Español — infinitive uses
In Spanish the infinitive does far more than name the verb. It works as a noun, follows every preposition, and combines with another verb to build meaning. Because it never changes form, it is the ending -ar, -er or -ir that carries the sense while the surrounding words tell you what job it is doing.
How it works
The infinitive can be the subject or object of a sentence, often with the article el, as in El fumar perjudica la salud (smoking harms your health). It always follows a preposition without changing: sin despedirse (without saying goodbye), antes de salir (before leaving). Al + infinitive means "on/upon doing": Al entrar, encendió la luz (on entering, he turned on the light). Many verbs link directly to it, quiero descansar (I want to rest), while others need a preposition, empezó a llover (it started to rain).
Examples
| Structure | Example | Use / meaning |
|---|---|---|
| el + infinitivo | El fumar perjudica la salud. | Infinitive as a noun: the act itself (smoking). |
| al + infinitivo | Al entrar, encendió la luz. | On/upon doing something (at the moment of). |
| de + infinitivo | De haberlo sabido, no habría ido. | Conditional value: if / had it been so (formal). |
| preposición + infinitivo | Se fue sin despedirse. | After any preposition the verb stays in the infinitive. |
| verbo + infinitivo | Quiero descansar un poco. | Some verbs link directly, with no preposition. |
| verbo + preposición + infinitivo | Empezó a llover de repente. | Other verbs require a fixed linking preposition (a, de, en…). |
Good to know
Where English uses the -ing form after a preposition, Spanish uses the infinitive, never the gerund: say antes de salir, not "antes de saliendo". A frequent learner mistake is to pair the wrong preposition with a verb: it is empezar a llover, not "empezar de llover" — the linking preposition is fixed by the verb and must be memorized with it.