bareinfinitive

The bare infinitive is the base form of a verb used without the particle to. It contrasts with the to-infinitive, which uses to before the verb. In English, bare infinitives appear in several common grammar contexts.

One primary usage is after modal auxiliary verbs such as can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, and must. For example: She can swim. We must leave now. These verbs are followed by the bare form of the main verb.

A second frequent context is after certain verbs of perception or causation, especially with a direct object: see, hear, feel, watch, and listen. Examples include: I saw him leave, She heard the door slam. With some verbs, the bare infinitive signals a complete action, whereas the -ing form can express ongoing action (I saw him running).

Causative constructions also use the bare infinitive: make, let, and have followed by an object and a bare verb. Examples: The teacher made the students repeat the exercise. They let me go. We had the mechanic fix the car.

The verb help sometimes takes a bare infinitive as well: Please help me solve this. Another common construction is would rather (or would sooner), which is followed by a bare infinitive: I would rather go now.

Overall, the bare infinitive is a distinct non-finite verb form used in specific grammatical environments, often after modals, after certain perception or causation verbs, and in particular fixed expressions. Its use is largely a matter of convention and varies by context and dialect.