English Grammar: Understanding Adjectives and Infinitives

The question asks us to complete the sentence "You are lucky ______ in the 20 th century." by choosing the most appropriate word or group of words from the given options. This sentence structure involves an adjective ("lucky") followed by a verb form, often an infinitive, to explain the reason for the adjective.

Analysing the Sentence Structure: 'Lucky' + Verb Form

Adjectives like 'lucky', 'happy', 'sad', 'pleased', etc., are often followed by an infinitive phrase to express the cause or reason for the feeling or state described by the adjective. The basic structure is: Subject + be + Adjective + to-infinitive.

• Example: I am happy to see you.
• Example: She was sad to hear the news.

In our sentence, "You are lucky...", we need a verb form after "lucky" that explains why the person is lucky. The action of being born in the 20th century happened in the past relative to the present state of being lucky.

Evaluating the Options for 'You are lucky ______ in the 20th century.'

Let's look at each option:

1. by being born: This uses a gerund phrase introduced by "by". While "by" can indicate means, "lucky by doing something" is not a standard or idiomatic structure following the adjective "lucky" to explain the cause of the luck.
2. to have been born: This uses the perfect infinitive in the passive voice ("to have been" + past participle "born"). The perfect infinitive ("to have + past participle") is used to talk about an action that happened before the time of the main verb (in this case, the state of being lucky). Being born in the 20th century happened before the present moment of being considered lucky. The passive voice ("been born") is necessary because the subject ("You") is the receiver of the action (being born), not the doer. This fits the structure (adjective + infinitive) and the timing (past action).
3. for being born: This uses a gerund phrase introduced by "for". While "lucky for something" is sometimes used, "lucky for being born" is less common and less idiomatic than using the infinitive structure. Also, the gerund "being born" can sometimes imply an ongoing state or something happening at the same time, whereas the perfect infinitive "to have been born" clearly indicates a completed past action.
4. to have born: This uses the perfect infinitive in the active voice ("to have" + past participle "born"). The verb "bear" (past participle "born" or "borne") means to carry or to give birth. "To have born" would mean something like 'to have given birth', which does not fit the context of the subject "You" being the one born. The passive voice is required here as the subject is the recipient of the action of being born.

Why 'to have been born' is Correct

The phrase "to have been born" is the correct choice because:

• It follows the standard structure of Adjective + Infinitive to explain the reason for the adjective.
• It uses the perfect infinitive ("to have been") to indicate an action (being born) that occurred in the past relative to the main verb (are lucky).
• It correctly uses the passive voice ("been born") because the subject "You" is the one who was born (the recipient of the action).

Therefore, the most appropriate completion for the sentence is "to have been born".

Revision Table: Key Grammar Concepts

Additional Information: Infinitives After Adjectives

Many adjectives describing feelings, states, or likelihoods are followed by infinitives. This structure helps to specify what caused the feeling or what the state relates to. Here are some examples:

• Adjectives commonly followed by the base infinitive (to + verb): afraid, happy, sad, pleased, ready, willing, eager, likely, bound, certain, etc.
  • Example: We are ready to start.
  • Example: They are likely to win.
• Using the perfect infinitive (to have + past participle) is necessary when the action described by the infinitive happened before the action or state described by the main verb or adjective.
  • Example: He is sorry to have missed the meeting (missing happened before being sorry).
  • Example: She was disappointed to have failed the exam (failing happened before being disappointed).
• In the case of 'born', since it's typically used in the passive voice ('was born', 'were born'), the perfect infinitive form used with 'lucky' must also be passive: 'to have been born'.

Understanding the difference between the base infinitive and the perfect infinitive, as well as active and passive voice, is crucial for selecting the correct verb form in these types of sentences.