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https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/explore-english-language-culture/2/steps/20258

Now watch the interview with Sir Richard. Are his answers what you predicted in the last step?

As you watch the video, make notes about the things that are mentioned. There will be a quiz on the next step to test you on what you heard.

Don’t forget, you can watch the video more than once if you need to.

© British Council

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Language work - 'ing' forms

Watch Nicole talk about some of the language you heard in the interview.

Read the information about -ing forms and infinitives:

the -ing form

We can use the -ing form of the verb:

as a noun:

I love swimming.
Swimming is very good for your health.
You can get fit by swimming regularly.

after a preposition:

By having a blast.
I’ve always been interested in learning languages.

after some verbs

We enjoy cooking and going to the cinema.

Common verbs followed by an -ing object are:

admit, like, hate, start, avoid, suggest, enjoy, dislike, begin, finish

After verbs like see, watch, hear, smell etc.

I heard someone playing the piano.
I can smell something burning.

the infinitive

We use the infinitive (‘to __’)

after certain verbs, particularly verbs of thinking and feeling: choose, decide, expect, forget, hate, hope, intend, learn, like, love, mean, plan, prefer, remember, want, would like, would love

I’m hoping to find out the secret of his success

I’d like to learn more about the history of his companies.

… and verbs of saying:
agree, promise, refuse

He promised not to tell anyone.
She agreed to do the extra work for a small fee.

after certain adjectives.

We use ‘to ___’ after many adjectives including:

disappointed, glad, sad, happy, anxious, pleased, surprised, proud, unhappy, able, unable, due, eager, keen, likely, unlikely, ready

We were happy to come to the end of our journey.
Unfortunately I was unable to work for over a week.

We often use the to-infinitive after these adjectives to give opinions:
difficult, easy, possible, impossible, hard, right, wrong, kind, nice, clever, silly

It’s easy to play the piano, but it’s very difficult to play well.
He spoke so quickly it was impossible to understand him.

Do you have any questions about the use of the -ing form or the infinitive? Share your thoughts and questions with other learners in the comments below.

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Keep in touch

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Five ways to continue your learning with the British Council

Here are five ways you can keep in touch and continue your learning journey with the British Council.

1 Join the global community

You can still engage with people all over the world to develop your understanding of language and culture.

If you haven’t already, join the community on the LearnEnglish website. Every month the LearnEnglish website is visited by over one million learners of English. You can become a member and contribute to the site, interact with other users and download free resources. Or join our LearnEnglish Facebook community with over 1.9 million fans.

If you’re a teacher of English, why not join our TeachingEnglish Facebook community with over 3 million fans?

2 Use our other resources

The British Council has a wide range of free resources for both learners of and teachers of English.

On the LearnEnglish website you can find hundreds of pages of audio, stories, games and video content and over 2,000 interactive exercises to help you improve your English.

On the TeachingEnglish website teachers of English can download lesson plans and resources for use in classrooms and get information about professional development, conferences and qualifications.

If you are particularly interested in literature after this course, you can find ideas on how to use literature in your classes with all ages, including lesson plans about Shakespeare.

3 Attend a seminar

You can learn about the latest developments in English language teaching by attending a British Council seminar, either face-to-face or via live-streaming. For example, here is one about the English language used by Shakespeare: Speaking the bright and beautiful English of Shakespeare

4 Take another course

You can find out about the British Council’s face-to-face English courses in your country here: http://www.britishcouncil.org/learn-english

You can also take an online teacher training course with the British Council. We have a wide range of online courses to help you with your professional development, tailored to different language levels and different career stages.

5 Come to the UK to study

Join the estimated 600,000 international students who come to the United Kingdom every year to improve their English language skills. The UK has high-quality courses for all ages and abilities, teaching English in a fun and inspiring way. See more at the Education UK site

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The Greatest Paintings that changed the World