JAMB - English Language (1978 - No. 36)
Complete each of the following sentences by choosing the option that most suitably fills the space;
He went abroad with a view .... a business partner
to find
to be finding
to have found
to finding
he will find
Explanation
This is because the phrase "with a view to" is commonly followed by a gerund (a verb ending in "-ing").
While "to" might initially seem to be part of the infinitive verb (like "to find"), in this specific phrase, "to" functions as a preposition. Prepositions are followed by nouns, pronouns or gerunds (verbs ending in -ing). Therefore, the correct construction is "to finding," where "finding" serves as a gerund.
If the phrase were structured differently, such as "He went abroad to find a business partner," it would be correct to use "to find" because here "to" is part of the infinitive verb.
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