Forum newsfeeds
Forum Newsfeeds


Sites for Teachers

Sites for Teachers


Go Back   UsingEnglish.com ESL Forum > Learning English > Ask a Teacher

Notices

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 13-Apr-2005, 03:59
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default complements of "to be" -gerund, infinitive or simple verb

Please advise:
Which sentence is correct?
The first thing I do in the morning is turning my TV on.
The first thing I do in the morning is turn my TV on.
The first thing I do in the morning is to turn my TV on.
Or
The first thing I do in the morning is I turn my TV on.
Is there a rule to guide me?
Thank you very much
Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 13-Apr-2005, 04:22
Casiopea's Avatar
VIP Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2003
Country: Canada
Posts: 12,997
Current Location: China
First Language: English
Thanks: 0
Thanked 21 Times in 21 Posts
Casiopea is on a distinguished road
Default Re: complements of "to be" -gerund, infinitive or simple verb

The symbol * marks an ungrammatical sentence:

1. *The first thing I do is turning my TV on.
2. *The first thing I do is to turn my TV on.
3. The first thing I do is I turn my TV on.
4. The first thing I do is turn my TV on.

Copular constructions are like Math equations. The left side equals the right side: X = Y.

Sentence 3. is grammatical because "I do" (X) and "I turn" (Y) share the same structure.

3. I do = I turn

Both the left side and right side have a subject (I) and both the left and right side have an unmarked infinitive verb (do, turn). The same holds true for sentence 4.

4. I do = I turn

In contrast, sentence 1. and 2. are ungrammatical. The left side and the right side are different.

1. do * turning
2. do * to turn

"do" is an unmarked infinitive, whereas "turning" has -ing and "to turn" has the infinitive marker 'to'. Both -ing and to carry meaning, or add meaning to the base form of the verb, which makes them different from an unmarked infinitive, and the reason 1. and 2. are ungrammatical.

Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Tags
complements, quotto, bequot, gerund, infinitive, simple, verb

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Whether a Gerund or an Infinitive. Anonymous Ask a Teacher 5 21-Sep-2006 04:27
noun phrases sting Ask a Teacher 1 26-Aug-2004 20:52
infinitive or gerund? carla guaraldi Ask a Teacher 9 15-Apr-2004 21:29
infinitive whl626 Ask a Teacher 9 23-Nov-2003 02:25
Subject of a verb Anonymous Linguistics 10 14-Oct-2003 06:10


New To Site? Need Help?

All times are GMT. The time now is 23:06.


vBulletin, Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.2.0 RC5
Copyright © 2002 - 2008 UsingEnglish.com