Watch the sun go down

Question

In the sentence:

I'd like to watch the sun go down

why there is no "to"?

Why not:

I'd like to watch the sun to go down

Possible duplicate of When should a verb be followed by a gerund instead of an infinitive? (see Verbs Followed by Either the Simple Form or the Gerund (no “to”)). — Scott - Слава Україні, Oct 09 '15 at 14:57
See http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/292089/explanation-of-grammatical-structure-is-needed - verb + noun + to-infinitive and verb + noun + bare infinitive — rogermue, Mar 03 '16 at 12:11

score 7 · Answer 1 · answered Oct 09 '15 at 12:41

7

Because it's an exception. An infinitive loses its to when it follows certain verbs like let, hear, feel, watch and some others.

answered Oct 09 '15 at 12:41

A.P.

Is there a name for this class of verbs? – user1359 Oct 09 '15 at 15:04
1

@user1359 Sometimes they are called "verbs of perception". At least verbs like see, hear, watch, feel, smell, notice and some others.
Check out this link: http://www.grammaring.com/see-watch-hear-listen-feel-smell-notice-observe-object-bare-infinitive
– A.P. Oct 09 '15 at 16:59

1 Answers1