Why the below one is correct?
I look forward to meeting you.
And why this one is wrong?
I look forward to meet you.
I generally do these mistakes in letter writing.
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It's similar to "look over at someone"; you "look forward to something". That's why you need a gerund, i.e. the -ing form, not an infinitive (basic form of the verb). – Damkerng T. May 01 '15 at 11:11
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See also: look forward to meet you, or to meeting you? – Damkerng T. May 01 '15 at 11:15
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You say "I'm happy to meet you", you would never say "I look forward to meet you." – Catija May 02 '15 at 22:47
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@Catija For the same reason you'd say "I look forward to the movie" but not "I'm happy to the movie" :-) – May 03 '15 at 02:09
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See also: To + verb + '-ing' usage question – Damkerng T. May 08 '15 at 05:22
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That's because the string look forward to is generally followed by 'verb-ing'.
I look forward to meeting you
I look forward to reading this book
I look forward to making your acquaintance
I look forward to speaking with him.
Check out the examples on COCA. Most of them follow this format. This is because in such structure, 'to' serves as a preposition and not the infinitive marker [Thanks Snailboat].
This is how it is -I just learned it that way! :)
Maulik V
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1Right, because this to is the preposition, not the infinitive marker. Look forward to can also be followed by a regular noun phrase; search COCA for looking forward to the for some examples. – May 01 '15 at 07:21
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