Hi Ming,

I think the lesson is pointing out that in French the infinitive version of the verb is to be used rather than the present participle. The present participle in French has an ending     ....ant.

Example  Aller (infinitive)   ---  allANT (present participle)

The present participle in French corresponds to the present participle in Engish which has an ending  ....ing.

Example  To go (infinitive)  --- goING (present participle)

Hope this helps.

Jim

Agree.. in English you have that alternative of the infinitive or the present participle.. in French you can only use the infinitive

Dieting is useful.  /  To diet is useful... can only be faire un régime est utile

The - ant ending is the present participle of the verb form, example:  Courir - Infinitif /  Couru - participe passé / Courant - participe présent. All verbs have these three core forms (apart from their numerous verb tenses).  Example:  J' aime courir dans le parc.  J' ai couru dans le parc.  Elle a laissé tomber ses clés en courant.(She dropped the keys while running.) Étant occupé, je l'ai ignore. (Being busy, I ignored him.) Regardant la télé, je me suis endormi. Please note: The present participle is usually used together with another verb in the past participle tense.  It is a good tense to practice.  You come across it often in books, articles, etc.