Gerunds and Infinitives 

Gerund.- is a noun made from a verb by adding "-ing." The gerund form of the verb "read" is "reading." You can use a gerund as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.

Examples:

• Reading helps you learn English. 
• Her favorite hobby is reading. 
• I enjoy reading. 

Gerunds can be made negative by adding "not."

Examples:

• He enjoys not working.
• The best thing for your health is not smoking.

Infinitives.- are the "to" form of the verb. The infinitive form of "learn" is "to learn." You can also use an infinitive as the subject, the complement, or the object of a sentence.

Examples:

• To learn is important. 
• The most important thing is to learn. 
• He wants to learn. 

Infinitives can be made negative by adding "not."

Examples:

• I decided not to go.
• The most important thing is not to give up.

Both gerunds and infinitives.- can be used as the subject or the complement of a sentence. However, as subjects or complements, gerunds usually sound more like normal, spoken English, whereas infinitives sound more abstract. In the following sentences, gerunds sound more natural and would be more common in everyday English. Infinitives emphasize the possibility or potential for something and sound more philosophical. If this sounds confusing, just remember that 90% of the time, you will use a gerund as the subject or complement of a sentence.

Examples:

• Learning is important. 
• To learn is important. 
• The most important thing is learning. 
• The most important thing is to learn.