Infinitive
An infinitive, is a verb that lacks finiteness, which basically means that either it lacks a subject or it is a subject. It is a type of verbal. There are two infinitives in English; a bare infinitive and a to-infinitive. Somewhat confusingly, either of these may be referred to simply as "the infinitive" without further specification.
Name | Example | Notes |
---|---|---|
Bare infinitive | He made me do it!
We can do it! |
|
To infinitive | I want to go to the park
To complain would show disrespect. |
The infinitive is identical in form to the base form, however the base form is finite as it always has a subject (though this may be an implied subject, especially in imperative mood).
In most other European languages, there is only a single infinitive is a single word, e.g. "to play" is "jouer" in French. Hence the prescriptivist split infinitive rule.
Infinitives can express aspect; a perfect infinitive is has the form "to have done something" while a progressive infinitive is "to be doing something".
Full modal verbs do not have infinitives. For example one cannot say *"to can"; one would have to employ a different way of achieving the same task, e.g. by using "to be able to" or "to be allowed to". See infinitive of a modal verb.