Verb Patterns: Verb + Object + ING Practice Tests with C1 Grammar Rules & Examples

Verb Patterns: Verb + Object + ING

In English, some verbs are followed by an object (a noun or pronoun) and then another verb in the -ing form. This pattern is called Verb + Object + ING, and it is especially common in sophisticated, formal, and professional English — making it an essential structure for C1 learners.

This pattern allows you to express ideas such as noticing, catching, or preventing someone from doing something. Understanding when and how to use it will help you sound more fluent and natural in both spoken and written English.

Here are a few quick examples to show the pattern in action:

• I caught him stealing money from the till.
• The loud music prevented me from concentrating.
• She noticed the children arguing in the corridor.

In each sentence, the structure follows this pattern:

Subject + Verb + Object + -ing Verb

Now let us look at this structure in detail.

Rule Breakdown: How the Verb + Object + ING Pattern Works

In the Verb + Object + ING pattern, there are three key components:

• The main verb — this is the verb that triggers the pattern (e.g., catch, notice, prevent, keep, stop, imagine, find, leave).
• The object — this is the person or thing that is the focus of the action (e.g., him, her, the children, the car, my colleague).
• The -ing verb — this describes what the object is doing or experiencing (e.g., stealing, concentrating, arguing, running).

The basic sentence formula looks like this:

Subject + Main Verb + Object + -ing Verb
She + noticed + the children + arguing.
I + caught + him + stealing.
The manager + found + the team + working late.

Notice that the object is always placed between the main verb and the -ing form. The -ing verb describes what the object is doing at that moment or over a period of time.

Key Verbs That Use This Pattern

Not all verbs follow this pattern. Below are the most important verbs that take the Verb + Object + ING structure, grouped by meaning:

Perception Verbs (Seeing, Hearing, Feeling)

These verbs describe what someone observes or senses another person doing. They include: see, watch, notice, observe, hear, feel, smell, find.

I saw her leaving the building. (I observed this in progress.)
He heard the neighbours shouting through the wall.
We watched the sun setting over the horizon.
The detective observed the suspect acting suspiciously.
She felt her confidence growing with each presentation.
He smelt something burning in the kitchen.

Discovery and Encounter Verbs

These verbs suggest that someone comes across or discovers another person in the middle of an activity. Key verbs: catch, find, discover.

The teacher caught the student cheating in the exam.
I found my flatmate reading my diary.
She discovered her employees using company resources for personal projects.

Prevention and Stoppage Verbs

These verbs express the idea of stopping or blocking someone from doing something. Note that with prevent and stop, the preposition from is required before the -ing form. Key verbs: prevent, stop, keep, deter.

The security guard prevented them from entering the building.
Nothing could stop her from achieving her goals.
His anxiety kept him from speaking up in meetings.
The bad weather deterred many visitors from attending the event.

Continuation and Persistence Verbs

These verbs suggest that the object continues with an activity, often despite opposition. Key verbs: keep, have, leave.

She kept me waiting for over an hour.
The manager had the team working through the weekend.
He left the engine running while he went inside.

Imagination and Mental State Verbs

These verbs refer to imagining, picturing, or understanding someone doing something. Key verbs: imagine, picture, visualise, envisage.

I cannot imagine him giving up so easily.
She pictured herself standing on the stage.
It is difficult to envisage the company recovering from this scandal.

Verb + Object + ING: Pattern Table

Main Verb	Object	-ing Verb	Full Sentence
saw	her	leaving	I saw her leaving the office.
caught	him	stealing	She caught him stealing the documents.
heard	the children	laughing	He heard the children laughing downstairs.
prevented	them	from entering	He prevented them from entering the site.
kept	me	waiting	She kept me waiting for forty minutes.
noticed	the suspect	behaving	The officer noticed the suspect behaving oddly.
found	my colleague	crying	I found my colleague crying in the corridor.
left	the printer	running	He left the printer running all night.
imagined	him	winning	She imagined him winning the competition.
stopped	us	from leaving	The police stopped us from leaving the area.

Verb + Object + ING Versus Verb + Object + Infinitive

One of the most important distinctions at C1 level is knowing when to use Verb + Object + ING versus Verb + Object + Infinitive (to + verb). Some verbs can take both forms, but the meaning changes significantly.

Perception Verbs: ING vs Infinitive Without "to"

With perception verbs such as see, hear, watch, notice, feel, you can use either the -ing form or the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to"). The meaning, however, is different:

• -ing form → suggests you witnessed the action in progress (you saw part of it).
• Bare infinitive → suggests you witnessed the complete action from start to finish.

I saw her crossing the road. (I saw her in the middle of crossing — not necessarily the whole action.)
I saw her cross the road. (I witnessed the complete action — she crossed the road from start to finish.)

He heard the band playing. (He heard them while they were mid-performance.)
He heard the band play. (He heard the full performance.)

This is a subtle but important nuance. The -ing form emphasises the activity as ongoing or in progress, while the bare infinitive presents the action as a completed event.

Verbs That Change Meaning With ING or Infinitive

Some verbs change their meaning depending on whether they are followed by an -ing form or a "to" infinitive:

Stop:
He stopped her from leaving. (He prevented her from leaving — Verb + Object + from + -ing)
He stopped to help her. (He paused in order to help — a different structure entirely, with no object before the infinitive.)

Remember / Forget / Try do not typically use this Verb + Object + ING pattern; they use a different pattern where the subject is the same for both verbs. Do not confuse these with the structures discussed in this lesson.

The Role of Possessive Adjectives vs Object Pronouns

At C1 level, it is worth noting that in formal written English, some grammarians prefer using a possessive adjective (my, his, her, their, its, our, your) before the -ing form rather than an object pronoun, particularly with mental verbs like imagine, envisage, and picture.

Informal / Common spoken English:
I cannot imagine him leaving the company.

Formal / Written English:
I cannot imagine his leaving the company.

Both forms are grammatically acceptable in modern English. However, the object pronoun form (him, her, them) is far more common in everyday speech and informal writing, while the possessive form (his, her, their) may appear in highly formal or literary contexts. As a C1 learner, you should be able to recognise both and use the object pronoun form with confidence.

Using Verb + Object + ING in Negative Sentences

To make a negative sentence with this pattern, you simply make the main verb negative. The -ing form itself does not change.

I did not notice him leaving.
She couldn't stop them from arguing.
The manager didn't catch anyone taking the money.
He didn't hear her crying.

Do not make the -ing form negative. The negation always goes on the main verb:

❌ I noticed him not leaving.
✅ I did not notice him leaving.

Using Verb + Object + ING in Questions

To form a question with this pattern, invert the subject and auxiliary verb as normal. The object and -ing form remain in the same position:

Did you see anyone entering the building?
Have you ever caught someone lying to you?
What prevented you from finishing the report?
Can you imagine her running the entire department?

Advanced Usage: Complex Objects and Long ING Phrases

At C1 level, the object and the -ing phrase can both be more complex than a simple pronoun and single verb. The object may be a full noun phrase, and the -ing verb may carry additional information such as adverbs or objects of its own:

I noticed a group of protesters blocking the entrance to the parliament building.
The report found the company's senior management systematically ignoring health and safety regulations.
She caught her teenage son secretly messaging someone late at night.

These longer structures are particularly useful in academic writing, formal reports, and journalism, where precision and detail are essential.

Common Mistakes

Even advanced learners make errors with the Verb + Object + ING pattern. Here are the most frequent mistakes and how to correct them:

❌ I saw her to leave the building.
✅ I saw her leaving the building. (Perception verbs use -ing, not "to" + infinitive.)

❌ He caught them to steal the car.
✅ He caught them stealing the car. ("Catch" must be followed by object + -ing, not infinitive.)

❌ She prevented him entering the room.
✅ She prevented him from entering the room. ("Prevent" requires "from" before the -ing form.)

❌ Nothing could stop her achieving her dreams.
✅ Nothing could stop her from achieving her dreams. ("Stop" in the sense of prevention requires "from" before the -ing form.)

❌ The noise kept me to concentrate.
✅ The noise kept me from concentrating. ("Keep" in this pattern needs "from" + -ing.)

❌ I found him to work in the lab.
✅ I found him working in the lab. ("Find" uses the -ing form, not the infinitive.)

❌ Can you imagine him to win the award?
✅ Can you imagine him winning the award? ("Imagine" is always followed by -ing, never the infinitive.)

❌ She noticed him not come to work.
✅ She noticed that he did not come to work. (For a negative observation, use a "that" clause rather than a negative -ing.)

Verb + Object + ING: Quick Summary

The Verb + Object + ING pattern is a sophisticated and frequently used structure in English that describes someone perceiving, discovering, preventing, or imagining another person doing something. Here are the key points to remember:

• The structure follows the pattern: Subject + Main Verb + Object + -ing Verb.
• Common verbs that use this pattern include: see, hear, watch, notice, feel, smell, catch, find, keep, leave, prevent, stop, deter, imagine, picture, envisage.
• With perception verbs, the -ing form emphasises an action in progress, while the bare infinitive suggests a completed action.
• With prevent, stop, keep, and deter, always use from before the -ing form.
• Negation is applied to the main verb, not the -ing form.
• In formal English, a possessive adjective may replace the object pronoun before the -ing form, though object pronouns are more common in everyday use.
• This pattern is especially powerful in formal writing, academic texts, and journalism, where complex observations and descriptions are required.

Now practise Verb + Object + ING in the exercises below.