Cambridge documents deny + -ing and deny + that-clause for saying an action or claim is not true. Other deny constructions can take objects (for example denying someone something); they do not create a parallel direct to-infinitive complement.
ReviewedEvidence2 sourcesSectionEnglish Usage
Quick answer
Use “deny doing” (or a that-clause) when denying responsibility for an action; do not substitute a direct “deny to do.”
Key details
Confusion Familygrammar-and-usage distinction
Rule Familyverb complement pattern
TermsDeny Doing, Deny To Do
Further guidance
Boundary
Other deny constructions can take objects (for example denying someone something); they do not create a parallel direct to-infinitive complement.
Construction
Cambridge documents deny + -ing and deny + that-clause for saying an action or claim is not true.
Decision
Use “deny doing” (or a that-clause) when denying responsibility for an action; do not substitute a direct “deny to do.”
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.
deny — Cambridge Dictionary↗ (opens in a new tab)Cambridge Dictionary · Deny + -ing and that-clause patterns; direct to-infinitive is not the documented complement for acknowledging/ rejecting a claim
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.
