Remember / forget + -ing or to + verb

The main guide: an event or a required action

Remember and forget allow two grammatical patterns, but their meanings are not interchangeable. With -ing, the action took place earlier, and the speaker now discusses the memory of that event. With to + base form, the focus is on something that needed or will need to be done.

Look beyond calendar words such as yesterday or tomorrow to the relationship between the two actions. With -ing, the named event happens first and is remembered afterwards. With to + verb, remembering succeeds or fails first, affecting whether the required action is carried out.

How to build it

remember/forget + V-ing → memory of an earlier event; remember/forget + to + V → remembering a required action

verb / V: A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
V-ing / -ing: The verb form ending in -ing: working, going. Its role depends on the construction.

I remember meeting Eva at the conference.

The meeting has already happened; the speaker now recalls it.

I remembered to email Eva after the conference.

The speaker first remembered the required action and then performed it.

Remember + -ing: recalling an earlier event

Remember + -ing means that someone has a memory of their own action or an event they experienced or witnessed. The subject of remember is usually also a participant in or witness to the -ing event.

Negative I don’t remember + -ing reports an absence of a memory, but does not by itself prove that the event did not happen. A photograph, recording, or someone else's account may provide evidence of the event.

How to build it

remember + V-ing / don’t remember + V-ing

verb / V: A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
V-ing / -ing: The verb form ending in -ing: working, going. Its role depends on the construction.

I remember signing the form in your office.

The signing occurred earlier, and the speaker has a specific memory of it.

I don’t remember closing that window, but it is closed now.

An absence of a memory is not a claim that the window was not closed.

Remember + to-infinitive: not forgetting a required action

Remember to do means remembering an action that needs to be performed. In the instruction Remember to call me, the action is still ahead. In a past narrative, I remembered to call usually reports that remembering succeeded and the call happened.

To is the infinitive marker here and requires the base form: to call, to bring, to check. Do not use an -ing form after this to.

How to build it

remember + to + base verb

verb / V: A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
V1 / base form: The base verb without to: work, go, be.

Remember to save a copy before you close the file.

This is a reminder about an action that still needs to be performed.

Nadia remembered to bring her passport.

In a past narrative, remembered to emphasises successful performance of the required action.

Forget + to-infinitive: a required action left undone

Forget to do means not remembering a required action in time. In the typical context, the action did not happen: I forgot to attach the file means that the file was not attached.

The context should clearly establish the action left undone. If a door remained unlocked, forgot to lock is natural. Forgot locking would describe a different situation: locking happened, but the memory of it was lost.

How to build it

forget/forgot + to + base verb → fail to remember and leave the action undone

verb / V: A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
V1 / base form: The base verb without to: work, go, be.

I forgot to attach the document, so I sent a second email.

The first message was sent without the document: the required action did not happen.

He forgot to lock the gate, and it stayed open all night.

The consequence directly confirms that the gate was not locked.

Forget + -ing: an event happened, but its memory was lost

Forget + -ing concerns an event that has already happened but is no longer remembered. The contrast is clear in I forgot meeting Leo before, so I introduced myself again: the previous meeting occurred, but was not retained in memory.

Not every theoretically possible forget + -ing expression is equally natural. For everyday uncertainty, I don’t remember locking the door is often more usual than I forgot locking the door. By contrast, never forget + -ing very naturally emphasises an unforgettable event. This concerns usual usage and context, not a ban on the grammatical pattern.

How to build it

forget + V-ing → lose the memory of something that has already happened

verb / V: A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
V-ing / -ing: The verb form ending in -ing: working, going. Its role depends on the construction.

I had forgotten meeting Leo before, so I introduced myself again.

The first meeting really occurred; only the memory of it was lost.

I will never forget seeing the sea for the first time.

Never forget + -ing naturally describes a powerful, unforgettable experience.

Negation changes the meaning within the pattern

The position of not matters. Remember not doing means recalling that you did not do something earlier. Remember not to do means remembering a prohibition or a requirement to refrain from an action.

Likewise, Don’t forget to do is a reminder to perform an action, while I don’t remember doing reports an absence of a memory. Do not automatically express a reminder with remember + -ing: a task that is still to be done requires to + verb.

How to build it

remember not doing ≠ remember not to do

I remember not taking a coat that morning.

The speaker recalls the earlier fact of not performing an action.

Remember not to mention the surprise party.

This concerns required future behaviour: refrain from mentioning it.

The limits of the rule and application in speech

Remember is not the same as remind. I remember calling Ana means that I have a memory. Ana reminded me to call means that Ana helped me not to forget. This rule practises remember/forget followed by an action, not every construction with remind.

In conversation, establish the facts first: did the action already happen, or was it simply required? Then identify the state of memory: is there a memory, is it absent, did remembering succeed, or was the required action missed? Only then choose -ing or to + verb.

How to build it

facts about the event → state of memory → required pattern

I remember sending the invoice, but Ana reminded me to save the receipt.

Remember describes the speaker's own memory; remind takes the object me and names an external reminder.

I remembered to save the receipt, and I remember putting it in this folder.

The first form reports a completed task; the second reports a memory of the event.

Common mistakes

Incorrect:I remember meet him at the workshop.

Correct:I remember meeting him at the workshop.

After remember, a memory of an earlier meeting requires an -ing form.

Incorrect:Please remember call the client before noon.

Correct:Please remember to call the client before noon.

A reminder about a required action needs to + base form.

Incorrect:She forgot to locking the back door.

Correct:She forgot to lock the back door.

After infinitive marker to, use base-form lock, not locking.

Incorrect:I don’t remember to signing that agreement.

Correct:I don’t remember signing that agreement.

To express an absence of a memory of the earlier signing, use signing without to.

Incorrect:He forgot send the booking request.

Correct:He forgot to send the booking request.

After forgot, an unperformed task requires a to-infinitive.

Sources