Non-finite forms of the verb

Verbals are the forms of the verb intermediary in many of their lexico-grammatical features between the verb and the non-processual parts of speech. Thus, these forms possess some verbal and some non-verbal features.The non-finite forms are four in number, they are: the infinitive, the gerund, participle I and participle II.

The mixed features of these forms are revealed in the principal spheres of the part-of-speech characterisation, i.e. in their meaning, structural marking, combinability, and syntactic functions.

Lexically non-finites do not differ from finite forms. Grammatically the difference between the two types of forms lies in the fact that non-finites may denote a secondary action or a process related to that expressed by the finite verb.

Non-finites possess the verb categories of voice, perfect, and aspect. They lack the categories of person, number, mood, and tense.

None of the forms have morphological features of non-verbal parts of speech, neither nominal, adjectival or adverbial. In the sphere of syntax, however, non-finites possess both verbal and non-verbal features. Their non-verbal character reveals itself in their syntactical functions.

Syntactically the verbal character of non-finites is manifested mainly in their combinability. Similarly to finite forms they may combine with nouns functioning as direct, indirect, or prepositional objects, with adverbs and prepositional phrases used as adverbial modifiers, and with subordinate clauses.

All non-finite verb forms may participate in the so-called predicative constructions, that is, two-component syntactical units where a noun or a pronoun and a non-finite verb form are in predicative relations similar to those of the subiect and the predicate.

The Infinitive

The infinitive is the non-finite form of the verb which serves as the verbal name of a process. It names a process in a most general way. It is considered as the head-form of the whole paradigm of the verb.

Like other non-finite forms of the verb the infinitive has a double nature: it combines verbal features with those of the noun (Fig. 67).

Fig. 67

The verbal features of the infinitive are of two kinds: morphological and syntactical.Morphological: the infinitive distinguishes three grammatical categories sharing them with the finite verb, namely, the aspective category of development (continuous in opposition), the aspective category of retrospective coordination (perfect in opposition), the category of voice (passive in opposition) (Fig. 68).

Fig. 68

Thus, the infinitive of transitive verbs has six forms (Table 7).

Table 7

Forms of the Infinitive

	Active	Passive
Indefinite	to do	to be done
Continuous	to be doing	_________
Perfect	to have done	to have been done
Perfect Continuous	to have been doing	_________

Syntactical features: the infinitive possesses the verb combinability. The verb-type combinability of the infinitive is displayed in its combining, first, with nouns expressing the object of the action; second, with nouns expressing the subject of the action; third, with modifying adverbs (Table 8).

The combinability of the infinitive reflects its dual semantic nature. The noun-type combinability of the infinitive is displayed in its syntactical functions. It performs almost all syntactical functions characteristic of the noun, although in each of them it has certain peculiarities of its own (Table 8).

Table 8