VOA慢速英语2017--动词和日常用语中的不定式

Verbs and Infinitives² in Everyday Speech

The 1977 movie Star Wars is an American classic, with many memorable³ lines and characters. At one point in the film, the character C-3PO says the following words:

"We seem to be made to suffer. It's our lot in life."

Today, we are going to explore that statement. We are not talking about the meaning behind the statement. Instead, we will study the sentence's grammar.

In particular, we are going to explore verb + infinitive¹ combinations. "Seem to be" -- the words you heard in the movie -- is one such example.

Let's begin with some definitions.

Infinitives and Gerunds

An infinitive is the basic form of the verb. Sometimes it has the word "to" in front of it. In the sentence "I like to study grammar," the words "to study" are an infinitive.

A gerund is the form of a verb that ends in –ing. It acts like a noun. For example, in the sentence "Learning English is fun," the word "learning" is a gerund.

Why are we talking about infinitives and gerunds?

Some verbs can be followed by an infinitive or a gerund. Knowing when to use an infinitive and when to use a gerund is difficult. However, the good news is this: verb + infinitive combinations are more common than verb + gerund combinations.

Moreover, in everyday speech, verbs from four basic groups are often followed by infinitives. These basic patterns can help you learn the hundreds of specific verb + infinitive combinations.

We will now give you examples of three of these basic meaning groups. We will tell you the most common verbs from these groups that you will hear in everyday speech. We will also give you famous examples from American popular culture.

#1 Expressing want or need

Infinitives commonly follow verbs that express want or need. Common examples include the verbs want, like, hope, need and wish.

What do these verb + infinitive combinations sound like in everyday situations? Let's listen to the following conversation:

1: Do you want to see a movie this afternoon?

2: I would like to see a movie, but I don't want to be indoors this afternoon – it's so beautiful outside.

1: How about this evening?

2: That sounds great. I can't stay up late, though, because I need to get up early tomorrow morning.

In the conversation, you heard several examples of verb + an infinitive: "want to see," "like to be," and "need to get up."

American popular culture also gives you more examples of how these structures sound. The 1997 romantic comedy film As Good As It Gets gives you one example:

"You make me want to be a better man."

Here, actor Jack⁴ Nicholson uses the infinitive "to be" after the verb "want."

#2 Expressing Effort

Infinitives often follow verbs that suggest effort. Common examples include the verbs attempt, fail, manage and try.

You can hear examples of these structures in the following conversation about school. Imagine you hear two students speaking with each other. One student did well on a test, and the other student did not do very well:

1: I managed to get an A on the test!

2. Well, I tried to pass the test...

1: Oh! I'm sorry, you didn't do well?

2: Don't worry about it – I'll do better next time. Hey, do you want to play videogames tomorrow?

Here, the speakers used many past tense verbs, "managed" and "tried," for example. Even though the speakers used the past tense, they still used infinitives after the main verb.

We hope you do not play videogames instead of studying!

American popular culture has many examples of try + an infinitive. Consider these lines from the classic American horror film, The Silence of the Lambs. Here, the fictional⁵ Dr. Lecter talks about killing⁶ a person:

"A census⁷ taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti."

In the example, Dr. Lecter uses the infinitive "to test" after the verb "tried."

#3 "Seem" verbs

Infinitives also often follow verbs that are similar to the verb "seem." Common examples include the verbs seem, appear, and tend.

Let's listen to how speakers use these verbs in an everyday situation. Imagine a happy spouse⁸ returns home from a day at the office:

1: You seem to be happy with yourself!

2: I tend to smile when I get good news...

1: Really? What's the news?

2: I got a promotion⁹!

You just heard two examples of a verb + infinitive combination: "seem to be" and "tend to smile."

You might have also noticed that the words from the film Star Wars also fit into this group:

"We seem to be made to suffer. It's our lot in life."

What can you do?

The next time you are watching TV or speaking with an American, try to listen for examples of verb + infinitive. Ask yourself the basic meaning of the verb. Does it fit into one of the groups we talked about today?

Gerunds and infinitives are difficult to learn. But with study and practice, you will master them.

How can you do this? Try to use them as often as you can.

I'm Jill Robbins.

And I'm John Russell.

Words in This Story

lot in life – expression a person's situation in life especially as decided¹⁰ by chance

combination – n. a result or product of combining two or more things or people

conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people: the act of talking in an informal way

manage – v. to succeed in doing (something)

Chianti – n. a dry red wine from Italy

promotion – n. the act of moving someone to a higher or more important position or rank in an organization

1 infinitive   

n.不定词；adj.不定词的

参考例句：

• The use of the split infinitive is now generally acceptable.分裂不定式的用法现在已被广泛接受。
• Modal verbs generally take the bare infinitive.情态动词通常用不带to的不定式。

2 infinitives   

n.（动词）不定式( infinitive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her litmus test for good breeding is whether you split infinitives. 她测试别人是否具有良好教养的标准是看对方是否在不定式的动词前加修饰副词。 来自互联网
• Nouns, adjectives and infinitives can be used as objective complements. 名词，形容词及不定式可用作补语。 来自互联网

3 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

4 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

5 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

8 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？

9 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

10 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。