2. The Passive
• To understand the passive, we must
first understand that there are three
important types of verbs in English:
transitive, intransitive, and linking.
3. Transitive Verbs
• Transitive verbs are verbs that take one
or more objects.
• An object can be:
– A noun phrase
– A pronoun
– A noun clause
4. Examples
• I teach | English daily.
• My dog is chasing | an old cat.
• The actress kissed | her children in front
of the crowd.
• He hugged | his dog.
5. 3 Ways to Locate the Object 1
• In English, an object of the verb
(usually) comes to the right of the verb.
– The dog bit > the man.
– The man bit > the dog.
6. 3 Ways to Locate the Object 2
• Try asking the question “who” or “what”
with the subject and the verb phrase.
• The answer is often the object.
– The dog bit the man. Who did the dog
bite? (The man).
– The man bit the dog. Who did the man
bite? (The dog).
– The man bit the ice cream cone. What did
the man bite? (The ice cream cone).
7. 3 Ways to Locate the Object 3
• Try replacing the object with an object
pronoun.
• The dog bit the man > The dog bit him.
• The man bit the ice cream cone > The
man bit it.
9. Examples
•
•
•
•
•
I teach English daily.
I teach it daily.
My dog is chasing an old tom cat.
My dog is chasing it. My dog is chasing him.
The actress kissed her children in front of the
crowd.
• The actress kissed them in front of the crowd.
• He kissed his wife on the cheek.
• He kissed her on the cheek.
10. CRITICAL PASSIVE POINT!
• Only verb phrases in which the lexical
verb is transitive can be made passive.
• In other words, for a clause to be made
passive, its original form (called “the
active”) has to have a transitive verb
phrase followed by an object of the
verb.
11. Forming the Passive - 1
• Find the subject, the verb phrase, and
the object.
Sub
Vb Phr.
Obj.
|The doctor| was examining |the patient|.
12. Forming the Passive - 2
• Determine the tense and aspect of the
verb phrase.
• The doctor |was examining |the patient.
• Was examining = past tense,
progressive aspect.
13. Forming the Passive - 3
• Insert the correct form of TO BE right
before the lexical verb.
• The “be” should be in the same tense
and aspect as the original verb phrase.
• The doctor was examining the patient >
The doctor was being examining the
patient.
14. Forming the Passive - 4
• Change the lexical verb to the past
participle.
• The doctor was examining the patient.>
• The doctor was being examining the
patient. >
• The doctor was being examined the
patient.
15. Forming the Passive - 5
• Reverse the positions of the subject and the
object.
•
•
•
•
The doctor was examining the patient.>
The doctor was being examining the patient.>
The doctor was being examined the patient.>
The patient was being examined the doctor.
16. Forming the Passive - 6
• Stick the word “by” in front of the former
subject.
•
•
•
•
•
The doctor was examining the patient.>
The doctor was being examining the patient>
The doctor was being examined the patient.>
The patient was being examined the doctor.>
The patient was being examined by the
doctor
17. Intransitive Verbs
• Intransitives are verbs that do not take
objects. There are basically two types:
– (A) Those that are always intransitive.
– (B) Those that are sometimes intransitive
and sometimes not.
18. Examples
Example (A): (Always intransitive)
The accident happened.
The man disappeared from the scene of the accident.
The woman died at the scene.
Example (B): (Sometimes intransitive)
TRANSITIVE: He kissed his wife.
INTRANSITIVE: They kissed quickly.
19. AGENT (whodunnit)
• The concept of “agent” is very important to
understand.
• In active sentences, the “agent” is that which
brings about the event or the state described
by the verb.
20. Clear Agents
• Sometimes, the “agent” of an active English sentence
is transparently clear and is actually the same as the
subject.
• Example: The woman taught a grammar lesson.
– “The woman” is the subject --- and clearly the
“agent” -- that which is bringing about the
teaching.
• Example: The cat chased a mouse.
– Who or what “did” the verb, the chasing? The cat.
The cat is the subject and the agent.
21. Unclear Agents
• Sometimes agents aren’t very clear.
• They are implied or “understood” but very
obviously not the subject of the verb and very
obviously NOT in the sentence.
22. Unclear Agents: Examples
• Example: The accident happened.
• So who exactly did what? Did this accident just sort
of spontaneously combust or did someone DO
something?
• Example: A review of Spanish colonial literature finds
four major shipwreck narratives
• So who exactly did this finding of literature? Reviews
don’t find themselves. Clearly someone did this
finding.
23. More on Agents
• Some verbs can be both transitive and
intransitive.
• Sometimes the subject of the transitive
version is clearly the agent.
• However, the subject of the intransitive
version is NOT the agent.
John broke the plate. (John did it!)
The plate broke. (Who did it?)
24. The Agentive Phrase
• The “by phrase” in a passive is called the agentive
by-phrase.
• Frequently it contains the agent -- BUT NOT
ALWAYS.
• If the agent isn’t the subject in the active, the
agentive phrase is not the agent either!
Active: A review of Spanish colonial literature finds
four major shipwreck narratives
Passive: Four major shipwreck narratives are found
by a review of Spanish colonial literature.
Who does the finding?
