gerund - übersicht

Gerund or Infinitive?

1.) The Gerund has to be used after certain

verbs: to consider, to dislike, to enjoy, to finish, to imagine, to mention, to practise, to keep, to suggest etc.

verbs + preposition: to agree with, to apologize for, to ask about/for, to consist of, to decide for/against, to insist on, to rely on, to succeed in, to take part in etc.
adjectives + preposition: to be crazy about, to be disappointed about, to be famous for, to be used to, to be worried about, to be against/for, to be impressed by, etc.

NOTE: Some adjectives can also be used without the preposition but have to be followed by the infinitive instead, e.g. to be afraid of, to be angry about/at, to be glad about/of, to be interested in, to be proud of, to be sorry for.

noun + preposition: advantage of, choice between, difficulty in, doubt about, experience in, interest in, possibility of, reason for, trouble in, etc.

NOTE: Some nouns can also be used without the preposition but have to be followed by the infinitive instead, e.g. necessity of, intention of, chance of, opportunity of, idea of, plan of, hope of, way of, etc.

prepositions: after (nachdem, nach), before (ehe, bevor), on/upon (als, nachdem, wenn), in (während, indem), by (dadurch daß; damit), for (dafür, daß; damit), without, instead of, in spite of, at (darüber daß), from (wegen), because of, since (seitdem)
expressions: It's no good. / It is no use. / It is worth ... / can't help / can't resist / to be busy / to be like / to be near

2.) Gerund or Infinitive can be used without a change of meaning after:

begin, cease, continue, intend, start, attempt, propose

3.) Gerund or Infinitive can be used with a slight change of meaning:

like, love, prefer, hate + Gerund = like/dislike in general
like, love, prefer, hate + Infinitive = like/dislike in a specific case

4.) Change of meaning

*to remember*	+ Gerund + Infinitive	sich erinnern, etwas getan zu haben sich erinnern, etwas zu tun
to stop	+ Gerund + Infinitive	aufhören, etwas zu tun innehalten; etwas Neues tun
*to go on*	+ Gerund + Infinitive	etwas weitermachen etwas (Neues) als nächstes tun
to try	+ Gerund + Infinitive	etwas probieren sich bemühen (versuchen), etwas zu tun
*to regret*	+ Gerund + Infinitive	bereuen, etwas getan zu haben bereuen, etwas tun zu müssen
to forget	+ Gerund + Infinitive	vergessen, etwas getan zu haben vergessen, etwas zu tun