Infinitive without to

The Infinitive without to – Examples

After the following we use the infinitive without to:

1. after auxiliaries/modals

• can

  I can help you.

• could

  We could do this together.

• may

  I may be better at the weekend.

• might

  I might be better at the weekend.

• must

  I must go now.

• mustn’t

  You mustn’t park there.

• needn’t

  You needn’t stay at work any longer.

• shall

  We shall overcome the obstacles.

• should

  You should see a doctor.

• will

  She will meet me at the station.

• would

  She would wait for me everyday at the gate.

2. after the auxiliary do

• do

  All I did was for nothing.

3. after the following structures

• had better

  You had better tidy up that mess.

• would rather

  I would rather talk about it later.

• would sooner

  I would sooner visit the dentist than talk to him.

• why not

  Why not buy her flowers for her birthday?

• why should we

  Why should we wait any longer?

• why should we not

  Why should we not go now?

4. after verbs of perception + object + infinitive (action has finished)

• feel

  She felt the hot sun burn her skin.

• hear

  I heard the doorbell ring.

• notice

  Susan noticed the boy jump over the wall.

• see

  She saw him climb onto the roof.

• watch

  I watched the police arrest the criminals.

5. after let

• let + object + infinitive without to

  Sandy lets her children stay up very late.

• let’s

  Let’s go for a walk.

6. after make + object + infinitive without to

• make

  She made him give the money back.