A. If
a preposition (in/for/about etc.) is followed by a verb, the verb ends in ~ing.
For example:
Are you
interested in working for us?
I'm not
very good at learning languages.
She must
be fed up with studying.
What are
the advantages of having a car?
This
knife is only for cutting bread.
How
about playing tennis tomorrow?
I bought
a new bicycle instead of going away on holiday.
Carol
went to work in spite of feeling ill.
You can
also say 'interested in somebody (do)ing .....', fed up with you (do)ing...'
etc.:
* I'm
fed up with you telling me what to do.
B.
Note the use of the following prepositions + ~ing:
before
~ing and after ~ing:
* Before
going out, I phoned Sarah. (not 'Before to go out')
* What
did you do after leaving school?
You can
also say 'Before I went out ...' and '... after you left school'.
by ~ing
(to say bow something happens):
* The
burglars got into the house by breaking a window and climbing in.
* You
can improve your English by reading more.
* She
made herself ill by not eating properly.
without
~ing:
* I ran
ten kilometer without stopping.
* They
climbed through the window without anybody seeing them. (or ... without being
seen.)
* She
needs to work without people disturbing her. (or ... without being disturbed.)
* It's
nice to go on holiday without having to worry about money.
C. To
~ing
To is
often part of the infinitive (to do/to see etc.):
* We
decided to go out.
* Would
you like to play tennis?
But to
is also a preposition (like in/for/about/from etc.). For example:
* We
drove from London to Edinburgh.
* I
prefer tea to coffee.
* Are
you looking forward to the weekend?
If a
preposition is followed by a verb, the verb ends in ~ing; (in doing/about going
etc.- see Section A). So, when to is a preposition and it is followed by a
verb, you must say to ~ing:
* I prefer
driving to travelling by train. (not 'to travel')
* Are
you looking forward to seeing Ann again? (not 'looking forward to see')
For
be/get used to ~ing, see Unit 60.
EXERCISES
59.1
Complete the sentences so that they mean the same as the sentence(s) in
brackets.
1. (Why
is it useful to have a car?)
What are
the advantages of _having a car_?
2. (I
don't intend to lend you any money.)
I have
no intention of ---
3.
(Helen has a good memory for names.)
Helen is
good at ---
4. (Mark
won't pass the exam. He has no chance.)
Mark has
no chance of ---
5. (Did
you get into trouble because you were late?)
Did you
get into trouble for ---
6. (We
didn't eat at home. We went to a restaurant instead.)
Instead
of ---
7. (Tom
thinks that working is better than doing nothing.)
Tom
prefers working to ---
8. (They
got married. They didn't tell any of their friends.)
They got
married without ---
9. (Our
team played well but we lost the game.)
Our team
lost the game in spite of ---
59.2
Complete the sentences using by ~ing. Use one of the following (with the verb
in the correct form): borrow too much money
break a window drive too fast put
some posters up on the walls stand on a
chair turn a key
1. The
burglars got into the house _by breaking a window._
2. I was
able to reach the top shelf ---
3. You
start the engine of a car ---
4. Kevin
got himself into financial difficulty ---
5. You
can put people's lives in danger ---
6. We
made the room look nicer ---
59.3
Complete the sentences with a suitable word. Use only one word each time.
1. I ran
ten kilometers without _stopping._
2. He
left the hotel without --- his bill.
3. It's
a nice morning. How about --- for a walk?
4. I was
surprised that she left without --- goodbye to anyone.
5.
Before --- to bed, I like to have a hot drink.
6. We
were able to translate the letter into English without --- a dictionary.
7. It
was a very long journey. I was very tired after --- on a train for 36 hours.
8. I was
annoyed because the decision was made without anybody --- me.
9. After
--- the same job for ten years, I felt I needed a change.
59.4 For
each, situation write a sentence with I'm (not) looking forward to.
1. You
are going on holiday next week. How do you feel about this?
_I'm
looking forward to going on holiday._
2. Diane
is a good friend of yours and she is coming to visit you soon. So you will see
her again soon. How do you feel about this?
I'm ---
3. You
are going to the dentist tomorrow. You don't like visits to the dentist. How do
you feet about this?
I'm not
---
4. Carol
is a student at school. She hates it but she is leaving school next summer. How
does she feel about this? ---
5. You've
arranged to play tennis tomorrow. You like tennis. How do you feel about this?
---
Answer
59.1
2
lending you any money.
3
remembering names.
4
passing the exam.
5 being
late?
6 eating
at home, we went to a restaurant.
7 doing
nothing.
8 telling
any of their friends.
9
playing well.
59.2
2 by
standing on a chair.
3 by
turning a key.
4 by
borrowing too much money.
5 by
driving too fast.
6 by
putting some posters up on the walls.
59.3
2
paying 3 going
4
saying 5 going
6 using
7
travelling/being
8
telling
9
doing/having
59.4
2 I'm
looking forward to seeing her.
3 I'm
not looking forward to going to the dentist.
4 She's
looking forward to leaving school (next summer).
5 I'm looking
forward to playing tennis (tomorrow).
