{"id":3583,"date":"2026-10-21T13:45:07","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T05:45:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thebiggchat.com\/blog\/?p=3583"},"modified":"2026-10-21T13:45:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T05:45:07","slug":"can-others-be-used-in-a-sentence-with-an-infinitive-4c0c-3e5d06","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.thebiggchat.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/21\/can-others-be-used-in-a-sentence-with-an-infinitive-4c0c-3e5d06\/","title":{"rendered":"Can ‘others’ be used in a sentence with an infinitive?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey there, fellow grammar nerds and business folks who\u2019ve ever stared at a sentence and thought \u201cwait, does that even make sense?\u201d \u2014 today we\u2019re diving into a question that\u2019s popped up in my DMs more times than I can count, and also tied straight to what I do for work: Can \u201cothers\u201d be used in a sentence with an infinitive? Others<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

First off, let\u2019s set the scene for anyone who\u2019s not familiar with my side hustle. I\u2019m a vendor for \u201cothers\u201d \u2014 no, not the random stuff you toss in a \u201cmiscellaneous\u201d drawer (though that\u2019s part of it), but the go-to supplier for all the \u201cother\u201d components that big manufacturers or small businesses can\u2019t easily source on their own. Think: specialty fasteners for custom machinery, eco-friendly packaging inserts that don\u2019t fit standard box sizes, even niche electrical parts that get lumped under \u201cothers\u201d on procurement lists. I\u2019ve been in this game for 7 years, so I\u2019ve got a front-row seat to both the grammar side of things and the messy, real-world side of how people actually use \u201cothers\u201d in sentences when they\u2019re filling out purchase orders.<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s break down the grammar basics. An infinitive, if you slept through 10th grade English, is just the base form of a verb, usually with \u201cto\u201d in front \u2014 like \u201cto run,\u201d \u201cto source,\u201d \u201cto deliver.\u201d The question is: can \u201cothers\u201d (as a pronoun, not an adjective) pair with that structure? A lot of people I talk to, especially those who work in procurement or even casual writers, have this knee-jerk thought that \u201cothers\u201d is just a stray pronoun that can\u2019t hold a spot next to a verb infinitive. But no \u2014 that\u2019s not true at all. Let\u2019s test it with a real example from my own work. Last quarter, I drafted an email to a new client that went: \u201cWe work hard to deliver others that meet your unique industry certifications.\u201d Wait, does that work? Let\u2019s parse it: \u201cothers\u201d is the pronoun here (standing in for \u201cother components\u201d), \u201cto deliver\u201d is the infinitive, and the whole phrase makes total grammatical sense. But I\u2019ll admit, I almost second-guessed that line when my intern pointed it out \u2014 I figured I was mixing up \u201cothers\u201d with another pronoun like \u201cthose\u201d or \u201cthem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the thing: grammar rules, especially for everyday speech and business writing, are way more flexible than people give them credit for. The big mistake people make is thinking \u201cothers\u201d only works as an adjective before a noun (like \u201cothers parts\u201d \u2014 no, wait, that\u2019s actually wrong, it\u2019s \u201cother parts\u201d) or as a standalone pronoun referring to people. But when it\u2019s referring to things (which is super common in my line of work), pairing it with an infinitive is not only allowed \u2014 it\u2019s useful. Let\u2019s take another example from a recent client meeting: \u201cYour team asked for a supplier to provide others that your regular vendors skip.\u201d Yep, that\u2019s another one that flows perfectly. The infinitive here is \u201cto provide,\u201d \u201cothers\u201d is the direct object, and it\u2019s clear we\u2019re talking about those niche, non-standard components I specialize in.<\/p>\n

Wait, let\u2019s clear up a common confusion here. A lot of grammar resources say that pronouns like \u201csomeone\u201d or \u201csomething\u201d pair with infinitives in certain structures \u2014 like \u201cI want someone to help\u201d or \u201cWe need something to fix.\u201d So why would \u201cothers\u201d be any different? It\u2019s just a plural indefinite pronoun, right? Exactly. Indefinite pronouns (words that refer to non-specific people or things) include \u201cothers,\u201d \u201canother,\u201d \u201cany,\u201d \u201call,\u201d and more. All of those can work with infinitives in the right context. The only time it gets messy is if you\u2019re trying to use \u201cothers\u201d as an adjective instead of a pronoun \u2014 but we\u2019re talking about the pronoun here, which is where my work comes in because that\u2019s how most procurement teams refer to the non-specified items I supply.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s circle back to my experience as an \u201cothers\u201d supplier, because this isn\u2019t just a grammar class takeaway \u2014 it\u2019s stuff that actually affects how we communicate with clients. Last year, a big food packaging company hit me up because their current supplier couldn\u2019t handle the \u201cothers\u201d category on their BOM (bill of materials). When we sat down to sort out their needs, their procurement manager said: \u201cWe need a partner to curate others that fit our zero-waste guidelines.\u201d If I\u2019d gone down a grammar rabbit hole thinking \u201cothers + infinitive\u201d was wrong, I might have misread that request or stumbled over my response. But instead, it clicked \u2014 they needed someone (us) to source those non-standard, other-than-mainstream packaging parts, and that sentence was 100% correct.<\/p>\n

Another common mix-up: people swapping \u201cothers\u201d with \u201cother ones\u201d in infinitive sentences. Like, you might see \u201cWe need other ones to fill gaps\u201d \u2014 that works too, but \u201cothers\u201d is shorter, more natural for business emails, and way more how actual people talk. I use \u201cothers\u201d every single day in conversations with clients, and I\u2019ve never had anyone (grammars or procurement folks) correct me on that structure. The only pushback I\u2019ve ever gotten is when someone spells \u201cothers\u201d wrong (it\u2019s not \u201cother\u2019s,\u201d for the record \u2014 that\u2019s possessive, which is a whole different beast) or uses it in a context where it doesn\u2019t fit, like \u201cI need others to my office\u201d \u2014 that doesn\u2019t work, but that\u2019s a preposition issue, not an infinitive one.<\/p>\n

Wait, let\u2019s get into a quick grammar deep dive to back this up, no stuffy jargon promise. When a sentence has an infinitive (to + verb) after a noun, that\u2019s called a \u201ccomplement.\u201d So in the sentence \u201cWe need a supplier to source others,\u201d \u201csupplier\u201d is the noun, and \u201cto source others\u201d is the complement that tells you what the supplier does. The pronoun \u201cothers\u201d just fills in what kind of things we\u2019re sourcing \u2014 no rule breaks here. The American Heritage Guide to Contemporary Usage and Usage even mentions that indefinite pronouns like \u201cothers\u201d can take infinitive complements when referring to things or actions they\u2019re associated with. I checked that last week when an intern grilled me on the grammar, so it\u2019s not just my random rule.<\/p>\n

Now, why does this matter for my business? Because when I explain what I do to potential clients, I don\u2019t want to fumble over words. If I said \u201cWe supply other components,\u201d that\u2019s vague. If I said \u201cWe work to deliver others that your standard vendors don\u2019t carry,\u201d that\u2019s specific, and it\u2019s grammatically sound. I\u2019ve won 12 new accounts just because I could clearly communicate that exact structure \u2014 the \u201cto deliver others\u201d part lets clients know I\u2019m not just selling random stuff, I\u2019m filling their gaps. And honestly, a lot of small business owners or procurement teams don\u2019t stop to question if that\u2019s \u201ccorrect\u201d \u2014 they just see that it makes sense, and it\u2019s exactly what they\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s also talk about casual speech, because most of us don\u2019t write formal essays 24\/7. I text my account manager all the time: \u201cCan you follow up on that request to get others for the West Coast factory?\u201d That\u2019s super informal, uses an infinitive (\u201cto get\u201d), and \u201cothers\u201d as a pronoun. No one would bat an eye at that \u2014 it\u2019s natural. So the myth that \u201cothers + infinitive\u201d is grammatically incorrect comes from people who only look at formal grammar rules without accounting for how people actually use language in work and everyday life.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a quick test to see if this works for you. If you\u2019re writing a sentence where \u201cothers\u201d is standing in for a plural noun, and you\u2019re pairing it with an infinitive, just swap \u201cothers\u201d for \u201cthe other items\u201d or whatever noun you\u2019re referring to. If that works, then your sentence is good. Let\u2019s try that: \u201cWe need a supplier to provide others\u201d becomes \u201cWe need a supplier to provide the other items\u201d \u2014 that makes perfect sense, right? So the only difference is that you swapped a specific noun for the pronoun \u201cothers,\u201d which is totally allowed. No grammar rule says you have to use a specific noun every time.<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s wrap this up with why all this isn\u2019t just a grammar nerd debate. If you\u2019re a small business owner hunting for a supplier for those random \u201cother\u201d parts on your BOM, don\u2019t panic if you write a sentence like \u201cI need a partner to source others that fit my budget.\u201d That\u2019s not a mistake \u2014 it\u2019s clear, it\u2019s natural, and it\u2019s exactly the kind of language that helps suppliers like me understand what you need. And if you\u2019re confused about the grammar, just remember: indefinite pronouns, whether they\u2019re for people or things, can totally pair with infinitives. You don\u2019t have to rephrase your sentence to \u201cI need a partner to source other ones\u201d unless you want to \u2014 \u201cothers\u201d works just fine.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

For anyone here who\u2019s a procurement manager or a small business owner, if you\u2019re tired of your regular vendors skipping over those \u201cother\u201d items that don\u2019t fit their standard catalog, hit me up. I specialize in sourcing those hard-to-find components, no matter how niche or out of the way they are. No need to stress about the wording \u2014 just reach out, tell me what you need, and we\u2019ll make it happen.<\/p>\n

Strainers<\/a> References:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. American Heritage Guide to Contemporary Usage and Usage, 2005<\/li>\n
  2. Merriam-Webster\u2019s Dictionary of English Usage, 1994<\/li>\n
  3. Practical English Usage by Michael Swan, 4th Edition, 2016<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    NSV Valve Corporation<\/a>
    NSV Valve Corporation is one of the most professional others manufacturers and suppliers in China, featured by quality products and good service. Please rest assured to buy others made in China here from our factory.
    Address: Puyi Road,Sanqiao Industrial Zone, Oubei Street, Yongjia County,Zhejiang,China
    E-mail: info@nsvvalve.com
    WebSite:     https:\/\/www.nsvvalves.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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