Verb+ing (I'm looking forward to hearing about you.)

[Cate]

Good morning,
I've noticed in many sentences the use of for example "to doing" like this one "I'm looking forward to hearing about you". I'm confused because "to" is always follwed by the stem.
Would somone please explaine this to me and give other examples so I can understand.
Rrgards.

[Alan]

Hi Cate,

This construction: 'I look forward to seeing you' breaks that rule because it is idiomatic. In other instances 'to' would usually be followed by the infinitive of a verb.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Esl_Expert]

Hello Cate,

Quite a few grammar books will tell you that the -ing form of a verb follows the word "to" when "to" is used as a preposition. However, it may be best simply to learn the expressions as a whole. Here is a list of some of the most common ones. Maybe it will help you get a feel for when to use the -ing form after "to":

admit to doing
be accustomed to doing
be applicable to doing (also, apply to doing)
be close to doing
be conducive to doing
be connected to doing
be dedicated to doing
be opposed to doing
be prone to doing
be on one's way to doing
be related to doing
be resistant to doing
be used to doing
boil down to doing
come down to doing
commit to doing
devote oneself to doing
get around to doing
get back to doing
get down to doing
get used to doing
give thought to doing
go back to doing
lead to doing
look forward to doing
return to doing
switch to doing
a guide to doing
a reaction to doing
a response to doing
an approach to doing
an alternative to doing
compared to doing
from doing X to doing Y
in addition to doing
prior to doing
the key to doing
the secret to doing

____________________________________
"Excellence is not a skill. It is an attitude." ~ Ralph Marston

[Cate]

Thank you! a lot of expressions! I guess I'll be used to them by practissing more. It sounds like expressing continuity in someway.

[Esl_Expert]

You're welcome, Cate.

It's mainly a matter of getting used to using them. :mrgreen:

Try those expressions on for size. Try writing some sentences with them and then post them for feedback. Learning by doing, and all that.
:D
_________________________________________
“Practice is the best of all instructors.” ~ Publilius Syrus

[Cate]

Hi,
You're absolutly right, I'll strat with some sentences and I hope you"ll be patient and help me PLEASE.
1.The first expression is : admit to doing
is it correct if I say : I admit to being lazy
or I admit being lazy
actually I think that the second is more correct, please help me with that example, it's the only one I could think about.
2.The scond ; be accustomed to doing
He's accustomed to smoking when he gets up.
3.Be close to doing
I was close to achieving my goals.
I wonder if is it correct to say :I was close achieving my goals.
That's all for today, I guess if I understand those, I'll be able to use the others.
PLEASE give me some other sentences diffrents than mines.
Regards

[Esl_Expert]

Hi Cate,