Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

English teachers were once satisfied if they could prevent their pupils from splitting infinitives.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 29, 2015

The unsplit versions sound more elegant to me, though I can't be sure that my ears haven't been contaminated by a habit of cravenly unsplitting infinitives to avoid spitballs from the Gotcha!

From The Guardian • Aug. 15, 2014

In that language, infinitives were an unsplittable single word: to split is dilaminare.

From Time • Aug. 1, 2014

And English verb forms, like past participles, gerunds and infinitives, can be difficult to master, since Chinese verbs are unchanging.

From New York Times • Feb. 4, 2012

Here’s a list of words that shouldn’t be followed by infinitives: anxious: / was anxious about going.

From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner