It is essential to grasp various kinds of verbs in order to perform well in American competitive exams such as the SAT, ACT, and AP English Language. Although it may be relatively simple to identify simple verbs, most students find it challenging with Gerunds, Infinitives, and Participles—that come under the umbrella of non-finite verbs. These verb forms do not express tense and tend to be used like nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. A solid understanding of these ideas can greatly enhance sentence structure, clarity, and variety—skills heavily tested on most standardized tests. Let's take a closer examination of these non-finite verbs and how they work in various situations.

Example:

1. The ministers boast to win the votes.
2. The ministers boast for winning the votes.
3. Let winning be a habit.
4. Let them win.

As maintained by, in these four specimens above, the verb ‘win’ has been used differently according to the structure of the sentence.

The verb is classified as follows:

Main Verb

The main verb is the action done by or on the subject of the verb. Action words are easy to identify. You need to ask the question ‘What is the subject doing?‘

Example:  Richa is playing badminton. Ask the question ‘What is Richa doing?’ the answer is playing- Verb.

Finite Verb & Non-Finite Verb

Finite Verb: A finite verb is limited by the subject, person, number or tense or a number. It is limited or bounded. It changes its form according to the tense. The structural form of finite V3 form: Example:

1. Ram has written a letter.
2. She gave a written statement before the judge.

Non-Finite Verb: A non-finite or infinite verb is unlimited and unbounded. It is the opposite to a finite verb.

Example:  I suspect it was him. Here suspect is limited by person and tense. I want to achieve success. Here achieve is independent of person and tense.

Difference Between Finite and Non-Finite Verb

Types of Non-Finite Verb

Non-Finite Verb is further classified into three

1. Gerund
2. Infinitive
3. Participle

Let’s go through them one by one.

1. Gerund

A Gerund is a non-finite verb that functions as a noun. It is formed by adding ‘ing’ with a verb. (verb -ing) A gerund can be either the subject or object of a sentence. In most cases ‘gerund’ and ‘infinitives’ are easily replaceable.

Example:  I like to swim. I like swimming.

Difference between Gerund and Present participle

The gerund looks exactly the same as a present participle because both have the same form i.e. “verbing” but it is useful to understand the difference between the two.

• The gerund always has the same function as a noun.

Eg. Dancing is a good exercise.

• The present participle has the same function as an adjective or a connector.

Eg. Pinki plays with her dancing doll.

Rule #1: VERBS THAT TAKE GERUNDS OR INFINITIVES AS VERBAL DIRECT OBJECTS

Preposition + Gerund. The gerund is used after certain verbs/phrases that are followed by appropriate prepositions instead of “to”

Examples: 

I was prohibited from go there. (WRONG)

I was prohibited from going there. (CORRECT)

She is confident of get success. (WRONG)

She is confident of getting success. (CORRECT)

Rule #2: VERBS THAT TAKE ONLY GERUNDS AS VERBAL DIRECT OBJECTS

Direct Gerund: Direct Gerund means using Verb+ing directly after the verb without any preposition. The following phrases and certain verbs are followed by a direct gerund. ‘‘Avoid, mind, detest, can’t help, can’t bear, resist, enjoy, resent, stop, start, postpone, defer, worth, prefer, consider, practise, finish, risk, pardon, excuse, forgive, it is no good/use, miss, imagine, regret, anticipate”

Examples:

• She enjoyed to ride on the hills. (WRONG)
• She enjoyed riding on the hills. (CORRECT)
• You should avoid to be extravagant. (WRONG)
• You should avoid being extravagant. (CORRECT)
• It is no use to cry before a callous judge. (WRONG)
• It is no use crying before a callous judge. (CORRECT)

Rule #3: To + Gerund After the preposition “to” 1st form of the verb is used but in certain cases given below “Verb+ing” – Gerund is used. Note the use of gerund correctly with to.- “Be used to, accustomed to, averse to, with a view to, due to, immune to, inclined to, prior to, addicted to, devoted to, in addition to, look forward to, object to, owing to, given to, taken to, disposed to, prone to”

2. Infinitive Verb

The infinitive is a kind of noun with certain features of a verb. “To” is used with the basic form of the verb to generate infinitives. (to+verb1) In English, when we talk about the infinitive we are usually referring to the present infinitive (to+verb1), which is the most common. There are, however, five other forms of the infinitive: the perfect infinitive (to have + verb3), the perfect continuous infinitive (to have been + verb + ing), the continuous infinitive (to be + verbing), the passive infinitive (to be + verb3) & the direct infinitive (verb1).

Rule #1: How + Infinitive

When Infinitive is used to express manner, method or a learning process, it is required to insert “how” before the infinitive resulting in the full structure- “How + to + verb1”

Example

i) He knows to read and write English. (WRONG)

He knows how to read and write English. (CORRECT)

ii) My father taught him to drive a car. (WRONG)

My father taught him how to drive a car. (CORRECT)

Rule #2: Difference between ‘to+verb1’ and ‘for+verbing’

1. “To+verb1” – infinitive is used to mention “purpose” whereas
2. “for+verbing”- for+gerund is used to mention “reason”.

Examples:-

Rekha was punished to come late. (WRONG)

Rekha was punished for coming late. (CORRECT)

In the above sentence “infinitive” is at its incorrect usage since Rekha was punished for the reason (coming late) and not for the purpose.

3. Participle

The participle is a word that is formed from a verb and that ends in -ing (present participle) or -ed, -en, etc. (past participle). In short – Participles are “ing” or “3rd” form of Verb. They are usually of three kinds:

• Present participle (verb -ing)
• Past participle (verb3)
• Perfect participle (having+verb3)

Functions of participles are:-

1. to act as an adjective
2. to act as a connector

Rule #1: Participle as an Adjective Present participle (verbing) is used to mention the nature or habit of a noun or pronoun

Eg. Dancing doll. = A doll that dances Past participle (verb3) is used to mention the condition of a noun or pronoun. Eg. Burnt finger = A finger that is in burnt condition.

Example:

• A print press was seized by the officials. (WRONG)
• A printing press was seized by the officials. (CORRECT)

(Printing – present participle – as an adjective telling the quality or nature of the press. A press that prints)

• Seema returned disappoint. (WRONG)
• Seema returned disappointed. (CORRECT)

(disappointed- past participle – as an adjective telling about the condition of Seema that she was happy or hopeful)

Rule #2: Participle as a connector

A. Present participle (Verbing) is used to connect to clauses when there is no time gap in actions. (i.e Actions happening simultaneously).

Example – I saw a man. He was crossing the road. I saw a man crossing the road. She was studying late at night. She slept on her books. Studying late at night, she slept on her books.

B. Past participle (Verb3) is used to connect the clauses when there is no time gap and the sentence is in passive voice.

Example: Workers were dressed in black. They shouted slogans against the manager.

Dressed in black, workers shouted slogans against the manager.

I was surprised at the news. I rushed to the airport. Surprised at the news, I rushed to the airport.

C. Perfect participle (having+verb3) is used to connect clauses when there is atime gap to show.

Example: The sun rose. Farmers went to their fields. Having the sun risen, Farmers went to their fields. (after the sun had risen then the farmers went to their fields) I passed Intermediate. I got a job in jubilant foodworks. Having passed Intermediate, I got a job in jubilant foodworks. (after I had passed Intermediate, I got a job in jubilant foodworks)

Practice Problems

Q. Directions: The given sentence has been broken up into four different parts. The error, if any, will be in one or more parts of the sentence. Select the option which contains the part of the sentence which is free from an error. If all are incorrect choose Option 5 as your answer.

MGNREGA was described as a “living monument” of Congress failure in address poverty. (A)

Now the government has decided to allocate (B)

an additional ₹40,000 crore to MGNREGA. (C)

This is welcomed as it will provide a semblance of relief during distress in rural India. (D)

Ans: The correct answer is option 1 i.e. Parts B, C, and D are free from error.

• In part A of the sentence the usage of ‘address’ is wrong instead, ‘addressing’.
• Because ‘address’ is a verb, we need a noun after a preposition to make a prepositional object as addressing is a gerund that acts as a noun.

Let’s see examples for more clarity: I am tired of working here. (here ‘working’ is a gerund that is acting as a noun.) She took a deep breath and let it out before addressing her father in a determined voice. (here ‘before’ is a preposition and ‘addressing’ is a prepositional object and it is a gerund too.) So the correct sentence is: MGNREGA was described as a “living monument” of Congress failure in addressing poverty. Now the government has decided to allocate an additional ₹40,000 crore to MGNREGA. This is welcomed as it will provide a semblance of relief during distress in rural India.

Q. Directions: The given sentence has been broken up into four different parts. The error, if any, will be in one or more parts of the sentence. Select the option which contains the part of the sentence which is free from an error. If all are incorrect choose Option 5 as your answer.

The exams were supposed to begin on March 27 (A)

but were postponed owing to the COVID-19 lockdown. Now, These exams (B)

will go on till June 12 and will begin with the Language paper. Also, (C)

Buses will be arranged to pick up and drop the students. (D)

Ans: The correct answer is option 1 i.e. parts B, C, and D are error-free.

• In part A, The usage of ‘Simple infinitive’ is wrong instead of it use ‘perfect infinitive’.
• Perfect infinitive should be used if the action expressed by the infinitive precedes the action of the finite verb.
• So according to the rule given above, Instead of using ‘to begin’ use ‘to have begun’
• Let’s see an example: She denied to have seen them yesterday.

So the correct sentence is: The exams were supposed to have begun on March 27 but were postponed owing to the COVID-19 lockdown. Now, These exams will go on till June 12 and will begin with the Language paper. Also, Buses will be arranged to pick up and drop the students.

Conclusion

It is imperative to master the subtleties of verbs, particularly non-finite forms such as gerunds, infinitives, and participles, to excel in American competitive tests like the SAT, ACT, and AP English Language. Having an in-depth comprehension of these notions can really augment sentence formation, clarity, and expression—prerequisites for achievement in these examinations. With a proper awareness of the differences and correct usage of these verb forms, students are able to enhance their accuracy in grammar and maximize their performance.