1. Complimentary Infinitives
Magister Henderson
Latin I

2. What are Infinitives?
The infinitive is a type of verbal noun, similar to a gerund.
It is usually preceded by the particle “to” in English, such as: “to be”, “to have”, “to go”, “to see”, etc.
“Infinitive” comes from the Latin word infinitīvus (“unlimited”) since it is often used to express the basic meaning of a verb, without limiting it to a particular pronoun such as “he”, “she”, or “they”.

3. How are Infinitives Used?
An infinitive cannot be the main verb of a sentence, but it may be used to complete the meaning of certain verbs.
Verbs that may be followed by an infinitive include: “want”, “need”, “can”, “like”, “love”, “ought”, etc.
When it is used this way, it is called a complimentary infinitive.

4. Servus lupum repellere nōn timet.
Infinitives in Latin
Puella legere amat. = The girl loves to read.
Arborem ascendere vult = He wants to climb the tree.
Servus lupum repellere nōn timet.
= The slave is not afraid to drive off the wolf.
The infinitive typically ends in –re.
In Latin it usually precedes the main verb, but it usually follows the main verb in English.

5. Other Uses of the Infinitive
Since it is a verbal noun, the infinitive can also be used as the subject of a sentence.
This called the subjective infinitive.
Errāre hūmānum est.
= To err is human.
-L. Annaeus Seneca

6. Other Uses of the Infinitive
The infinitive can also be used together with an impersonal verb.
Impersonal verbs are verbs that are only used with the pronoun “it”.
The infinitive can also be used as the object of certain verbs, along with a direct object, to show an action performed by the direct object.
This is called the objective infinitive.
We will see both of these uses in coming lessons.