[Grammar] I have a lot of work to do vs. to be done

[englishteacher79]

Which one is correct and why:

I have a lot of work to do.

I have a lot of work to be done.

Both sound correct. The second has some passive involved. But I'm not sure why both sound correct to me. If both are, could you explain the reason why - I'd like to read up more about this kind of structure. Thanks.

 

[probus]

Both may sound correct to your ear, but only "I have a lot of work to do" is correct and sounds natural. "I have a lot of work to be done" is unnatural or incorrect because there is a dissonance between the the simple indicative present "I have" and the passive "to be done". You could say "There is a lot of work that I have to get done."

 

[MikeNewYork]

You could say "There is a lot of work to be done."

 

[englishteacher79]

Thanks for the replies.

Mike, yes, i was thinking of that sentence. Could you explain why "There is a lot of work to be done" is OK, but not "I have a lot of work to be done"?

 

[Matthew Wai]

'I have' is in the active but 'be done' is in the passive. Can it be the reason?
Not a teacher.

 

[Raymott]

'I have' is in the active but 'be done' is in the passive. Can it be the reason?
Not a teacher.

That's part of the reason.
"I have a lot of work to be done" doesn't mean that "I" have to do it.
"I have a lot of work to be done, so I'm going to get you all to do a bit each."