Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
Use the base verb for a completed action and the -ing form for an action in progress when using sensory verbs.
- Use the bare infinitive (no 'to') for finished actions: 'I saw her cross the street.'
- Use the -ing form for ongoing or partial actions: 'I saw her crossing the street.'
- Never use 'to' after perception verbs in active voice: 'I heard him sing' (NOT 'to sing').
Overview
drop하는 것을 본 적이 있나요? 아니면 공부하려고 할 때 룸메이트가 샤워실에서 singing하는 소리를 들을 수도 있죠. 이런 일상의 순간들이 바로 이 문법 규칙이 필요한 때입니다.see, hear, watch, notice, feel, smell 등이 포함되죠.cross the street'라고 해야 할까요, 아니면 'I saw him crossing the street'라고 해야 할까요? 둘 다 맞습니다.bare infinitive(원형 부정사)나 gerund(동명사) 중 하나입니다.bare infinitive는 to가 없는 동사 원형입니다. gerund는 동사의 -ing 형태입니다. 우리는 우리가 보거나 들은 것에 대해 이야기할 때 이 패턴을 사용합니다.smell이나 taste처럼 독특한 특징이 있는 것들도 있습니다.How This Grammar Works
bare infinitive를 사용하세요. 일부분만 보았다면 gerund를 사용하세요. 예를 들어, 친구가 농담을 하는 상황을 상상해보세요.tell a joke'라고 말하세요. 그가 이미 말하고 있는 도중에 방에 들어갔다면 'I heard him telling a joke'라고 말하세요. 모든 것은 기간과 완료에 관한 것입니다.
Formation Pattern
I, You, We.
saw, heard, watched, felt.
him, her, the cat, my phone.
base form(원형) 또는 -ing 형태.
Subject + Verb of Perception + Object + Bare Infinitive.
I heard the door slam. (소리 전체)
Subject + Verb of Perception + Object + Gerund.
I heard the door slamming. (아마 여러 번 쾅 닫혔을 것임)
When To Use It
bare infinitive를 사용하세요. 이는 jump, drop, hit와 같이 빠른 동작에 흔히 쓰입니다. 영화 전체를 보았다면 여러분은 그것이 watched it play out 하는 것을 본 것입니다.gerund를 사용하세요. 이는 새가 singing하는 소리를 듣거나 비가 falling하는 소리를 듣는 것과 같은 배경 소음에 흔히 쓰입니다. 또한 반복되는 동작에도 쓰입니다.knocking하는 소리를 듣는 것이죠. 현대 생활에서는 기술과 관련해서도 유용합니다. 'I saw the battery icon flashing'이라고 하면 그것이 한동안 지속되었음을 의미합니다.flicker'라고 하면 단발적인 빠른 사건을 의미합니다.
Common Mistakes
to를 붙이는 것입니다. 'I saw him to dance'라고 절대 말하지 마세요. 인간이 되려고 노력하는 로봇처럼 들릴 거예요. 동사 원형이나 -ing 형태만 사용하세요. 또 다른 실수는 smell과 함께 bare infinitive를 사용하는 것입니다. 우리는 거의 항상 'I smell something burning'이라고 말합니다. 'I smell something burn'이라고 말하는 것은 매우 드물며, 기묘하게 시적으로 들립니다. 수동태도 조심하세요! 이것은 B2 레벨의 함정입니다. 'They saw him leave'를 수동태로 바꾸면 'He was seen to leave'가 됩니다. 수동태에서는 to가 마법처럼 나타납니다! 문법의 유령 같은 존재죠. 또한 see와 look at을 혼동하지 마세요. 보통 see는 우연히 일어난 일에 사용하고, watch나 look at은 의도적으로 관찰하는 일에 사용합니다.Contrast With Similar Patterns
want, ask, tell과 같은 동사에서 쓰이는 verb + object + to-infinitive 패턴(예: 'I asked him to help')을 알고 있을 수도 있습니다. 하지만 지각동사는 특별합니다. to를 생략하죠.see that... 절과 비교해보세요. 'I saw that he was angry'는 사실을 말하는 것입니다.looking angry'는 직접적인 관찰입니다. 후자가 더 생생하게 느껴지죠. 보고서를 읽는 것과 그 자리에 있는 것의 차이입니다.watch와 see를 비교해보세요. 경기는 의도적으로 watch하고, 새가 날아가는 것은 우연히 see합니다. 문법은 같지만 의도는 다릅니다.Quick FAQ
see와 to를 함께 쓸 수 있나요?
수동태일 때만 가능합니다. 'He was seen to enter'
notice와 see에 차이가 있나요?
notice는 주의 깊게 보고 있지 않았지만 뇌가 포착했다는 뉘앙스입니다.
왜 smell은 주로 -ing를 쓰나요?
냄새는 보통 지속적인 것이며 명확한 시작과 끝이 없기 때문입니다.
'I heard him crying'이라고 말할 수 있나요?
네! 울고 있는 도중에 들었다는 뜻이 됩니다.
'listen to'는 어떤가요?
똑같이 작동합니다! 'I listened to her play the piano'
Active vs. Passive Perception Patterns
| Voice | Perception Verb | Object | Complement Form | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Active
|
saw
|
him
|
Bare Infinitive
|
I saw him leave.
|
|
Active
|
saw
|
him
|
Present Participle
|
I saw him leaving.
|
|
Passive
|
was seen
|
-
|
To-Infinitive
|
He was seen to leave.
|
|
Passive
|
was seen
|
-
|
Present Participle
|
He was seen leaving.
|
|
Active
|
heard
|
the bell
|
Bare Infinitive
|
I heard the bell ring.
|
|
Active
|
heard
|
the bell
|
Present Participle
|
I heard the bell ringing.
|
Meanings
Verbs of perception (see, hear, feel, watch, notice, smell) follow a specific pattern where they take an object followed by either a bare infinitive or a present participle to indicate the state of the action being perceived.
Completed Action (Bare Infinitive)
Used when the speaker perceives the entire action from start to finish.
“I saw the magician disappear.”
“We heard the bomb explode.”
In-Progress Action (Present Participle)
Used when the speaker perceives only a part of the action or emphasizes that it was ongoing at the time.
“I saw the children playing in the park.”
“Can you smell something burning?”
Passive Perception
When the perception verb is used in the passive voice, the 'to' infinitive returns.
“He was seen to enter the building.”
“The suspect was heard to shout at the guard.”
Reference Table
| 지각동사 | 패턴 1 (전체 동작) | 패턴 2 (진행 중인 동작) | 예시 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
See
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
I saw him run / I saw him running
|
|
Hear
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
We heard her sing / We heard her singing
|
|
Watch
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
They watched the movie end / They watched the movie playing
|
|
Feel
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
I felt the ground shake / I felt the ground shaking
|
|
Notice
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
She noticed him pack / She noticed him packing
|
|
Observe
|
Object + Bare Infinitive
|
Object + -ing
|
Police observed the suspect enter / Police observed the suspect entering
|
격식 수준 스펙트럼
He was observed to depart from the premises. (Workplace observation)
I saw him leave the office. (Workplace observation)
I caught him heading out. (Workplace observation)
I seen him bounce. (Workplace observation)
지각동사: 보고, 듣고, 느끼는 것들
동사원형 (전체 동작)
- see I saw him leave.
- hear We heard the bell ring.
- feel She felt the car swerve.
-ing 형태 (진행 중인 동작)
- watch I watched her dancing.
- notice Did you notice him shouting?
- observe They observed the birds flying.
동사원형 vs -ing 형태
지각동사 패턴 선택하기
동작의 처음부터 끝까지 전체를 다 보셨나요?
(동사원형의 경우) 능동태 문장인가요?
주요 지각동사 분류
시각 (Seeing)
- • see
- • watch
- • notice
- • observe
청각 (Hearing)
- • hear
- • listen to
촉각 (Feeling)
- • feel
기타 감각
- • smell
- • taste
수준별 예문
I see him run.
I see him run.
I hear her sing.
I hear her sing.
We watch the cat play.
We watch the cat play.
Did you feel the rain fall?
Did you feel the rain fall?
I saw them eating lunch.
I saw them eating lunch.
She heard someone calling her name.
She heard someone calling her name.
We watched the sun going down.
We watched the sun going down.
I felt the wind blowing.
I felt the wind blowing.
I watched him fix the car.
I watched him fix the car.
I watched him fixing the car.
I watched him fixing the car.
Can you smell the bread baking?
Can you smell the bread baking?
I noticed her leave the room quietly.
I noticed her leave the room quietly.
I heard the floorboards creak in the middle of the night.
I heard the floorboards creak in the middle of the night.
He was seen to enter the building through the back door.
He was seen to enter the building through the back door.
I felt my skin crawling as he told the ghost story.
I felt my skin crawling as he told the ghost story.
We observed the chemicals react in the test tube.
We observed the chemicals react in the test tube.
I perceived a slight tremor shake his hands.
I perceived a slight tremor shake his hands.
The witness was heard to testify that the light was red.
The witness was heard to testify that the light was red.
I watched the ink slowly bleeding into the parchment.
I watched the ink slowly bleeding into the parchment.
She felt herself being pulled into the argument.
She felt herself being pulled into the argument.
One could hear the distant thunder rumbling across the plains for hours.
One could hear the distant thunder rumbling across the plains for hours.
The suspect, having been seen to discard the weapon, was immediately detained.
The suspect, having been seen to discard the weapon, was immediately detained.
I watched the seasons shift from the window of my study.
I watched the seasons shift from the window of my study.
He felt the weight of the world pressing down upon his shoulders.
He felt the weight of the world pressing down upon his shoulders.
혼동하기 쉬운
Learners confuse 'I smell the bread burning' (perception) with 'The bread smells burnt' (linking verb + adjective).
Learners don't know when to use 'I saw him leave' vs 'I saw that he left'.
Learners forget to add 'to' in passive sentences because they are so used to the active 'no-to' rule.
자주 하는 실수
I saw him to go.
I saw him go.
I hear her sang.
I hear her sing.
I see him is running.
I see him running.
I watch the movie.
I watch him play.
I felt the house to shake.
I felt the house shake.
Did you see him left?
Did you see him leave?
I smelled the cake to burn.
I smelled the cake burning.
I saw him cross the street for ten minutes.
I saw him crossing the street for ten minutes.
He was seen enter the bank.
He was seen to enter the bank.
I noticed him to be angry.
I noticed that he was angry.
I observed the star to explode.
I observed the star explode.
She was heard singing the whole song.
She was heard to sing the whole song.
문장 패턴
I saw ___ ___ (base verb).
I heard ___ ___ (verb-ing).
___ was seen to ___ (base verb).
I felt ___ ___ (verb-ing) ___.
Real World Usage
I saw the suspect enter the building at 9 PM.
We see him driving toward the hoop, he shoots, he scores!
POV: You hear your mom calling your name from downstairs.
You'll see the sugar start to caramelize and turn brown.
Have you noticed your joints swelling in the morning?
I watched the team's productivity increase after we implemented the new system.
전체냐, 진행 중이냐!
I saw him run.vs
I saw him running.
'to'는 잠시 넣어두세요
I saw him to go는 틀린 표현이에요!
I saw him go.
문맥이 정답을 알려줘요
I noticed her smiling.
생생한 묘사의 기술
I watched the show end.
Smart Tips
Use the bare infinitive to emphasize the suddenness and completion.
Use the passive 'was seen to' to sound more objective and professional.
Be careful! This rule only applies to physical perception. For emotions, use 'that' clauses.
Use the -ing form to show that the action happened over and over.
발음
Stress on the Action
In these sentences, the primary stress usually falls on the second verb (the action being perceived), not the perception verb itself.
Reduced 'him/her'
The object pronouns 'him' and 'her' are often reduced in natural speech, making the perception verb and the object sound like one word.
Falling Intonation for Facts
I saw him ↘cross.
Conveys a completed, factual observation.
암기하기
기억법
Perception verbs are 'to-free' zones in the active voice.
시각적 연상
Imagine a camera. The bare infinitive is a 'Wide Shot' showing the whole scene. The -ing form is a 'Zoom' showing a close-up of the action happening.
Rhyme
If you see or hear or feel, skip the 'to' to keep it real.
Story
I watched a bird land on a branch (whole action). While I was watching, I saw it eating a worm (ongoing). Suddenly, I heard a cat meow (sudden/whole), and I felt the bird fly away (whole).
Word Web
챌린지
Look out your window for 2 minutes. Write 3 sentences using 'I see...' and 2 sentences using 'I hear...', alternating between the base form and the -ing form.
문화 노트
In some UK dialects, especially in the North, you might hear 'I seen him do it' instead of 'I saw him do it'. While common, this is considered non-standard in formal writing.
Southern American English often uses 'watch' or 'see' with a present participle to describe long, habitual actions in a storytelling context.
In legal contexts across the English-speaking world, the passive 'was seen to' is the standard way to report evidence without attributing it to a specific witness.
The bare infinitive after perception verbs is a remnant of Old English, where certain 'light' verbs did not require the 'to' marker (which was originally a preposition meaning 'towards').
대화 시작하기
Have you ever seen something truly strange happen in public?
What's the most beautiful thing you've ever watched someone do?
Describe a time you heard a mysterious noise at night.
If you were a witness to a crime, how would you describe what you saw to the police?
일기 주제
자주 하는 실수
Test Yourself
I heard the baby ___ (cry/crying) from its room all night.
Find and fix the mistake:
She watched him to walk away without saying goodbye.
다음 중 맞는 문장을 고르세요:
Arrange the words in the correct order:
All words placed
Click words above to build the sentence
Score: /4
연습 문제
8 exercisesI saw the bird ___ from the tree and fly away.
I could hear her ___ in the shower for over twenty minutes.
Find and fix the mistake:
He was seen leave the building late at night.
Active: They heard him shout. Passive: He ___.
I noticed him to be very quiet during the meeting.
A: Did you see the accident? B: Yes, I saw the car ___ the wall.
Select the correct form.
1. I saw him cross. 2. I saw him crossing.
Score: /8
Practice Bank
12 exercisesWe often smell delicious food ___ (cook/cooking) from that new restaurant next door.
Did you ever feel the earth ___ (shake/shaking) during a minor tremor?
The audience watched the magician performed a trick flawlessly.
I distinctly heard my alarm to go off this morning.
올바른 문장을 고르세요:
지속적인 소리를 강조하는 문장은 무엇인가요?
다음 문장을 영어로 번역하세요: '선생님이 어려운 주제를 설명하고 계신 것을 보았어요.'
다음 문장을 영어로 번역하세요: '차가운 바람이 부는 것을 느꼈어요.'
단어를 조합해 문장을 만드세요:
단어를 조합해 문장을 만드세요:
지각동사와 완료된 동작에 쓰이는 형태를 연결하세요.
진행 중인 동작을 묘사하는 문장을 완성하세요.
Score: /12
자주 묻는 질문 (8)
Only in the passive voice (e.g., `He was seen to leave`). In active voice, it is always incorrect.
`I saw him run` means you saw the whole action from start to finish. `I saw him running` means you saw him while he was in the middle of the action.
Yes, but they almost always take the `-ing` form because smells and tastes are usually perceived as ongoing states.
No. Perception verbs don't work with perfect infinitives. Use a 'that' clause: `I saw that he had gone`.
This is a quirk of English history. When the verb becomes passive, it loses its 'light' status and requires the standard infinitive marker `to`.
Yes, `I watched him perform` is correct and implies you saw the whole performance.
No. The second verb must be the base form (`sing`) or the `-ing` form (`singing`).
Yes, they follow the same pattern: `I noticed him leave` or `I noticed him leaving`.
Scaffolded Practice
1
2
3
4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Ver/Oír + Infinitivo
Spanish doesn't have a direct equivalent to the -ing participle in this specific perception structure.
Voir/Entendre + Infinitif
French never uses the gerund (en partant) in this perception pattern.
Sehen/Hören + Infinitiv
German lacks a present participle (-ing) equivalent for this pattern, so the infinitive covers both completed and ongoing actions.
Verb + no/koto + o mita
Japanese requires a nominalizer, whereas English connects the verb directly to the object.
Ra'a / Sami'a + Present Tense
Arabic uses a conjugated verb rather than an infinitive or participle.
Kànjiàn / Tīngjiàn + Verb
Chinese has no morphological markers like -ing, so context determines if the action is complete or ongoing.
Learning Path
Prerequisites
관련 동영상
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