⚙️ Grammar · Verb Patterns: -ing & Infinitives
Verbs + To-Infinitive (Want, Decide, Hope)
Other verbs demand “to” plus the base form straight after them — learn which ones, and how they differ from the -ing group.
Grammar › Verb Patterns: -ing & Infinitives › Verbs + To-Infinitive (Want, Decide, Hope)
The rule in one sentenceAfter verbs like want, decide, hope, plan and promise, the next verb takes “to” + base form — never the -ing form.
What’s going on here?
Just like the -ing group, a second family of verbs always sends the verb after it into the to-infinitive — “to” plus the plain base form. There’s no shortcut to knowing which family a verb belongs to; you learn it verb by verb, and want, decide, hope, plan, promise, agree, offer and refuse are some of the most common members of this group.
Real film examples fix the pattern in your head: I want to watch Ivanhoe this weekend. Ingmar Bergman decided to film the Faith trilogy in Sweden. The star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves hopes to win more major awards for committed performances. Each time, “to” sits directly between the two verbs.
The to-infinitive naturally points forward to something not yet done — a plan, a wish, an intention. That forward-looking sense is exactly why verbs about wanting, deciding, hoping, promising and planning all attract it: they’re all about things that haven’t happened yet.
🎬 Compare: “I want to watch Spartacus tonight” (want + to-infinitive, a specific plan) vs. “I enjoy watching Quo Vadis in general” (enjoy + -ing, a general preference).
Two verbs, two different families — and two different meanings, specific plan vs general habit.
Like the -ing group, this pattern stays fixed across every tense: He wants to direct, he wanted to direct, he has always wanted to direct a spy thriller like The Age of Shadows.
How to build it
The pattern
Timothée Chalamet wants to watch Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives with the sound design cranked up.
The studio didn’t want to reveal the ending of Cleopatra (1963) early.
didn’t + want + to + base verbDo you want to watch King Arthur (2004) this weekend?
Do/Does + subject + want + to + base verbCommon verbs followed by to-infinitive
- decide: Ingmar Bergman decided to film the Faith trilogy in Sweden.
- hope: The star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves hopes to win more awards for its committed performances.
- promise: The studio promised to release sequel news for The Sword in the Stone soon.
- agree / offer / refuse / manage / afford / arrange / learn / expect / choose: The star of The Adventures of Robin Hood agreed to headline the swashbuckling adventure.
When to use which
Verbs that need to-infinitive
- want: I want to watch Ivanhoe this weekend.
- decide: They decided to postpone The Ten Commandments premiere by a week.
- hope, plan, promise, agree, offer, refuse, manage, afford: all these pair with “to” + base verb, no exceptions.
Watch out: these look similar but take -ing
- enjoy: I enjoy watching El Cid.
- finish: Have you finished watching Water?
- mind, avoid, suggest, consider: all pair with -ing instead — see our companion lesson on verbs + -ing.
Signal verbs: memorise this list
These verbs are always followed directly by “to” + base verb. Learn them as a group.
Visual guide
Teacher Teddy’s illustrated guide to this rule is being drawn — the full swipe-through infographic will appear here soon.
Common mistakes
❌ I want watching Ivanhoe this weekend.
✅ I want to watch Ivanhoe this weekend.
“Want” is always followed by “to” + base verb, never the -ing form.
❌ Ingmar Bergman decided filming the Faith trilogy in Sweden.
✅ Ingmar Bergman decided to film the Faith trilogy in Sweden.
“Decide” belongs to the to-infinitive group in every tense.
❌ The star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves hopes winning more awards for its performances.
✅ The star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves hopes to win more awards for its performances.
“Hope” never takes -ing, only “to” + base verb.
❌ The studio promised not revealing the ending of The Florida Project.
✅ The studio promised not to reveal the ending of The Florida Project.
The negative infinitive is “not to” + base verb, not “not” + -ing.
Exceptions & tricky cases
1. “Would like/love” + to-infinitive vs “like/love” + -ing. “Would like” or “would love” for a specific, polite wish always takes “to”; plain “like” or “love” for a general preference usually takes -ing.
✅ I’d like to watch Spartacus tonight. ✅ I love watching Quo Vadis in general.
2. Verb + object + to-infinitive. Verbs like want, ask and tell can take an object before the “to” verb — the object, not the subject, does the second action.
✅ The director wanted the cast to train hard before filming The Adventures of Robin Hood.
3. “Help” accepts both, with barely any difference. Unusually, help is comfortable with or without “to” before the base verb.
✅ The score by Michael Nyman helps (to) build tension throughout The Piano.
4. The negative infinitive goes “not to”, never “to not”. Keep “not” directly before “to”.
✅ The studio promised not to reveal the twist in The Florida Project before release.
Practice: pick the right form
Eight quick questions on verbs followed by the to-infinitive.
1. I really want ___ Ivanhoe this weekend.
“Want” is always followed by “to” + base verb.
2. Ingmar Bergman decided ___ the Faith trilogy in Sweden.
“Decide” takes the to-infinitive, whatever the tense.
3. The star of Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves hopes ___ more awards for its committed performances.
“Hope” is always followed by “to” + base verb.
4. The studio promised ___ the ending of The Florida Project.
The negative infinitive is “not to” + base verb.
5. I’d like ___ Spartacus tonight, if that’s alright with you.
“Would like” for a specific, polite wish always takes the to-infinitive.
6. I love ___ Quo Vadis in general — its style is unmistakable.
Plain “love” for a general preference usually takes -ing rather than the to-infinitive.
7. The director wanted the cast ___ hard before filming The Adventures of Robin Hood.
“Want + object + to-infinitive” — the object does the second action.
8. The star of The Adventures of Robin Hood agreed ___ the swashbuckling adventure.
“Agree” is always followed by “to” + base verb.
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