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Is there a difference between something that is "prone to collapse" and "prone to collapsing"? The former appears to be more common than the latter - but are they both acceptable?

user214728
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    Both are acceptable. 'Prone to' is usually (but not exclusively) followed by a noun with/without adjective as in 'he is prone to fits of fury,' but can also be followed by a verb. In your example, 'collapse' is a noun while 'collapsing' is a verb form of 'to collapse' that functions as a noun : such a word is called a gerund Google search: 'gerund' Whether to use 'collapse' or 'collapsing' depends on the situation as in 'the roof is prone to collapse *if* a heavy wind blows' / 'the roof is prone to collapsing in a heavy wind.' – English Student Jun 01 '17 at 15:28

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What English Student said, but the answer is that it takes a gerund or a noun, not an infinitive. In this particular case, the infinitive also happens to be the same form as the noun. If it were about eating too much, "prone to eating too much" would be correct, and "prone to eat too much" would be incorrect.

Chuckk Hubbard
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  • You can check any dictionary and they will all list "prone to" + infinitive as correct though – Hannah Jan 21 '21 at 18:25