Expressions "look/looking forward to"

[Romina]

HI,
I am slightly confused about the expressions "look forward to" and "looking forward to".

I want to know if there is any difference in meaning or are they the same thing?

Thanks

Romina

[Conchita]

'To look forward to something' means 'to wait for something with pleasure'. The difference between your two phrases is the verb tense: 'to look forward to' is the present simple and '(to be) looking forward to' is the present continuous.

[Yankee]

Hi Romina

"look forward to" is a little more formal than "looking forward to". The verb tenses are also different:

We look forward to a successful joint venture. => polite, more formal
(simple present tense)

I'm looking forward to seeing you next week. => polite, sounds a bit friendlier
(present progressive/continuous)

Amy