Expect Doing vs. Expect To Do
Oxford documents “expect to do” and other object/clause patterns. The page therefore treats direct expect + -ing as a construction problem rather than inventing two equivalent complements.
Use “expect to do” when “expect” directly introduces your anticipated action. A bare “expect doing” is not the parallel standard complement; -ing forms occur in other structures, not as a like-for-like substitute.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| the subject anticipates performing the next action | expect + to + verb | Use the to-infinitive. |
| expect takes an object or clause | expect + object/clause | Use the structure required by that meaning. |
| bare -ing proposed as a like-for-like direct complement | expect doing | Do not substitute it for “expect to do.” |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Does “expect” directly introduce an action the subject anticipates performing?
If yes: Use “expect to do.”
If no: Check whether “expect” instead takes an object or clause; an -ing form may belong inside that larger structure.
Caveat: The contrast is about the direct complement pattern. It does not mean an -ing form can never appear later in a sentence containing “expect.”
Examples
We expect to finish by Friday.
The subject anticipates performing the action, so a to-infinitive follows “expect.”
I expect to hear from them soon.
The anticipated action is introduced by “to.”
They expect the repairs to take two days.
Here “expect” takes an object plus an infinitival clause rather than a bare -ing complement.
Further guidance
Decision
When “expect” directly controls the following action, choose the to-infinitive rather than a bare gerund.
Other Patterns
Expect also takes objects and clauses, so an -ing form may occur elsewhere in a sentence without becoming the direct complement of “expect.”
To Infinitive
Use expect + to-infinitive for an anticipated action performed by the subject.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- expect — Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries · Expect + to-infinitive and object/clause patterns
- Verb patterns: verb + infinitive or verb + -ing? (opens in a new tab)Cambridge Dictionary · Verb-complement patterns, including verbs taking -ing, to-infinitive, or both with meaning differences