[Grammar] to have or having

[Laudator]

Everyone seems really happy to have / having him back. (He has already come back.)

Which one should I use, to have or having, and why?

 

[Matthew Wai]

I would use 'to have', a to-infinitive.

 

[emsr2d2]

If you change the word order, it would be possible to use "having".

Having him back made everyone happy.

 

[Laudator]

Thank you. But why is that? Grammatical or simply conventional?

 

[tedmc]

Everyone seems really happy having him back.

I think "having him back" implies something on-going, which does not suit the context. It is a one-off happening.
The gerund works in other contexts but not this.

 

[Matthew Wai]

I think 'having' is a present participle rather than a gerund in the above post.

Thank you. But why is that? Grammatical or simply conventional?

I consider 'adjective + to + gerund' ungrammatical with some exceptions like 'be accustomed/used to doing something'.

 

[Laudator]

I think 'having' is a present participle rather than a gerund in the above post.


I consider 'adjective + to + gerund' ungrammatical with some exceptions like 'be accustomed/used to doing something'.

Yeah, I know. What I meant was to replace "to have" as a whole by "having", not simply "have". tedmc has already answered my question, but thank you anyway.

 

[tedmc]

OK, that was a participle.
"Everyone seems really happy working." - looks fine to me.