Infinitives with “seem” and “appear”

“ ‘Play World seems to have used a very similar, though perhaps not identical, process …”

I t seems/appears (that) they pay their bills on time.

They seem/appear to pay their bills on time.

Active Passive

Present:	It seems (that) they pay their bills on time. They seem to pay their bills on time.	It seems (that) their bills are paid on time. Their bills seem to be paid on time.
Perfect:	It seems (that) they’ve paid their bills on time. They seem to have paid their bills on time.	It seems (that) their bills have been paid on time. Their bills seem to have been paid on time.

Exercise 12. Make new sentences using the present or perfect infinitive.

Example: It seems the problem is serious.

The problem seems to be serious.

It appears the schedule has been changed.

The schedule appears to have been changed.

1. It appears Ned is putting on weight.

2. It seems demand has risen over the past three years.

3. It appears the plant was expanded recently.

4. It seems that Carl is worried about something.

5. It seems most people have been affected by the new tax law.

AGREEMENT OF TENSES WITH “SEEM” AND “APPEAR”

I’ve just seen Dave … When I saw Dave last week

Present:	It seems (that) he’s very ill. He seems to be very ill.	It seemed (that) he was very ill. He seemed to be very ill.
Perfect:	It seems (that) he has been ill for days. He seems to have been ill for days.	It seemed (that) he had been ill for days. He seemed to have been ill for days.

Exercise 13.

A. Complete the following sentences using the present or perfect infinitives.

1. Fred is enjoying his work.

At least he seems _______.

2. Meg wasn’t tired yesterday.

She only appeared _______.

3. Cindy hasn’t gotten taller since we last saw her.

But she seems _______.

4. When I finally got through, the phone had been ringing for several minutes.

At least it seemed _______.

B. Make new sentences using the present or perfect infinitive.

Example: It seems people drive faster in the country.

People seem to drive faster in the country.

1. It appears the economy is improving.

2. It seems the Board has been considering some important changes.

3. It seemed someone had forgotten to turn off the machine.

4. It appears Ralph made a lot of money in his stores.

Read and discuss the newspaper articles.

Eurostar in Rail-air Talks

By Roland Gribben

AIRLINES have started discussions with Eurostar, the Channel Tunnel train operator, about a joint rail-air ticket in an effort to reduce the loss of business to its new rival.

British Midland disclosed yesterday that it is discussing a joint ticket operation with Eurostar, allowing Paris and Brussels passengers to use a train or air ticket for part of their return journey.

Sir Michael Bishop, chairman, said the airline expects to lose 20pc of the 850,000 passengers it carries on the two routes to the train, although it expects the tunnel service will expand the total market.

The airline, which last year made its highest profit since a pre-tax £14m in 1989 and is looking for a further improvement this year, is ready to reduce its 21 daily nights to the two cities or operate smaller planes, to cope with any slump in business.

Tim Walden, the airline's industrial affairs manager, said there were technical problems in producing a joint rail-air ticket geared to the business market but “we are hoping to be able to come up with a package.”

British Airways said yesterday it was not involved in the cross-ticketing talks, although it added: “It is something we keep under review.”

Analysts expect BA could suffer just as heavily as British Midland from the tunnel competition but the airline is being more cautious. "If we see that there is a fall in traffic the first thing we would do is to reduce the size of aircraft," said a spokesman.

Eurostar's Air-rail Ticket Plan