Try to do something / Try doing something

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

I was posting a message and had to use TRY this/that way, but I was in doubt whether to use the gerund or infinitive form with ‘‘try’’, and I don’t remember the difference between them now.

Can someone explain this to me?
And also, can someone explain other verbs that can mean different things when used with gerund/infinitive (e.g. stop) ?

Thanks a lot.

2

Hi’

If I try to do something, I am making an effort to do it. I try to drive carefully when I am in a town centre.

If I try doing something, I am making an experiment, I am trying something for the first time as in: I tried learning Spanish but in the end I gave up.

Alan

3

Thanks A(s)lan!

4

I still don’t get the points of what Alan has explained. Could somebody here explains further about this?

5

Here’s my take on it, Salmonella:

I’m trying to drive carefully - right now
I try to drive carefully - habitually; all the time.

Try to drive carefully - a comman: (you) must make an effort to drive carefully.

6

Hi Salmonella,

The original question was about the difference between ‘try to do something’ and ’ try doing soemthing’. The tense doesn’t matter. Imagine this situation - you want to start your car and it will not start. Someone asks what you are doing and you say: I am trying very hard to start my car but it just won’t start and I am trying very, very hard. This person then gives you some advice and tells you what you could do as one way of starting the car. He says: Try cleaning the plugs, try cleaning the carburettor and then possibly it will start. His advice is a suggestion. That’s why he says: Try doing these things as an experiment.

Alan

7

Great explanation again!

It’s even clearer now.

If you try to DO something and it doesn’t work, try DOING that in a different way.