Verb + -ing or to ... 3

Like / Love / Hate + -ing or to …

When you talk about repeated actions, you can use -ing or to … after like, love, and hate. Both forms are correct.

• Do you like getting up early? or Do you like to get up early?
• Stephanie hates flying. or Stephanie hates to fly.
• I love meeting people. or I love to meet people.
• I don’t like being kept waiting. or I don’t like to be kept waiting.
• I don’t like friends calling me at work. or I don’t like friends to call me at work.

When You Must Use -ing

Use -ing (not to …) when you talk about a situation that already exists or existed.

• Tom works at our London office. He likes living there. (He lives there now and he likes it.)
• Do you like being a project manager? (You are a project manager — do you like it?)
• The open-plan office was noisy. I hated working there. (I worked there and I hated it.)

Like Doing vs. Like to Do

There is sometimes a difference between I like doing and I like to do.

Structure	Meaning	Example
like doing	I do it and I enjoy it	I like organizing the team calendar. (= I enjoy it.)
like to do	I choose to do it (but I don’t always enjoy it)	It’s not my favourite task, but I like to organize the team calendar as often as possible.

Enjoy and Mind Always Take -ing

Use -ing (not to …) after enjoy and mind. There is no choice here.

• I enjoy reviewing the monthly reports. (not I enjoy to review)
• I don’t mind staying late on Fridays. (not I don’t mind to stay)

Would Like / Would Love / Would Hate / Would Prefer

Would like, would love, would hate, and would prefer are usually followed by to …:

• I‘d like to go over the contract before the meeting.
• What would you like to do this afternoon?
• I wouldn’t like to manage that department alone.
• I‘d love to meet the new clients.
• *Would you prefer to eat now or after the presentation?*

I Like vs. I’d Like

Do not confuse I like (general enjoyment) with I’d like (I want something now or in the future).

	Meaning	Example
I like	general — I enjoy it	I like working from home. / I like to work from home.
I’d like	specific — I want to	I‘d like to work from home tomorrow.

Would Mind + -ing

Would mind is followed by -ing (not to …):

• *Would you mind closing the door, please?* (not mind to close)
• *Would you mind sending me the report by noon?*

Would Like to Have Done

I would like to have done something = I regret now that I didn’t or couldn’t do it.

• It’s a shame we didn’t see the warehouse. I would like to have seen it before we signed the lease.
• We‘d like to have gone to the conference, but we were too busy.

The same structure works after would love, would hate, and would prefer:

• Poor David! I would hate to have been in his position during that restructure.
• I‘d love to have gone to the product launch, but it was impossible.
• We‘d prefer to have travelled by train instead of flying.

Summary Table

Structure	Form	Example
like / love / hate + -ing or to …	repeated actions	I love working with this team. / I love to work with this team.
like / love / hate + -ing only	existing situation	He likes living in the new office.
enjoy / mind + -ing only	always -ing	I enjoy attending workshops.
would like / love / hate / prefer + to …	specific wish or preference	I‘d like to leave early today.
would mind + -ing	polite request	*Would you mind forwarding me the email?*
would like to have + past participle	regret about the past	I‘d like to have joined the call.

Quick Self-Check