Gerunds are Nouns
Form: VERB+ing
Negative: not VERB+ing
Examples:
Reading good literature increases your vocabulary. (subject)
His favorite thing to do is reading comic books. (complement)
She loves reading romance novels. (object)
He was arrested for robbing the local jewelry store. (object of preposition)
The trek will last a week and involves hiking over twenty miles through mountains and forests. (object)
I understand buying an SUV if you have a large family to haul, but it doesn't make much sense, otherwise. (object)
Sara enjoys not working. (object)
 
A possessive pronoun can come before a gerund:
I hope that you appreciate his offering you this opportunity. Verbs before gerunds

admit	advise	appreciate	avoid	can't help
can't see	complete	consider	defend	delay
deny	discuss	dislike	don't remind	enjoy
imagine	involve	keep	mention	mind
miss	postpone	practice	suggest	understand

Infinitives are Nouns
Form: to VERB
Negative: not to VERB
Examples:
Her ambition is to write novels. (complement)
The actors intended to leave early. (object)
You must study to learn. (adverb)
He lacked the strength to resist. (adjective)
She managed to communicate with them, even though she didn't speak their language. (object)
I decided not to go to Osaka. (object)

A noun can sometimes come before an infinitive:
Your parents want you to make the best use of your time here at Norwalk Community College.

Verbs before infinitives

agree	appear	arrange	care	claim
decide	demand	deserve	expect	fail
get	happen	hesitate	hope	intend
learn	manage	offer	plan	pretend
refuse	seem	swear	tend	wait