# EN: look forward to + V-ing



## jeeremie

Hi,

Everyone knows the famous sentence "I am looking forward to hearing from you".

I was wondering if I could use it with a different verb, e.g.,  "I am looking forward to working with him again" or "I am looking forward to reading this book"...

Would it make sense?


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## RuK

Absolutely, perfect sense.


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## floise

Bonjour jeeremie,

Yes! One can use *lots* of verbs (in the gerund form) after the expression 'I am looking forward to'.

floise


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## shivaluck

Hello, One of the things I don't really get is the -ing form as follows: "I'm looking forward to seeing you". It's "to seeing you" that I do not quite understand. Would "I'm looking forward to see you" be wrong? Can someone explain this rule to me?
Thanks alot.
Sabine


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## rocstar

It is a fixed form that always starts with: (I am) (She is) (We are) looking forward to + verb in gerund; I am looking forward to meeting Joe.
It can be in past also. She was looking forward to going to the party.
The intention of the verb in gerund is to be taken as infinitive.(That's why it sounds better to you in the infinitive form-I'm looking forward to see you- but it's wrong)

I hope I helped you.

Rocstar


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## berndf

The -ing form serves here as a verbal noun. The -ing form in English has absorbed many some other forms lost in English (like the present participle) but remember that the origin of the form is the same as the -ung form in German or the -ing form in Dutch (e.g. "Omgeving"). Many other Germanic and Romance languages would use the infinitive to express "the action of xxx-ing" as a noun. English uses the -ing form.

The "to" in this case is not the "to" of the full infinitive but a true preposition used with "to look forward to" like in "I am looking forward to my holidays". This probably put you on the wrong track.

I once had the same problem. I invested a bit of time to really understand the logic and origin of this construct.


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## Nariev

English is weird, I'll admit. We have two things that always end in -ing: Present participles and Gerunds.

The present participle acts as a verb:
ex: I am swimming.
This sentence explains the act of swimming.

The gerund acts as a noun:
ex: I like swimming.
In this case, "swimming" is a noun. You aren't currently swimming, but in general, you like the activity.

So in your sentence: "I'm looking forward to seeing you,"
* "I'm looking" is your verb
* "seeing" is your gerund (noun)
* "to" is the preposition. You always say "look forward to" + something

I hope this helps you!


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## FEA

I always thought both "looking forward to see you" and looking forward to seeing you" were correct. Reading this thread I am under the impression I was wrong. Do you confirm that the former option is actually a grammatical mistake?


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## geostan

FEA said:


> Do you confirm that the former option is actually a grammatical mistake?



Yes, it is.

Try this llttle test. I haven't tried it with numerous examples, but it seems to work.

Determine the question that the ...ing form answers. If the preposition is required in the question, chances are the gerund should be used. Otherwise the infinitive.

I want/hope/expect what?  _*to see you*_.

I'm looking forward *TO* what?  - *to seeing you.*

I hope this helps.


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## myrtille1

Hi,

Could you please confirm that after “look forward to hearing from…and further ”, I shall use “ing”. My whole sentence is as follows: “I am looking forward to hearing from you and further discussing (?) about sthg”

Thanks in advance


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## Cannelé

Hi myrtille,

Yes I confirm it, "look forward to hear from you" is a mistake even made by native speakers 

Hope it helps


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## myrtille1

Actually my concern was focused on the second part of the sentence i.e "I_ am looking forward_ ...... *and further discuss*". Shall I also provide "ing" ? Any idea?


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## Cannelé

Oh I'm sorry.. I don't see any reason why you should not but let's wait for a native speaker


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## geostan

I doubt that a native speaker would make this mistake. However, that's not the issue. Yes, the* ing* form would be used for the second verb as well. But, one does not say *discuss about*. _*Discuss*_ requires a direct object.

The sentence would read: _I am looking forward to hearing from you and discussing something further._

Cheers!


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## ladybugg

A native speaker would probably not make that mistake. I understand why you would think "looking forward to see you" is correct, but it is not. The correct phrase is "I'm looking forward to seeing you soon." 

I'm not that good in French yet, so I am sorry if I get this part wrong: in French "to see you" would be an infinitive verb, because of the "to." 

In English, "to seeing you" is the clause/gerund. "I am looking forward" is the action of the sentence. Forget about that sentence for a moment. Let's use: "I am happy to see you." The action within the sentence is "I am happy." I might see you standing there, but that is why I am happy. Same rule applies to the original sentence. What am I doing in the sentence?: I'm waiting for your visit. "I'm looking foward to" is the action in the sentence. "To see you" is the effect. It's what I'm waiting for, it's the end result.

Does this help? I haven't had a grammar class in years, so I can't explain it better than that, but I am 100 percent positive that the correct phrase is "I'm looking forward to seeing you soon."


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## quinoa

Keep in mind some verbs need TO as their own preposition, as othbers want AT and so on :
look forward to your visit / object to your remark  /  get used to the climate

These, when used with a verb as their complement, need ING (which transforms the verb into a noun, a gerund)
Look forward to seeing you  /  I don't object to helping you  / get used to driving on the left


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## gab9

I am looking forward to ... you again

a) see
b) seeing
c) my seeing
d) I can see

là je ne comprends pas pourquoi seeing au lieu de see


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## Lifeisacabaret

seeing


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## gab9

Oui mais je ne comprends pas pour quelle raison
Yes but I don't understand for which reason

Merci d'avance,
Thanks in advance

Cordially,

[…]


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## Enquiring Mind

Hello gab9: I wonder if the grammatical function of "to" is confusing you? "To" in "to seeing" is not part of an infinitive [as in "to see"], it is a *preposition.*
The construction is [*to look forward to*] + *noun*. The ~ing form (the gerund) is the noun form of the verb. French doesn't have the verbal noun ~ing form (seeing is believing, speaking English is easy, no smoking, etc.) and has to use the infinitive, or the abstract noun: I like reading - j'aime lire, j'aime la lecture. But j'aime lisant  ?

I'm looking forward *to* *lunch*, I'm looking forward *to* *hearing* from you, I'm looking forward *to* *my holiday*, I'm looking forward *to** seeing you*, I'm looking forward *to* *going skiing*,  etc.


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## presse-agrumes

Hello eveyone! 

I'm just wondering, what's the more usual using of the -ing form in this case?

- I'm looking forward to getting in touch with the studio manager.
- I'm looking forward to get in touch with the studio manager.

Many thanks!


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## Maître Capello

Seul le gerund est correct :

_I'm looking forward to gett*ing*…_ 
_I'm looking forward to get…_


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## Alkanna

gab 9,

Parce que, comme Nariev l'a expliqué, en anglais:
gérondif (gerund) = nom (noun)

* I look forward to + nom :
I look forward to your visit.
* I look forward to + gérondif :
I look forward to SEEING you.


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## Maître Capello

Attention à ne pas mélanger le _gerund_ anglais et le gérondif français qui sont deux choses différentes grammaticalement parlant et qui ne s'emploient pas du tout de la même façon. Le _gerund_ anglais est la nominalisation d'un verbe. En français, on utilise l'infinitif pour cela et non le gérondif qui se construit avec _en_ suivi du participe présent, cf. FR: Translating the English gerund: gérondif or infinitif?. Il vaut donc mieux éviter de parler de « gérondif » pour l'anglais pour éviter les confusions.

Quoi qu'il en soit, l'expression _look forward to_ doit être suivie d'un nom en anglais. On utilise donc le _gerund_ pour nominaliser le verbe : _I look forward to seeing you_.


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