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Infinitive Phrases

The infinitive phrase may function as a noun, an adjective or an adverb. The infinitive verb is often preceded by a preposition. As an adverb:

Afin d'apprendre le français, nous devons nous exercer chaque jour.
(In order to learn French, we must practice every day.)

Pour apprendre l'anglais, vous devez vous exercer chaque jour.
(To learn English, you must practice every day.)

As an adjective:

Le docteur a laissé des instructions de donner des médicaments toutes les quatre heures.
(The doctor left instructions to give medication every four hours.)

As a subject of the sentence:

Pour vous, arroser le jardin chaque jour n'est pas nécessaire.
(For you, to water the garden every day isn't necessary.)

Demander plus d'argent serait une erreur.
(To ask for more money would be wrong.)

In French, the infinitive phrase is often translated into English with a gerund phrase (which serves as a noun):

Voter à chaque election est très important.
(Voting in every election is very important.)