tend
v.v. to be likely to behave in a certain way or happen in a particular way. You use this when describing a habit or a common pattern.
v. to exhibit a regular tendency or inclination toward a specific action or state. Often functions as a catenative verb followed by a 'to'-infinitive.
I tend to wake up early on weekends.
Prices tend to rise during the holiday season because demand for gifts is so high.
While individual results vary, studies show that people who exercise regularly tend to report higher levels of daily energy and improved sleep quality over time.
From Middle English *tenden, from Old French tendre (“to stretch, stretch out, hold forth, offer, tender”), from Latin tendere (“to stretch, stretch out, extend, spread out”).
From Middle English tenden, by apheresis of attenden (“to attend”). More at attend.
From Middle English tenden, from Old English tendan (“to kindle, set on fire”) (usually in compounds ātendan, fortendan, ontendan), from Proto-Germanic *tandijaną (“to kindle”), of unknown origin. Cognate with Danish tænde (“to kindle”), Swedish tända (“to ignite”), Gothic 𐍄𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (tandjan, “to kindle”), Icelandic tendra (“to ignite”), German zünden (“to light, ignite, fire”). Related to tinder.
When expressing a tendency, it is followed by the 'to'-infinitive. It can also be used transitively to mean 'to care for' (e.g., to tend a garden).
I tend waking up earlyI tend to wake up earlyTend must be followed by an infinitive with 'to', not a gerund ending in '-ing'.