What grammar is involved in the catenation "need to be released"
"We will let you know when these need to be released."
Is this sentence grammatical?
If it is, what grammatical construction is "need to be released"?
Solution 1:
"Need(s) to" is simply a phrasal verb meaning "must." Examples abound in English:
Those pants need to be washed, dried, and ironed.
This mess needs to be cleaned up.
"Need(s) to" is not always followed by a past participle:
A swimmer needs to be careful in shark-infested waters.
Judges need to be impartial when weighing evidence.