I wish Elvis had been my language teacher…

Today it’s Thursday. It’s almost the end of the week and it’s about time that we relaxed a little. So I thought that we could learn a little English, with the help of Elvis Presley. We’re actually going to let him tell us how he can’t help falling in love with us. 

Apart from the fact that it’s a beautiful song, it’s an excellent opportunty to learn some English. He sings slowly and clearly, allowing us to understand the lyrics easily.
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This song is a fantastic way to point out (and learn) that there are some verbs that are always followed by -ing clauses. Can’t help is one of them. In this song, Mr. Presley uses the lyrics “I can’t help falling in love with you”.

We do not say “I can’t help to fall in love with you.” We can only say “I can’t help falling in love with you.”

Some other verbs that can only be followed by the -ing form include:

Avoid = evitar

He avoided talking to her.

Appreciate = apreciar

I appreciate you doing this for me.

Involve = involucrar/implicar

My job involves doing a lot of paperwork.

Enjoy = disfrutar

I enjoy dancing.

Don’t mind =  dar igual

I don’t mind walking with you.

So here’s the song for you to have a listen and see how can’t help is used in English. If you click through to the video on youtube, you can read the lyrics too. Enjoy!