For the common sense “think about a possibility,” consider takes an -ing verb complement: “consider moving,” not direct “consider to move.” Other constructions such as consider something to be something belong to a different syntax and should not be confused with this pattern.
ReviewedEvidence2 sourcesSectionEnglish Usage
Quick answer
Use “consider doing” when consider means think about a possible action. Cambridge’s grammar guidance rejects direct “consider to do” in this pattern.
Key details
Confusion Familygrammar-and-usage distinction
Rule Familyverb complement pattern
TermsConsider Doing, Consider To Do
Further guidance
Boundary
Object + to-be constructions such as “consider it to be useful” are a different structure and do not make bare “consider to do” a normal alternative.
Construction
Cambridge states that when consider is followed by a verb in the possibility/decision pattern, the following verb is in the -ing form.
Decision
Use “consider doing” for thinking about a possible action; avoid direct “consider to do” in that sense.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
Cambridge documents both admit + -ing and admit to + -ing for acknowledging something. Other passive patterns such as “be admitted to be” are separate constructions.
Both patterns are standard. “Advise waiting” recommends an action generally or in context, while “advise him to wait” names the person who is advised to perform it. A that-clause is another standard option.
When “afford” is followed directly by another verb, standard learner references use a to-infinitive: “afford to do.” An -ing form can appear elsewhere in a sentence, but it is not a like-for-like direct complement after “afford.”
“Agree to do” expresses consent to take an action. An -ing form normally follows a preposition in patterns such as “agree with doing,” which expresses approval rather than the direct promise-to-act construction.
Cambridge documents aim + to-infinitive for intention and aim at for directing effort toward an objective. Do not omit the preposition and present bare “aim doing” as equivalent to “aim to do.”
“Allow” can take an activity as its object, as in “allow smoking,” or a person/thing followed by a to-infinitive, as in “allow visitors to enter.” The patterns answer different structural questions: what is allowed versus who is allowed to do what.
