What's the difference? Verb in Infinitive or Gerund

[Irina]

Hi,

What's the difference between the 2 sentences?

I stopped smoking.

I stopped to smoke.

[linguaholic]

I would say that the first sentence means that you quit smoking (forevever) as a habit and the second one means just in a particular situation. I am not a native speaker, so if I am wrong, blame me 

[dtommy79]

"I stopped smoking." => In this sentence you actually gave up your bad habit. You don't smoke anymore.

"I stopped to smoke." => In this sentence you interrupted an activity in order to light a cigarette and smoke it.

[linguaholic]

...in order to light a cigarette and smoke it.

What do you mean exactly by saying ...in order to light a cigarette and smoke it? I think it is the contrary also in the second sentence it means "the action" to stop smoking a cigarette.

[dtommy79]

What do you mean exactly by saying ...in order to light a cigarette and smoke it? I think it is the contrary also in the second sentence it means "the action" to stop smoking a cigarette.

In the second sentence you actually smoked the cigarette. That was the reason for you to stop, interrupt whatever you were doing.

[linguaholic]

In the second sentence, I actually stopped a certain activity in order to smoke a cigarette? Is that what you mean tommy ?

[mleocasas]

'I stopped smoking' implies that you stopped smoking at some unspecified point in the past, either temporarily or permanently (the sentence doesn't state which).

       

            ex. I stopped smoking and went inside.

'I stopped to smoke' means that you stopped doing something else and began to smoke.

            ex. I was eating a sandwich, but then I stopped to smoke.

[cinderr]

:confused: I missed a great deal of school in my teens and pre teens so I know very little about grammar. Hate it actually because I am so inept. I couldn't identify a gerund to save my life. The only clause I know is Santa. You get the idea. That is a hard thing for a writer to admit. Also I have a degree in Technical Writing--how does that work?

I can get by because I have read so much all my life so I know how it's supposed to sound, most of the time.