gerund vs infinitive

gerund

noun
  • A verbal form that functions as a verbal noun. (In English, a gerund has the same spelling as a present participle, but functions differently; however, this distinction may be ambiguous or unclear and so is no longer made in some modern texts such as A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language and The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language) 

  • In some languages such as Dutch, Italian or Russian, a verbal form similar to a present participle, but functioning as an adverb to form adverbial phrases or continuous tense. These constructions have various names besides gerund, depending on the language, such as conjunctive participles, active participles, adverbial participles, transgressives, etc. 

infinitive

noun
  • A non-finite verb form considered neutral with respect to inflection; depending on language variously found used with auxiliary verbs, in subordinate clauses, or acting as a gerund, and often as the dictionary form. 

  • The infinitive mood or mode (a grammatical mood). 

  • A verbal noun formed from the infinitive of a verb. 

adj
  • Unlimited; not bounded or restricted; undefined. 

  • Formed with the infinitive. 

How often have the words gerund and infinitive occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )