The Passive Voice

THE PASSIVE VOICE

The Passive Voice Verb expresses the fact that the Subject of the sentence just ‘’SUFFERS’’ the effects of the action performed by a different person (the Agent). Rule: S+ BE+ Past Participle

R.V.: V-ed I.V.: F3

Active: Poluarea afecteaza foarte mult sanatatea tuturor fiintelor vii de pe planeta Noastra. Passive: Sanatatea tuturor fiintelor vii de pe planeta noastra este afectata foarte mult de poluare.

Active: Pollution affects very much the health of all the living creatures on our planet. Passive: The health of all the living creatures on our planet is affected very much by pollution.

A

B

Subject

by+ Agent

Direct Object

Sb. (BE+ Past Participle)

Vb. (Active)

Vb. (Passive)

The agent’s use: -in many cases, the agent can be omitted in the following situations: a)UNKNOWN AGENT Portofelul mi-a fost furat.

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THE PASSIVE VOICE My wallet was stolen from me. (by a thief, by an unknown person). b)OBVIOUS/GENERALISED AGENT Bicicletele sunt folosite in China in locul transportului public, care este mult mai poluant. Bicycles are widely-used in China, instead of public transport, which is much more pollutant. (by the Chinese/people in China). c)OBVIOUS/UNIMPORTANT AGENT Criminalul a fost in sfarsit arestat. The murderer was finally arrested. (by the police). d)OBVIOUS/UNIMPORTANT AGENT Slujba la care am visat mi-a fost oferita. The job I dreamt of was offered to me. (by the boss/by an employer important).

it is not

! When the agent is totally UNKNOWN expressed by: somebody, someone, it is not used into the passive. Ex; A: Somebody spread the rumour. P: The rumour was spread.

Tenses in the passive -in the passive voice the Indicative Tenses are marked with the verb: TO BE. 1.PRESENT SIMPLE Biroul este incuiat de secretara in fiecare seara. The office is locked by the secretary every evening. 2.PRESENT CONTINUOUS Cititul este din ce in ce mai neglijat de tineri in zilele noastre. Reading is being more and more neglected by young people in our days. 3.PAST SIMPLE Vila unui politician cunoscut a fost calcata de hoti noaptea trecuta.

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THE PASSIVE VOICE The villa of a famous/well-known politician was broken into by some burglars last night. 4.PAST CONTINUOUS Podul era in reparatii cand am trecut pe langa santier in acel an. The bridge was being repaired when I walked by the side in that year/that year. 5.PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE Actrita Americana a fost premiata cu globul de aur si nominalizata la Oscar de mai multe ori. The American actress has been awarded with the Golden Globe and nominated for the Oscar for many times/for several times. 6.PAST PERFECT SIMPLE In acel moment am crezut ca stirea fusese deja publicata.

In that moment I thought that the news had been already published. 7.FUTURE SIMPLE Curand satelitul va fi lansat in spatiul cosmic. Soon, the satellite will be launched in the outer space. 8.FUTURE PERFECT SIMPLE Pana sambata intalnirea de afaceri va fi fost deja consumata. Until/Till/By Saturday the business meeting will have been already consumed.

!Attention -the following tenses are not used in the passive: Present Perfect Continuous, Past Perfect Continuous, Future Continuous and Future Perfect Continuous.

!A.Ceva trebuie facut pentru a ajuta persoanele cu dizabilitati. B.Trebuie sa evitam sa fim expusi radiatilor solare.

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THE PASSIVE VOICE A.Something must be done to help disabled persons/persons with disabilities. B.We must avoid beig exposed at sun radiations/ultraviolets. -passive voice can be also used after MODALS (be+ Past Participle) or after VERBS or EXPRESSIONS that require GERUND (being+ Past Participle).

Verbs with two objects into the passive

!In English, there are some TRANSITIVE VERBS that can take both: a DIRECT OBJECT (D.O.) in Accusative (What?; Whom?) an INDIRECT OBJECT (I.O.) in Dative (To whom?)

!These verbs give, offer, promise, say/tell, send, teach when turned into the Passive, can take 2 possible passive constructions (P1 and P2) in which each of the objects (D.O. and I.O.) become the subject of the passive sentences. S

V

I.O.

D.O.

A:Formatia rock a promis fanilor un turneu european anul viitor. P1:Un turneu european a fost promis fanilor de catre formatia rock anul viitor. P2:Fanilor le-a fost promis un turneu european de catre formatia rock anul viitor.

A:The rock band promised the fans a European tour next year. P1:A European tour was promised to the fans by the rock band next year. P2:The fans were promised a European tour by the rock band next year.

!Attention -the preposition TO is not used to introduced the I.O. when the I.O. is immediately after the verb into active voice. Ex;The rock band promised the fans a European tour next year.

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THE PASSIVE VOICE -but: The rock band promised a European tour to the fans. -the preposition TO is obligatory used after the verb into the passive voice. Ex;A European tour was promised to the fans by the rock band next year. S

V

I.O.

D.O.

A:Ea i-a oferit lui o a doua sansa. P1:O a doua sansa i-a fost oferita lui de catre ea. P2:Lui i-a fost oferita o a doua sansa de catre ea.

A:She offered him a second chance. P1: A second chance was offered to him by her. P2:He was offered a second chance by her.

!With pronouns we have the following transformations: Dative (I.O.) me

Nominative (Sb.) I

you

you

her

she

him

he

us

we

them

they

A:El i-a promis logodnicei lui o luna de miere ca in povesti. A:He promised his fiancée/her a fairy-like honey moon. P1:A fairy-like honey moon was promised to his fiancée/her by him. P2:His fiancée/She was promised a fairy-like honey moon by him.

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THE PASSIVE VOICE Passive impersonal constructions

!Such constructions are used for two reasons: to avoid NAMING the person who does or did the action or to express what PEOPLE in general SAY or THINK.

!In these impersonal constructions, certain REPORTING VERBS are used: SAY/TELL, THINK/BELIEVE, KNOW, UNDERSTAND, GOSSIP, RUMOUR, REPORT, SUPPOSE, CONSIDER. -these impersonal constructions come from a basic active sentence which means: PEOPLE/THEY THINK, BELIEVE… .

Se crede ca domnul Brown este milionar in dolari. (Oamenii cred ca …) P1:It is thought that Mr. Brown is millionaire in dollars.

!Two possible passive constructions can be used: PRESENT CONTEXT P1: It+ is/was+ Past Participle+ THAT+ S+ V

Present Tense Simple+ Cont. Future Simple+ Cont.

P2: S+

is/was (sg.)+ Past Participle (reporting vb.)+ to-Infinitive are/were(pl.)

P2:Mr. Brown is thought to be a millionaire in dollars.

A:They say that the elections this year will be frauded. P1:It is said that the elections this year will be frauded. P2:The elections these year are said to be frauded.

PAST CONTEXT P1: It+ is/was+ Past Participle (reporting vb.)+ THAT+ S+V

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Present Pf. S.

THE PASSIVE VOICE Past S. Past Pf. S. P2: S+

is/was+ Past Participle (reporting vb.)+ to+ have+ Past Participle Perfect Infinitive

P1:Se spune ca domnul Brown era/fusese milionar in dolari. P2:Despre domnul Brown se spune ca era/fusese milionar in dolari.

P1:It is said that Mr. Brown was/has been/had been millionaire in dollars. P2:Mr. Brown is said to have been a millionaire in dollars.

!Attention P1:Se stie ca in prezent multi copii ai strazii sunt abuzati de persoane periculoase care fac trafic de fiinte umane. P2:Despre multi copii ai strazii se stie ca sunt abuzati de persoane periculoase care fac trafic de fiinte umane.

P1:It is known that in our days/in present a lot of homeless children are being abused by dangerous people/persons who are doing human trafficking. P2:A lot of homeless children are known to be abused by dangerous persons who are doing human trafficking.

P1:It is known that many dangerous persons are abusing the homeless children and are doing human trafficking.

P2:Many dangerous persons are known to be abusing homeless children and to be doing human trafficking. *PROGRESSIVE INFINITIVE: TO BE+ V-ing

The construction: ‘’TO HAVE+ DO

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(Sth.)

+ DONE’’

THE PASSIVE VOICE -it is used to express the fact that the action is done by a specialized person for us. Trebuie sa ma tund/sa-mi repar masina/sa-mi scurtez rochia. I must have my hair cut/have my car fixed/repaired/serviced/have my dress shortened.

!When the passive action is expressed as an ORDER or is SOMETHING UNEXPECTED it is used ‘’GET’’ instead of ‘’BE’’. Ex; Get your hair cut! – order; My house got robbed last night. – something unexpected.

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