"Leads ... to be" or "leads ... to being"

Question

Which of the following sentences is correct?

He recognizes his strength which, coupled with his naturally extremely short temper, often leads him to be rash with his words.

or

He recognizes his strength which, coupled with his naturally extremely short temper, often leads him to being rash with his words.

I feel like the latter variant is correct but I'm not sure about it.

Why such an irrelevantly-extended example context? Just contrast His strength leads him to be rash with His strength leads to him being rash. FWIW I'd usually recommend the second form (or ...to his being rash), but it's essentially a stylistic choice. — FumbleFingers, Commented May 22, 2018 at 13:23
Thanks for advice, next time I'll cut the irrelevant parts of the question. — AndreySarafanov, Commented May 22, 2018 at 13:26
We always need context if you're asking for clarification about a usage. But providing there's enough context, it's nearly always a matter of Less is more. — FumbleFingers, Commented May 22, 2018 at 13:37
You might well be looking for "his strength… often leads him to be rash…" but that won't stop either of your examples appearing contrived. Why not work with real text? — Robbie Goodwin, Commented Jun 1, 2018 at 21:38

swmcdonnell · Accepted Answer · 2018-06-27 22:50:35Z

2

often leads him to be rash with his words

is fine (and preferable to me).

often leads him to being rash with his words

should really be:

often leads to his being rash with his words

Both are acceptable. I think it's a matter of preference.

answered Jun 27, 2018 at 22:50

swmcdonnell

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