Verbs of Perception with Infinitive and Gerund

A verb of perception is...

• an action that is related to the five senses. For example: Hear, see, watch and notice.

• an action that is related to your perspective. For example: Think, notice, understand.

• an action that is related to the way you see things. For example: perceive, notice, look.

• an action that is related to feelings. For example: sense, feel, understand, perceive.

Gerunds are...

• verbs that end in -ing and are used with verbs of perception to indicate an action I saw, heard, watched, or noticed partially. Example: I saw a man painting a house as we drove by Elm Street.

• verbs that are not conjugated and are used with verbs of perception to indicate an action I saw, heard, watched, or noticed from beginning to end. Example: I saw a man paint a picture in just five minutes.

Infinitives are...

• verbs that end in -ing and are used with verbs of perception to indicate an action I saw, heard, watched, or noticed partially. Example: I saw a man painting a house as we drove by Elm Street.

• verbs that are not conjugated and are used with verbs of perception to indicate an action I saw, heard, watched, or noticed from beginning to end. Example: I saw a man paint a picture in just five minutes.

I heard him ________ in his room as we passed by to go to the living room. (heard part of the action)

• to sing

• singing

• sing

• sang

Jarod heard the baby __________ for a few minutes. (heard the entire action)

• crying

• to cry

• cry

• cried

Maria felt an insect __________ her leg as she approached the bushes. (felt the entire action)

• bite

• biting

• to bite

• bitten

Bob heard me ___________ to my friends via Zoom, but he didn't know they were there, so now he thinks I speak to imaginary people. (heard part of the action)

• speak

• speaking

• to speak

• spoken

I saw a man ___________ a picture. (The entire action)

• paint

• painting

• to paint

• painted

We saw a man ___________________ a house yesterday as we drove by Avenida Shyris. (part of the action)

• paint

• painting

• to paint

• painted