Ready to download vs. ready to be downloaded?

[Torsten]

Hi,

I often hear the expression 'the files/programs are ready to download'. Wouldn't it make more sense to say 'the files are ready to be downloaded'?

Thanks,
Torsten
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary

[Alan]

Hi Torsten,

What that expression really means is 'ready for you to download.' You can find it in expressions like: ready to wear/ready to eat/ready to use.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Have a Break!

[Millie]

Still more, like something is easy to do, it also means something is easy for somebody to do.

[Jamie (K)]

This type of construction is part of the reason that computers can't parse or translate text yet. For example, a computer can't understand the sentence, "The chickens are ready to eat." It could mean that the chickens want to eat, or that the chickens have been cooked and prepared for human consumption. People understand what is meant in a given situation, but computers don't.

Another sentence that a computer can't interpret is, "He saw that gasoline can explode."

[Dfarbes]

yeah it will be difficult for me, I can't hear the expression of sentence, if it make sense to say or not.. Due I am actually profoundly impaired hearing..

[Torsten]

On the hand, there is the construction 'You have files waiting to be burned.' What if you substitute 'waiting' with 'ready' in this sentence?
_________________
Test Of English for International Communication
TOEIC Preparation & TOEIC Vocabulary