ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the main uses of the non-fi nite forms of the verb, i.e. the infi nitive and the present and past participles:
Infi nitive Present participle Past participle
kaufen wandern singen aufmachen bestellen
kaufend wandernd singend aufmachend bestellen
gekauft gewandert gesungen aufgemacht bestellt
As explained in 12.1.1e, these forms of the verb do not have endings to show agreement with the subject, or to express other categories of the verb such as tense and mood. They are used to form the compound tenses and the passive (see 12.3 and 12.4), and they occur in a number of constructions which depend on an element in a full clause with a fi nite verb. The formation of the infi nitive and the participles of regular verbs is shown in Table 12.2. In German the present participle is often referred to as Partizip I, and the past participle as Partizip II.
