Learn English – Can infinitives be used as Subject Complements and Object Complements

infinitives

Infinitives in sentences are qualify verbs, nouns, adjectives etc. and can be replaced with adjectives, adverbs.

Is it possible to use infinitives as object or subject complements in sentences?
Please consider these sentences. Here I've used passive past infinitives as subject complement of each verb:

  1. He appeared to be punished for what he did.
  2. He is to be received the money.

Also, here infinitives are used as complement of its object:

  1. I allow him to go.
  2. I found this question to have been solved by someone.

Again, can we use infinitives as this way in sentences? I'm little confused about infinitives and the ways its usage in sentences.

Best Answer

He appeared to be punished for what he did.

This is correct. You can also say He appeared to have been punished if you want to emphasize that the punishment happened in the past.

He is to be received the money.

This is incorrect. You can say He is to receive the money or He is to have received the money, but it doesn't make sense to use the passive infinitive form of receive in this sentence.

I allow him to go.

This is fine.

I found this question to be solved by someone.

This is incorrect. Because found is past tense, the infinitive must also be past tense. So you could say I found this question to have been solved by someone. But it's more common to say I found this question solved by someone.

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