53. Verb + ing (enjoy doing/ stop doing etc.) ENGLISH GRAMMAR IN USE FOR INTERMEDIATE

ENGLISH GRAMMAR IN USE FOR INTERMEDIATE

53. Verb + ing (enjoy doing/ stop doing etc.)

A	Look at these examples: ·         I enjoy reading. (not I enjoy to read) ·         Would you mind closing the door? (not mind to dose) ·         Chris suggested going to the cinema. (not suggested to go) After enjoy, mind and suggest, we use -ing (not to ... ). Some more verbs that are followed by –ing stop postpone admit avoid imagine finish consider deny risk fancy ·         Suddenly everybody stopped talking. There was silence. ·         I'll do the shopping when I've finished cleaning the flat. ·         He tried to avoid answering my question. ·         I don't fancy going out this evening. (= I'm not enthusiastic about it) ·         Have you ever considered going to live in another country? ·         They said they were innocent. They denied doing anything wrong. The negative form is not -ing: ·         When I'm on holiday, I enjoy not having to get up early.
B	We also use -ing after: give up(= stop) put off(= postpone) go on or carry on (=continue) keep or keep on (=do something continuously or repeatedly) ·         I've given up reading newspapers. I think it's a waste of time. ·         Catherine doesn't want to retire. She wants to go on working. (or ... to carry on working.) ·         You keep interrupting when I'm talking! or You keep on interrupting ..
C	With some verbs you can use the structure verb+ somebody+ -ing: ·         I can't imagine George riding a motorbike. ·         You can't stop me doing what I want. ·         Did you really say that? I don't remember you saying that. ·         'Sorry to keep you waiting so long.' 'That's all right. 'Note the passive form (being done/seen/kept etc.): ·         I don't mind being kept waiting. (= I don't mind people keeping me ... )
D	When you are talking about finished actions, you can say having done/stolen/said etc. : ·         They admitted having stolen the money. But it is not necessary to use having (done). You can also say: ·         They admitted stealing the money. ·         I now regret saying (or having said) what I said.
E	After some of the verbs on this page (especially admit/deny/suggest) you can also use that ... : They denied that they had stolen the money.    (or They denied stealing ... ) Chris suggested that we went to the cinema.    (or Sam suggested going ...)

EXERCISES

53.1	Complete the sentences for each situation using -ing. 1 A: What shall we do? B: We could go to the zoo She suggested ___going to the zoo ______ 2 A: Do you want to play tennis? B: No, not really. He didn't fancy ______________________________ 3 A: You were driving too fast. B: You're right. Sorry! She admitted ________________________________ 4 A: Let's go swimming. B: Good idea! She suggested ________________________________ 5 A: You broke the DVD player. B: No, I didn’t! He denied ________________________________ 6 A: Can you wait a few minutes? B: sure, no problem. They didn't mind ________________________________
53.2	Complete each sentence with one of the following verbs (in the correct form): answer apply be forget listen live lose make pay read try use 1 He tried to avoid ____answering___ my question. 2 Could you please stop ______ so much noise? 3 I enjoy ______ to music. 4 I considered ______ for the job, but in the end I decided against it. 5 Have you finished ______ the newspaper yet? 6 We need to change our routine. We can't go on ______ like this. 7 I don't mind you ______ my phone, but please ask me first. 8 My memory is getting worse. I keep ______ things 9 I've put off ______ this bill so many times. I really must do it today. 10 What a stupid thing to do! Can you imagine anybody ______ so stupid? 11 I've given up ______ to lose weight- it's impossible. 12 If you gamble, you risk ______ your money.
53.3	Complete the sentences so that they mean the same as the first sentence. 1 I can do what I want and you can't stop me. You ___can’t stop me doing_____what I want. 2 It's not a good idea to travel during the rush hour. It's better to avoid _____________________ during the rush hour. 3 Shall we paint the kitchen next weekend instead of this weekend? Shall we postpone _______________________ until next weekend? 4 Could you turn the music down, please? Would you mind _____________, please? 5 Please don't interrupt all the time. Would you mind __________________ all the time?
53.4	Use your own ideas to complete these sentences. Use -ing. 1 She's a very interesting person. I always enjoy ___talking to her. _______________ 2 I'm not feeling very well. I don't fancy __________________ 3 I'm afraid there aren't any chairs. I hope you don't mind __________________ 4 It was a beautiful day, so I suggested __________________ 5 It was very funny. I couldn't stop __________________ 6 My car isn't very reliable. It keeps __________________

ANSWER KEY

53.1 2 playing tennis 3 driving too fast 4 going swimming 5 breaking the DVD player 6 waiting a few minutes 53.2 2 making 3 listening 4 applying 5 reading 6 living 7 using 8 forgetting 9 paying 10 being 11 trying 12 losing 53.3 2 travelling 3 painting the kitchen 4 turning the music down 5 not interrupting 53.4 Example answers: 2 going out 3 sitting on the floor 4 having a picnic 5 laughing 6 breaking down