R’
9 With must to express affirmative deductidn (see 156): fie must have come this way; here are his footprints.
10 With needn’t to express an unnecessary past action (see also 152-3): You needn ’t have hurried. Now we are too early. You needn’t have cooked it. We could have eaten it raw. C With certain other verbs
1 With appear, happen, pretend, seem
Note the difference between present and perfect infinitives here: Present infinitive:
He seems to be a great athlete = // seems that he is . . . He seemed to be a great athlete = It seemed that he was . . . Perfect infinitive:
He seems to have been . . . = It seems (hat he was . . .
He seemed to have been . . . = It seemed that he had been . . . i.e. the action of the perfect infinitive is an earlier action; it happens before the time of the main verb. Other examples:
/ happened to have driven that kind of car before =
It happened that I had driven that kind of car before.
He pretended to have read the book =
He pretended that he had read it.
2 With the following verbs in the passive voice: acknowledge, believe, consider, find, know, report, say, suppose, think, understand:
He is understood to have left the country. (See 306.)
3 The perfect infinitive is possible but less usual with claim, expect, hope, promise:
He expects/hopes to have finished by June =
He expects/hopes that he will have finished by June.
256 The perfect infinitive continuous A Form
to have been + present participle:
He seems to have been spying for both sides. B Use
It is used chiefly after auxiliary verbs and after appear and seem,, but it can also be used after happen, pretend and the passive of believe, know, report, say, understand:
He says he was talking to Tom. – He couldn’/ have been talking to
Tom. Tom wasn’t there.
I was following Peter closely. – You shouldn ’t have been following
him closely; you should have left a good space between the tuv cars.
He appears to have been waiting a long time =
It appears that he has been waiting a long time.
He pretended to have been studying =
He pretended that he had been studying.
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