Infinitive

Infinitive

An infinitive is the base form of a verb that is usually used with “to”, such as to eat, to go, to read, to learn. It does not show tense (time) and is not affected by the subject; it simply expresses an action in a general way. An infinitive can work like a noun, an adjective, or an adverb in a sentence.

For example: “I want to learn English.” (Here, to learn shows what I want.) “She has a book to read.” (Here, to read describes the book.) “He came to help me.” (Here, to help shows the reason.) So, whenever you see “to + verb,” it is often an infinitive that gives extra meaning to the sentence.

हिंदी में, Infinitive (क्रिया का मूल रूप) वह verb होती है जो सामान्य रूप में “to + verb” के साथ आती है, जैसे to eat, to go, to read, to learn। इसमें समय (tense) या subject का प्रभाव नहीं होता, यह केवल क्रिया का सामान्य रूप बताती है। यह वाक्य में संज्ञा, विशेषण या क्रिया विशेषण की तरह काम कर सकती है।

उदाहरण: “I want to learn English.” (यहाँ to learn बताता है कि मैं क्या चाहता हूँ।) “She has a book to read.” (यहाँ to read किताब के बारे में बताता है।) “He came to help me.” (यहाँ to help आने का कारण बताता है।) इसलिए जब भी आप “to + verb” देखें, तो वह अक्सर infinitive होती है जो वाक्य को और स्पष्ट बनाती है।

1. To-Infinitive 

A to-infinitive is formed by using “to + base verb (V1)”, such as to learn, to eat, to go. It is the most common form of infinitive and is used to express actions in a general way without showing tense. It can tell us what someone wants, likes, decides, or plans to do.

For example: “I want to learn English” (यहाँ to learn बताता है कि मैं क्या चाहता हूँ), “She likes to sing” (यह उसकी पसंद बताता है), and “He decided to leave early” (यह उसका निर्णय बताता है). So, whenever you see to + verb, it is usually a to-infinitive that adds meaning to the sentence.

हिंदी में, जब हम “to + verb” का प्रयोग करते हैं, तो उसे To-Infinitive कहते हैं। जैसे to learn, to sing, to leave। यह किसी इच्छा, पसंद या निर्णय को व्यक्त करता है।

उदाहरण: “I want to learn English” (मैं क्या चाहता हूँ), “She likes to sing” (उसे क्या पसंद है), “He decided to leave” (उसने क्या निर्णय लिया).

2. Bare Infinitive 

A bare infinitive is the base form of a verb used without “to”, such as speak, go, wait. It is used after modal verbs (like can, may, must), and after some verbs like make, let. For example: “I can speak English” (modal verb can के बाद verb बिना to आता है), “She made me wait” (यहाँ wait बिना to है), and “Let him go” (यहाँ भी go बिना to है). So, when a verb comes without “to” after certain helping verbs, it is called a bare infinitive.

हिंदी में, जब verb बिना “to” के प्रयोग होती है, तो उसे Bare Infinitive कहते हैं। यह can, may, must जैसे modal verbs या make, let के बाद आता है। जैसे: “I can speak English”, “She made me wait”, “Let him go”.

Uses of Infinitive

A. Infinitive as a Subject

Infinitive as a Subject means using the base form of a verb with “to” (to + verb) at the beginning of a sentence to act as the subject (the doer or main focus of the sentence).

For example: “To learn English is important.” Here, “To learn English” is the subject because it tells us what is important. We use an infinitive as a subject when we want to talk about an action in a general way, not about a specific person doing it.

It helps us focus on the action itself. Sometimes, to make the sentence sound more natural, we use “it” at the beginning, like: “It is important to learn English.” This structure is more common in daily use because it sounds smoother and easier to understand.

हिंदी में, जब हम “to + verb” (जैसे to learn, to play) का प्रयोग वाक्य के शुरुआत में करते हैं और वह वाक्य का मुख्य विषय (subject) बन जाता है, तो उसे Infinitive as a Subject कहते हैं। जैसे: “To learn English is important.” यहाँ “To learn English” subject है क्योंकि यही बताता है कि क्या महत्वपूर्ण है। इसका उपयोग तब किया जाता है जब हम किसी क्रिया (action) को सामान्य रूप में बताना चाहते हैं, न कि किसी विशेष व्यक्ति के बारे में। लेकिन बोलचाल में वाक्य को आसान और प्राकृतिक बनाने के लिए हम अक्सर “it” का प्रयोग करते हैं, जैसे: “It is important to learn English.” यह structure ज्यादा सामान्य और आसान लगता है।

Infinitive as an Object means using the “to + verb” form (called an infinitive) as the object of a verb in a sentence. In simple words, when you have a verb like want, like, try, decide, plan, etc., and after that you use to + verb, it works as the object (the thing affected by the action).

For example: “I want to learn English.” Here, “want” is the main verb, and “to learn English” is the object because it tells what I want.

Another example: “She decided to start a business.” In this sentence, “to start a business” is the object of “decided.” So, whenever you see a sentence where to + verb comes after a verb and answers “what?”, it is an infinitive working as an object.

हिंदी में, “Infinitive as an Object” का मतलब है कि to + verb (जैसे to learn, to eat, to go) का प्रयोग वाक्य में object (कर्म) के रूप में किया जाता है। जब हम किसी verb जैसे want, like, try, decide, plan के बाद to + verb लगाते हैं, तो वह उस verb का object बन जाता है।

उदाहरण: “I want to learn English.” यहाँ “want” verb है और “to learn English” उसका object है, क्योंकि यह बताता है कि मैं क्या चाहता हूँ।

एक और उदाहरण: “She decided to start a business.” यहाँ “to start a business”, “decided” का object है। इसलिए जब भी to + verb किसी verb के बाद आकर “क्या?” का उत्तर देता है, तो वह infinitive object के रूप में काम करता है।

C. Infinitive to Show Purpose

Infinitive to show purpose means using “to + verb” to explain why someone does something. It answers the question “why?” in a sentence. For example: “I study hard to pass the exam.” Here, “to pass” tells us the purpose of studying. Similarly, “She went to the market to buy vegetables” — “to buy” shows the reason for going. So, whenever you see to + base verb, it often tells the purpose of an action in a simple and clear way.

हिंदी में, Infinitive to show purpose का मतलब है “to + verb” का प्रयोग करके यह बताना कि कोई काम क्यों किया जा रहा है। यह “क्यों?” (why) का उत्तर देता है। जैसे: “I study hard to pass the exam.” यहाँ “to pass” यह बताता है कि पढ़ाई क्यों की जा रही है। इसी तरह, “She went to the market to buy vegetables” — यहाँ “to buy” जाने का उद्देश्य बताता है। इसलिए, जब भी आप to + verb देखें, तो समझिए कि वह काम के उद्देश्य (purpose) को दिखा रहा है।

D. Infinitive After Adjectives

“Infinitive after adjectives” means we use to + verb (base form) after an adjective to explain a feeling, reaction, or situation more clearly. This structure helps us tell why someone feels a certain way or what the situation is about. The common structure is: Subject + be verb + adjective + to + verb. For example, “I am happy to see you.” Here, “happy” is an adjective, and “to see” (infinitive) tells the reason for happiness.

Another example is, “She is ready to start her work,” where “to start” explains what she is ready for. So, this structure connects an adjective with an action and makes the sentence more meaningful and complete.

It is difficult to solve this question.

(इस सवाल को हल करना कठिन है।)

Function in the sentence:

E. Infinitive After Question Words

Infinitive after question words means we use a question word like what, where, when, how, who + to + verb (infinitive form) to express an idea in a short and clear way, especially when we are talking about something we should do or need to know. Instead of making a full question sentence, we use this structure to make it simple.

For example: “I don’t know what to do.” (instead of “What should I do?”), “She is thinking about where to go,” and “He explained how to solve the problem.” In all these sentences, the structure is: question word + to + verb, which helps in speaking and writing more naturally and easily.

हिंदी में, “Infinitive after question words” का मतलब है कि हम what, where, when, how, who जैसे प्रश्नवाचक शब्दों के बाद to + verb (infinitive) का प्रयोग करते हैं ताकि बात को आसान और छोटा बनाया जा सके। यह संरचना तब उपयोग होती है जब हमें यह बताना होता है कि क्या करना है, कहाँ जाना है, या कैसे करना है।

जैसे: “I don’t know what to do” (मुझे नहीं पता क्या करना है), “She is thinking about where to go” (वह सोच रही है कहाँ जाना है), और “He explained how to solve the problem” (उसने समझाया कि समस्या को कैसे हल करना है)। यहाँ संरचना होती है: question word + to + verb, जो भाषा को सरल और प्रभावी बनाती है।

• I don’t know where to go. (“where to go” is an noun phrase used in place object)
• (मुझे नहीं पता कहाँ जाना है।)
• Tell me what to write. (“what to write” is an noun phrase used in place object)
• (मुझे बताओ क्या लिखना है।)