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My English teacher doesn't like infinitives and she wants me to replace most if not all of them in my essays. Writing them is habitual for me and I always catch myself writing them but I'm always unsure of how to revise it without sounding awkward.

What are some ways I can replace infinitives in my sentences?

Gio Borje
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    Could you provide an example or five? (Preferably not just of any sentences with infinitives you'd normally write, but of those your teacher has expressly criticized.) Thanks! – RegDwigнt Oct 01 '10 at 10:00
  • Yes, examples please. I don't think your teacher can 'not like infinitives' - rather that there are some particular constructions that she wants you to avoid them in. So to take I.J.Kennedy's example, 'He liked' takes a verbal noun rather than an infinitive, but 'He wanted' must take an infinitive. – Colin Fine Oct 01 '10 at 15:27
  • They are a perfectly valid and important part of the English language. An infinitive or gerund is often interchangeable, though in some cases not. – Noldorin Oct 02 '10 at 19:28
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    You must be using infinitives in places where they aren't supposed to be used. No grammarian (that I have heard of) thinks that infinitives should be avoided as much as possible. Examples are definitely needed. – Kosmonaut Oct 03 '10 at 01:23

2 Answers2

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He liked to eat bananas → He liked eating bananas.

I. J. Kennedy
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You might like this answer to a question on infinitives vs. gerunds.

Community
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J.T. Grimes
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