Struggling to vary your sentence structures? Verbals are what you need because they can function as a noun, an adjective, and even an adverb —that’s a lot of uses! Here is a closer look at how you can integrate verbals in your next writing session.
What Are Verbals
Verbals are words that come from verbs, and as mentioned earlier, they function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. Generally, they are not the main action of a sentence per se, but they can be part of a main verb phrase, though.
And, yes, there are different kinds of verbals. You have gerunds, infinitives, and participles.
Gerund
A gerund is basically a verb that ends with “-ing” and acts like a noun in a sentence. You can throw gerunds in wherever you’d typically use a noun.
Tip: Gerunds and present participles look the same since they both end in “-ing,” but they have different grammatical functions. The main difference is their role within the sentence. If the “-ing” word acts as a noun, it’s a gerund. If it describes something or is part of a verb phrase, then it’s a participle.
Examples:
- Swimming is my favorite form of exercise.
- I enjoy reading mystery novels before bed.
How to Use a Gerund?
There are three ways to use gerunds in your writing. Here is a closer look at each one:
If you want to try gerunds, you can also use this simple prompt in ChatGPT, Gemini, or other AI tools.
Rewrite the sentence below three times using a gerund: once as the subject, once as the direct object, and once as a subject complement.
[insert sentence]As a Subject
As mentioned earlier, a gerund can be the subject of a sentence (it takes the place of a noun that usually performs the action). You have to make sure that the verb that comes after it should be in singular form, and yes, even though the gerund itself indicates an activity.
For instance, “Running helps clear my mind.”
- Gerund: Running is the subject
- Singular verb: Helps
You can also use gerund phrases as subjects, which include the gerund plus any modifiers or objects.
“Cooking elaborate meals takes patience and practice” shows how a gerund phrase works as a complete subject. This construction lets you discuss activities and concepts in an active, engaging way.
Tip: There are coordinated gerunds (Running and swimming are my favorite hobbies). In this case, you would use a plural verb.
As a Direct Object
Aside from being the subject, you can also use gerunds as direct objects that receive the action of the main verb in a sentence. Certain verbs commonly take gerunds as their objects, including enjoy, finish, consider, avoid, and suggest.
When you say, “She finished writing her thesis,” the gerund “writing” receives the action of the verb “finished.”
Tip: Some verbs can take either gerunds or infinitives as objects, sometimes with different meanings. “I stopped smoking” means you quit the habit, while “I stopped to smoke” means you paused your activity in order to smoke.
As a Subject Complement
A subject complement goes after a linking verb and either renames or describes the subject. Gerunds are a perfect fit for this position, particularly after forms of “to be.”
In “My favorite hobby is painting,” the gerund “painting” completes the subject “hobby” through the linking verb “is.” This structure lets you define the subject in terms of an activity.
“The hardest part of learning a language is practicing consistently” shows how a gerund phrase works as a subject complement. It’s a straightforward way to explain what something is or what it involves.
Infinitive
The second type of verbal that you can use is an infinitive. Essentially, it is just the base form of a verb, usually preceded by the word “to.” Infinitives can function as:
- Nouns
- Adjectives
- Adverbs
Unlike gerunds, infinitives keep the original verb form without any endings added.
Infinitives can be:
- Full
- Bare
- Split
- Passive
- Continuous
Examples:
- I want to learn Spanish before my trip.
- She has the ability to solve problems quickly.
Want to try infinitives? You can use this prompt:
Rewrite the sentence below four times using an infinitive: once as full infinitive, once as bare infinitive, once as split infinitive, once as a passive infinite, and once as a continuous infinitive.
[insert sentence]How to Use Full Infinitives
Full infinitives include the word “to” before the base verb form. They can function in several different ways within a sentence, giving you flexibility in how you construct your ideas.
As the Subject
Yes, you can use a full infinitive as the subject of your sentence. However, the construction is a bit formal. “To forgive is divine” uses the infinitive as the subject. You can rearrange the sentence using “it” as a placeholder: “It is divine to forgive.”
After Adjectives
Full infinitives often follow adjectives to show the reason behind a feeling or quality. In the sentences “I’m happy to help” and “She was eager to start the project,” both use infinitives to explain the emotion. You’ll see this pattern all the time in everyday speech and writing.
As a Direct Object
Many verbs take infinitives as their direct objects. Verbs such as want, need, plan, hope, and decide commonly appear with infinitives.
For example: “They decided to postpone the meeting” shows the infinitive functioning as the object of “decided.” Keep in mind that some verbs require an object before the infinitive, as in “She asked me to call her tomorrow.”
To Express Purpose
Infinitives frequently indicate the purpose or reason for an action. “I went to the store to buy milk,” explains why you went. You can also use “in order to” for emphasis, though the simple infinitive usually works fine on its own.
How to Use Bare Infinitives
Bare infinitives drop the “to” and use just the base form of the verb. They appear in specific grammatical contexts where the “to” would sound awkward or incorrect.
After Modal Verbs
Modal verbs (can, could, should, would, may, might, must, will) always take bare infinitives. You say “I can swim” rather than “I can to swim.” The same applies to all modals: “She should leave,” “They might arrive late,” or “You must finish your homework.”
After Certain Verbs
Some verbs need bare infinitives to work properly. “Let” is one of them: “Let me explain.” The verb “make” also uses bare infinitives when it causes something to happen: “The movie made me cry.” Perception verbs like see, watch, hear, and feel follow the same pattern when you’re describing a complete action: “I saw him leave.”
With the Expression “Had Better”
“Had better” always pairs with a bare infinitive: “You had better hurry” or “We had better check the weather.” Even though it contains a verb, “had better” works like a modal verb in sentences.
How to Use Split Infinitives
So, what about split infinitives? Well, a split infinitive occurs when you place an adverb between “to” and the verb. The famous example is “to boldly go” from Star Trek.
And yes, traditional grammar rules once prohibited split infinitives, but modern usage accepts them when they make the sentence clearer or more natural.
For example, “I want to really understand this concept” emphasizes the degree of understanding better than “I really want to understand this concept,” which changes the emphasis to the wanting.
Tip: Use split infinitives when moving the adverb would create ambiguity or awkwardness, but try to avoid them when the unsplit version sounds just as good.
How to Use Passive Infinitives
Now, what if you have “to be” along with the past participle of a verb? Well, that’s a passive infinitive, and it puts the spotlight on the person or thing receiving the action rather than the one doing it.
For example, in the sentence “The report needs to be reviewed,” the passive infinitive brings attention to the report instead of the person doing the reviewing.
You could also say “She wants to be promoted,” which highlights her getting the promotion rather than the people who will promote her.
Tip: You’ll often see passive infinitives in formal writing or situations where the doer isn’t known or isn’t the main focus.
How to Use Continuous Infinitives
Continuous infinitives indicate an action in progress relative to another verb, not necessarily right now. And, as you might have expected, they follow the pattern of “to be” plus the present participle.
For example, when you say, “He appears to be sleeping,” it means he’s in the middle of a snooze at this very moment. You could also say “They seem to be enjoying themselves” to talk about something fun that’s going on.
Tip: These continuous infinitives are handy for talking about actions that are taking place at a certain time or that last a while.
Participle
The last type of verbal that you can incorporate in your writing is a participle, which is essentially a verb form that functions as an adjective, modifying nouns or pronouns.
Participles come in two ways:
- Present participles (ending in “-ing”)
- Past participles (usually ending in “-ed,” though irregular verbs have different endings).
Tip: Participles can appear as single words or as part of participial phrases that include objects and modifiers.
Examples:
- The barking dog kept the neighborhood awake all night.
- Exhausted from the hike, we collapsed on the couch.
You can use this prompt to see whether or not a participle works with your text:
Rewrite the sentence below six times using a participle: once as a present participle, once as a present participle in the continuous tense, once as a present participle in the perfect continuous tense, once as a past participle, once as a past participle in perfect tense and once as a past participle in passive voice.
[insert sentence]How to Use a Present Participle
Present participles are those “-ing” words that show something happening at the same time as the main action or highlight a special quality.
When you use a present participle to modify a noun, you can place it right before the noun (“the running water”) or as part of a phrase after it (“the water running down the street”).
In general, these are the rules to create a present participle form:
| Rule | Example |
| Add “-ing” to most verbs | walk → walking, talk → talking |
| Drop silent “e” before adding “-ing” | make → making, write → writing |
| Double final consonant after short vowel | run → running, sit → sitting |
| Change “ie” to “y” before adding “-ing” | lie → lying, die → dying |
What about a participial phrase? Well, at the start of a sentence, a participial phrase needs to connect to the subject that follows clearly.
For example, in “Walking down the street, I noticed a new café,” the participial phrase is correctly linked to “I.” However, if the participial phrase is misplaced, it can cause confusion, like in the sentence “Walking down the street, the café looked inviting,” which wrongly implies that the café was the one walking.
How to Use a Present Participle in the Continuous Tense
Present participles combine with forms of “be” to create continuous (or progressive) tenses, which describe actions in progress. These tenses put the focus on an action ongoing at a particular time.
| Tense | Structure | Example |
| Present Continuous | am/is/are + present participle | She is studying for her exams. |
| Past Continuous | was/were + present participle | They were watching television when I called. |
| Future Continuous | will be + present participle | I will be traveling next week. |
These tenses make your writing more interesting by showing how long something lasts or if it’s just for a little while. For example, “I work in marketing” tells a general truth, but “I am working in marketing” could mean it’s just a short-term thing.
How to Use a Present Participle in the Perfect Continuous Tense
The perfect continuous tenses use “have been” or “had been” along with a present participle to indicate actions that went on for a while before another time. These forms highlight how long the action lasted and that it was ongoing.
| Tense | Structure | Example |
| Present Perfect Continuous | have/has been + present participle | I have been studying French for three years. |
| Past Perfect Continuous | had been + present participle | She had been working there for a decade before she retired. |
| Future Perfect Continuous | will have been + present participle | By next month, they will have been renovating for six months. |
Tip: This tense is helpful in indicating how long something has been happening and for creating a sense of action that continues up to a certain time.
How to Use a Past Participle
Past participles function as adjectives to describe a state or condition resulting from an action. Regular past participles end in “-ed,” but irregular verbs have various endings. “The broken window” uses the past participle to describe the window’s current state.
| Rule | Example |
| Add “-ed” to regular verbs | talk → talked, walk → walked |
| Change “y” to “i” and add “-ed” | try → tried, carry → carried |
| Double final consonant after short vowel | stop → stopped, drop → dropped |
| Irregular verbs have unique forms | go → gone, see → seen, write → written |
Something to keep in mind when using past participles: They appear before nouns (“the excited children”) or in phrases after nouns (“the children, excited by the news, couldn’t sit still”). You can also use them to begin sentences: “Raised in a small town, she appreciated the quiet pace of life.”
How to Use a Past Participle in the Perfect Tense
Perfect tenses use the words “have,” “has,” or “had” along with past participles to indicate actions or states that are technically finished but still matter to another time. In essence, this tense is helpful for showing how different events relate to each other in time.
| Tense | Structure | Example |
| Present Perfect | have/has + past participle | I have finished the assignment. |
| Past Perfect | had + past participle | She had already left when I arrived. |
| Future Perfect | will have + past participle | They will have completed the project by Friday. |
Tip: The past perfect shows which of two past events happened first. On the other hand, the future perfect describes what will be completed by a certain future time.
How to Use a Past Participle in Passive Voice
Passive voice is made up of a form of “be” and a past participle, which highlights the person or thing receiving the action instead of the one doing it. For example, in the sentence “The letter was written yesterday,” the focus is on the letter, not on who wrote it.
Tip: If you find yourself overusing passive constructions and want to make your writing more direct, check out this passive to active voice converter tool that can help you identify and revise passive sentences.
Final Thoughts
There you have it! Verbals are powerful tools to construct varied, sophisticated sentences. Plus, they help convey your ideas with greater precision and style and show your command of English grammar.