Verbals 3 — infinitives (to + verb as noun, adjective, or adverb)

Read aloud: 'To synthesize is to converse.' What's the JOB of 'to synthesize' here?

• Affirm: 'to synthesize' is the SUBJECT — acting like a NOUN
• Connect: today we work with INFINITIVES — the third and most flexible verbal

Today we close the verbal triad with INFINITIVES. An infinitive is 'to + verb base.' Unlike gerunds (which always act as nouns) and participles (which always act as adjectives), infinitives can play THREE roles. NOUN-USE: subject ('To synthesize is to converse') or object ('She wants to research'). ADJECTIVE-USE: 'the source TO CITE' (to-cite modifies source); 'a question TO ANSWER' (to-answer modifies question). ADVERB-USE: 'She paused TO THINK' (to-think modifies paused — answers WHY she paused); 'easy TO READ' (to-read modifies easy). The 3-question test: ask which job the infinitive is doing. Is it acting as a noun? An adjective? An adverb? Look at Adichie: 'To tell only a single story is to risk a critical misunderstanding.' BOTH 'to tell' and 'to risk' are infinitive-as-noun (subject and predicate-noun, respectively). Look at Coates: 'The history we choose to remember shapes the future we are able to build.' 'TO REMEMBER' is infinitive-as-adjective (modifies HISTORY); 'TO BUILD' is infinitive-as-adjective (modifies FUTURE). Infinitives are everywhere in academic writing — and they're versatile.

• When the infinitive answers WHY about a verb, it's adverbial.

  model TO CONSIDER is the infinitive. Function: ADVERB — modifies PAUSED (answers WHY she paused). She paused FOR THE PURPOSE OF considering.

  prompt Identify the infinitive and its function: 'She paused to consider the source's argument.'
• Infinitive-as-adjective answers WHICH ONE about a noun.

  model TO PUBLISH is the infinitive. Function: ADJECTIVE — modifies DECISION (which decision? the decision-to-publish).

  prompt Identify the infinitive and its function: 'The decision to publish was difficult.'
• Infinitives as subject + predicate make an academic-register definitional sentence — very common in essay introductions.

  model BOTH TO CORROBORATE (subject) and TO CONFIRM (predicate-noun-equivalent) are infinitives functioning as NOUNS.

  prompt Identify the infinitive and its function: 'To corroborate is to confirm with additional evidence.'

• Pair-share: write 3 sentences, one with infinitive-as-noun, one as-adjective, one as-adverb.
• Cold Call: identify the infinitive and function in 'The source to cite is Adichie's TED talk.'

M-8-F-GR-08-A Chart

MG-5 anchor with infinitive band highlighted in gold; 3 function-uses (noun / adjective / adverb) with example per use. Print-ready 18x24.

MG-5 Chart

Verbal taxonomy anchor (CCSS L.8.1.a): 3-band stacked card. GERUND (-ing form as NOUN). STRUCTURE: -ing verb form functioning as subject, object, or object of preposition. EXAMPLES: 'Researching took weeks.' (subject) / 'She loves researching.' (object) / 'She is interested in researching.' (object of preposition). 3-QUESTION TEST: 'Is the -ing form acting like a noun? Can you replace it with "the activity of X"?' PARTICIPLE (-ing or -ed form as ADJECTIVE). STRUCTURE: verb form modifying a noun. EXAMPLES: 'the cited source' (-ed participle modifying source) / 'walking across the page, the cursor blinked' (-ing participle modifying cursor — but watch for dangling!) / 'the synthesized argument' (-ed participle modifying argument). 3-QUESTION TEST: 'Is the verb-form acting like an adjective? Can you ask which noun it describes?' INFINITIVE (to + verb base as NOUN, ADJECTIVE, or ADVERB). STRUCTURE: 'to' + verb base. EXAMPLES NOUN-USE: 'To synthesize is to converse.' (subject) / 'She wants to research.' (object). EXAMPLES ADJECTIVE-USE: 'the source to cite' / 'a question to answer'. EXAMPLES ADVERB-USE: 'She paused to think.' (modifies paused) / 'easy to read' (modifies easy). 3-QUESTION TEST: 'Is the to-verb acting like a noun? An adjective? An adverb?' Bottom rule: 'A verbal is a verb form doing a non-verb job. Identify the JOB.' Print-ready 18x24.

• Identify the infinitive and label its function (noun / adjective / adverb) in 10 mixed sentences.

  scaffold MG-5 verbal-taxonomy card; 3-question test card
• Rewrite 4 wordy sentences using infinitives. Original: 'For the purpose of synthesizing, she chose three sources.' Revised: 'To synthesize, she chose three sources.'

  scaffold Sentence-transformation template

• Write 3 sentences, each using an infinitive in a different function (noun, adjective, adverb).
• Identify the infinitive function: 'She wrote to clarify her thinking.'

• Restate: infinitives are flexible — they can be nouns, adjectives, or adverbs; identify the JOB
• Preview lesson 9: active vs. passive voice

• Find 5 sentences with infinitives in your synthesis-essay sources. Copy into sentences-I-admire notebook with function labeled (noun / adjective / adverb).