 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
236
expressed by a finite verb and carries grammatical information about the person, number, tense, voice, modal,
attitudinal and aspective (phasal) meaning of the whole predicate.
The compound verbal predicate
The compound verbal phasal predicate
§ 51. The compound verbal phasal predicate denotes the beginning, duration, repetition or cessation of the
action expressed by an infinitive or a gerund. It consists of a phasal verb and an infinitive or a gerund,
Accordingly its first component may be a phasal verb of:
1.Beginning:
to begin, to start, to commence, to set about, to take to, to fall to, to come.
Andrew and he began to talk about the famous clinic.
Jack started training out at Hogan’s health farm.
So I took to going to the farm.
He fell to poking the fire with all his might.
I come to think that you are right.
2. Duration:
to go on, to keep, to proceed, to continue.
The talk kept running on the possibility of a storm.
As we continued to laugh his surprise gave way to annoyance.
3. Repetition:
would, used (denoting a repeated action in the past).
Alfredo used to talk to me about it.
During her small leisure hours she would sit by the window or walk in the fields.
4. Cessation:
to stop, to finish, to cease, to give up, to leave off.
The band had ceased playing.
Give up smoking.
Note the difference in the functions of the gerund and the infinitive after the verb to stop:
She stopped talking to him. (part of a compound verbal phasal predicate) - Она перестала с ним
говорить.
She stopped to talk to him. (an adverbial modifier of purpose) - Она остановилась, чтобы поговорить с
ним.)
The compound verbal modal predicate
§ 52. The compound verbal modal predicate consists of a modal part and an infinitive (or a gerund). It
shows whether the action expressed by an infinitive is looked upon as possible, impossible, obligatory,
necessary, desirable, planned, certain, permissible, etc. In most cases it denotes the attitude to the action of the
person expressed by the subject or by the speaker.
The modal part may be expressed by:
1. A modal verb.