Study materials
Two sentences, the same verb, different forms. And you did not choose them.
I want to go home.
I enjoy going home.
The first verb dictates the form. So verbs are best remembered not alone but together with whatever they pull along.
Two lists, learned in pairs
The commonest verbs split into two groups by what they pull along behind them.
| They take ing | They take to |
|---|---|
| enjoy, avoid, finish | want, decide, hope |
| mind, suggest, keep | plan, promise, offer |
| practise, imagine, deny | agree, refuse, manage |
She enjoys reading before bed.
They decided to move to another city.
The lists are not worth cramming column by column. A verb is learned together with its pattern, as a phrase: avoid doing, manage to do.
After a preposition it is always ing
Here is the one rule in this topic that works without exceptions. If a preposition stands before the action, the form can only be ing.
She's good at solving problems.
Thank you for coming.
He left without saying a word.
There is one trap: in the fixed phrases look forward to, be used to and object to, that to is a preposition as well. So an ing follows, not a base form.
I look forward to hearing from you.
The verbs that do not mind
There is a small group where both forms are correct and the meaning is the same. These are the verbs about tastes and about starting.
I like reading. I like to read.
Love, hate, prefer, start, begin and continue behave the same way.
The mistakes everyone makes
The first is putting to after a verb from the first list.
I enjoy to read. → I enjoy reading.
The second is putting a base form after a preposition.
She's good at to cook. → She's good at cooking.
The third is confusing the preposition to with the particle to.
I look forward to hear from you. → I look forward to hearing from you.
All three are caught by one glance to the left of the action. What is there: a verb from the lists, a preposition, or a modal?
Try it right now
Make three English sentences about this evening: what you want, what you enjoy, and what you avoid.
Then add a fourth starting with After. If the ing went in by itself, the rule is already working.