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I have a few questions.

  1. Do the following structures sound natural to native speakers?
  2. Is there any difference in meaning between them?

  • Try to open the car.

  • Try opening the car.

You may notice that the two structures are in the imperative form. Have you ever used "Try to open.../ Try opening... that way? Or, do you just say "Open the car"?

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    The to open and opening parts are fine, but it's usually open the door or start the car. We don't often speak of opening cars. – Lawrence Feb 07 '16 at 06:32
  • I think my first question is not duplicate. I just wanted to know if these two structures are commonly used by native speakers. You may be right for the second question, though I nearly know the answer. –  Feb 07 '16 at 08:44
  • Very closely related: How to remember the difference between: “Can you try to open” and “Can you try opening”? – Mari-Lou A Feb 07 '16 at 09:59
  • @Rathony & Mari Lou A . You may notice that the two structures are in the imperative form. Have you ever used "Try to open.../Try opening... that way? Or, you just say " Open the car.". Thanks. –  Feb 07 '16 at 10:14
  • Yes, you can use "try to + VERB" and "try + VERB + ING" in the imperative form. 1. Try opening the window and 2. Try to open the window are both grammatically acceptable and idiomatic. However, the phrase "open the car" is something quite different. It seems you have not grasped the difference in meanings between the three forms. – Mari-Lou A Feb 07 '16 at 11:12
  • A) The car door is stuck, I cannot open it for some reason. I call a friend, and tell that person the car door is jammed. Their first response might be "Try opening the car (door)" to which I reply: "Of course I've tried, it won't open that's why I'm calling. Have you got any ideas?" The other person might suggest several options: "Try using the spare key of the car" etc. B) You are the car owner and driver, you sit down ready to drive off, you tell your passenger who is standing outside the car, "What are you waiting for? Open the car and jump in." – Mari-Lou A Feb 07 '16 at 11:12
  • Admittedly "open the car" sounds as if you're using a tin/can opener, but in speech it would be understandable with the appropriate context. I would not write "open the car" but "open the car door" – Mari-Lou A Feb 07 '16 at 11:24
  • @midomido@CandiedOrange The "try" in Try to open the car means "endeavour", but in Try opening the car it means "test the effectiveness of". –  Feb 07 '16 at 19:02
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    Idiomatically one does not ‘open a car” but we could change the sentence to “open the *jar*” and then talk about the rest of the grammar. – Jim Feb 07 '16 at 19:34

1 Answers1

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They mean the same thing. Every time that you can write a similar sentence with the verb to, you can also write it with -ing.

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    It is not encouraged to post an answer without any research/reference/link that can support it. Please edit your answer after taking the tour and visiting our help center for additional guidance. –  Feb 07 '16 at 11:30
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    @Barrie Believe or not, there is a difference. The "try" in Try to open the car means "endeavour", but in Try opening the car it means "test the effectiveness of". –  Feb 07 '16 at 18:47