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Syntax » Focus & Content » Traditional Grammar » Parts of Speech » Infinitival ''to''

Syntactic Theory


The Infinitival Marker to

General characteristics:

  • Infinitival to precedes a base form verb.
  • The distribution is like that of auxiliaries, but in infinitival clauses:
    • position between the subject and the verb phrase
      1. It is crucial [for John to show an interest].
      2. It is crucial that John should show an interest.
    • ellipsis
      1. I know I should [go to the dentist’s], but I just don’t want to.
      2. I don’t really want to [go to the dentist’s], but I know I should.


Categories: Glossary


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