3. CHAPTER 17

5. Outline
Forming passive sentences; Using passive sentences
Constraints on forming passive sentences
Passive look-Alikes
Get passives; Get passive look-Alikes
Other type of passive sentences
Problems that ESL/EFL students have with passive
sentences
Exercise
Activity

6. FORMING PASSIVE SENTENCES
The performance shocked the audience.
The audience was shocked by the performance.
Passive sentences are formed from active sentences by:
1) Moving the subject to the end of the sentence and
placing by before it.
2)Moving the object into subject position.
3)Changing the main verb to a past participle and
inserting an appropriate form of be before it.

8. Sentences with verbs in any tense can be made passive.
•If the verb in the active sentence is in the simple
present or simple past, so is the form of be that
precedes the past participle of the main verb .
a. The dean fired our professor.
b. Our professor was fired by the dean

9. •If the verb in the active sentence is in the progressive
aspect, then being is inserted between the
progressive form of be and the past participle of the
main verb .
The dean is firing our professor.
Our professor is being fired by the dean.
The dean was firing our professor.
Our professor was being fired by the dean

10. •If the verb in the active sentence is in the perfect
aspect, then been is inserted between the form of
have and the past participle of the main verb
The dean has fired our professor.
Our professor has been fired by the
dean,
The dean had fired our professor.
Our professor had been fired by the
dean,

11. Perfect progressives, although rare in passive
sentences, include being before the past
participle
(e.g., active has/had been firing becomes passive
has/had been being fired).

12. •If the active sentence contains a modal followed by a
bare infinitive verb, then in the passive sentence the
modal is followed by the bare infinitive form of be,
The dean should fire our professor.
Our professor should be fired by the
dean,
The dean will fire our professor.
Our professor will be fired by the
dean.

13. Passive Subjects
Subjects of passive sentences in the corresponding
active sentences may be:
direct objects:
The professor was dismissed by the dean.

14. indirect objects
Mohamed was given many presents by his friends.
objects of prepositions
This bed has been slept in by presidents.
object complements
That rachid could not possibly win was recognized by
everyone.

15. Two Types of Passive Sentences
Passives Without Agent By Phrases
Reasons why a native speaker may decide to use short
passives in speech and writing include the following:
the agent is unknown.
His wallet was stolen in Inzegan.
the speaker does not want to reveal the agent.
I was given some top-secret information.

16. the agent is understood.
The mail was delivered to my doorstep.
the writer is interested more in the action being
reported than in the agent.
The subjects were each given a pencil and a
sheet of paper.

17. Passives with Agent By Phrases
Long passives have an agent by phrase.
This book was written by Ron Cowan.
This package was dropped off by a strange-looking
woman.

18. The agent phrase is included when the agent is
important new information, such as when the agent is
a famous person or has caused harm or annoyance to
the subject.
That search engine was developed by a young college
student.
This old soccer ball is signed by the great Brazilian player
Pele.
I was kept up all night by my screaming neighbors.

19. USING PASSIVE SENTENCES
Passive sentences may be used to comply with:
The Given-New Contract
the given-new contract, according to which old
information comes before new information.
For dessert I had a piece of a wonderfully delicious cake.
It was made by the new pastry chef
.

20. The Principle of End Weight:
the end weight principle, according to which long,
complex NPs are moved to the end of the sentence.
I was approached by a man wearing dark glasses, a
wide-brimmed hat, and a black scarf

21. CONSTRAINTS ON FORMING PASSIVE
SENTENCES
( you read Mr Akhrraz)
Passive sentences cannot be formed if the active
sentence verb is not followed by an NP, PP, or
complement clause.
In addition, passive sentences are not usually possible
with:

22. Stative Verbs
stative verbs that are not seen as affecting the object
(e.g., contain, cost, equal, resemble. weigh).
John resembles his father.
*His father is resembled by John PASSIVE

23. Multiword Verbs
separable transitive phrasal verbs
( it’s your turn Miss Nadia)
Active sentences that contain separable transitive
phrasal verbs can usually be converted into passive
sentences.
At the meeting, someone brought up the matter of the
missing $20.
At the meeting, the matter of the missing $20 was brought
up.

24. inseparable transitive phrasal verbs
( Could you read me please Mr. AKKLOUCH)
Most members of the small class of inseparable
transitive phrasal verbs can appear only in active
sentences.Possible exceptions are look after ("care
for"), look into ("investigate"), and pick on
("mistreat").
In the course of the investigation, he came across an
incriminating letter.
*In the course of the investigation, an incriminating
letter was come across (by him).

25. permanently separated transitive phrasal verbs
(It’s your slide Miss Soumia)
Some permanently separated transitive phrasal verbs
- for example, ask (some-one) out, let (someone) off -
can appear in passive sentences. However, others - for
example, get (someone) down, see (something)
through - do not passivize well.
The criticism and complaints are getting him down.
*He is being gotten down by the criticism and complaints.

26. prepositional verbs
(here it is Mr. Mezgar)
Most prepositional verbs can appear in passive
sentences; however, a few cannot or do not sound
very good. These verbs include abide by, adjust to,
agree with, bank on, and run for.
Last fall, John ran for the office of mayor.
*Last fall, the office of mayor was run for by John.
even family members couldn’t adjust to his weird habits.
? His weird habits couldn’t be adjusted to even by family
members

27. phrasal prepositional verbs
3
2
1
(Go on Miss Naima)
A few phrasal prepositional verbs such as look
forward to can appear in passive sentences, but
others, such as break up with, cut down on, end up
with, get along with, get down to, and put up with….
etc, cannot.
Everyone got along with him.
*He was gotten along with by everyone.

28. For Dative Verbs
( it’s yours Mr. Driwch)
active sentences in the dative movement pattern can be
passivized, with the indirect object becoming the
passive subject. Active sentences in the prepositional
pattern can, of course, also be passivized, with the
dircct object becoming the passive subject.
The old woman gave (a piece of candy] to [the little
girl] prepositional pattern
The old woman gave (the little girl] [a piece of
candy] dative movement pattern

29. A piece of candy was given to the little girl by the old
woman
The little girl was given a piece of candy by the old
woman.
( please go ahead and read Miss Meriem)
However, when the verb is a for dative verb (e.g.,
bake, catch, find), speakers of American English
judge as grammatical only passives converted from
active sentences in the prepositional pattern.

30. Thus, in American English an attempt to convert
the dative movement pattern sentence to a passive
results in an ungrammatical sentence .
They found her a nice apartment.
*She was found a nice apartment by them.
This constraint on sentences with for dative verbs causes
difficulties for English learners. Students are often unable to
recognize sentences like this as ungrammatical.

31. PASSIVE LOOK-ALIKES
( Just relax it’s me this time)
The sequence be + past participle does not always
signal the passive voice. Some past participles are
adjectives.
Guelmim is located in the south of Morocco
The shop is closed at five o’clock.

32. exercisecan be passivized. If
Indicate whether each sentence
it can, write the passive version. If it cannot, expailn
why.
Example: He found her a nice apartment.
Answer: no (Active sentences in the dative
movement pattern with a for dative verb cannot be
passivized.)
1. Susan baked Fred a big chocolate.
2. The compay offered a huge salary bonus to the
workeres.
3. The producer sent her a telegram
4. That new suit cost a lot of money
5. She made me a sandwish
6. He came down with a bad cold

33. Answer Key
1. No(it has the for dative verb bake in the dative
movement pattern.)
2. Yes(A huge salary bonus was offered to the workers
by the company.)
3. Yes(She was sent a telegram by the producer.)
4. No(It contains stative verb cost.)
5. No(It has the for dative verb make in the dative
movement pattern.)
6. No(It contains a phrasal prepositional verb, come
down with.)

34. GET PASSIVES; GET PASSIVE LOOK-ALIKES
Get Passives
( YOU Mr. Ait Madani)
Get passives are formed with the appropriate form of
get followed by a past participle. They are more
informal than be passive sentences and are frequently,
although not necessarily, used to talk about events
that affect the subject in an adverse way.

35. Khadija got attacked by a vicious dog.
The professor got fired by the dean last week.
Get passives usually do not occur with stative verbs of
cognition.
*The solution to the problem got known by everyone.
*The question got understood by no one.

36. Get Passive Look-Alikes
(You read Miss. Ahlam)
In get passive look-alikes, past participles that are
adjectives follow get. Get in these sentences has the
meaning "become." The sentences are not get
passives.
He gets confused easily. ( = He becomes confused
easily.)
Redone got stuck in the elevator. ( = Redone became
stuck in the elevator.)
It's getting chilly. (= It's becoming chilIy.)

37. Idiomatic Expressions with Get
( yes ! Abolahassan)
Idiomatic expressions with get such as the
intransitive phrasals get up, get down, and get going
are not get passives.
He got up at six o'clock.
She got hungry, so she made herself a sandwich.

38. OTHER TYPES OF PASSIVE SENTENCES
Passives in Complements Following Get and Have
( Mr. zakaria this slide is yours)
The verbs get and have can be followed by a complement. In
such sentences, get and have have a causative meaning; that
is, the sentence subject is understood as causing the action in
the complement.
Rkiya got her nails done.
Mbark had the house painted.

39. Happenstance passives
( Mr. Takky eddin)
Happenstance passives describe unfortunate events
that the subject of the sentence did not intentionally
cause.
FORM: got/had+NP+ past participle
I had my wallet stolen in Inzegan. (= My wallet was stolen in Inzegan.)
Mohamed got his car towed away last night. (= Mohamed's car was
towed away last night.)

40. Concealed passives
( Miss. Sophia)
Concealed passives occur with need, require and
want, especially in British English. They are not
true passives but have the same meaning as
passives.
This essay needs careful checking by the editor.
(= This essay needs to be carefully checked by the
editor.)

42. Pseudo-passive constructions (Chinese)
the so-called pseudo-passive do not have the verb be or the
past participle form of the main verb.
Example:
这些 放啊 可以 分 两 种
Zhexie fanga keyi fen liang zhong
* these ways can classify into two types

43. Ungrammatical passives with ergative verbs(Korean)
Korean speakers frequentely produce passive
sentences containing ergative verbs, although these
are ungrammatical in English
Example:
그것은 대부분의 여성이 극심한 빈곤으로
고통하는 바보 같은 짓이에요
*It is ridiculous that most women in developing
countries are suffered from extreme poverty

45. The following sentence can have two patterns in
the passive version:
People say that mobile phones are harmful to children’s health

46. Mobile phones are said to be harmful to children’s health
It is said that mobile phones are harmful to children’s health

47. passive sentences frequently occur in news reports and
in academic writing.
Rewrite the following paragraph so that it contains
passive sentences ( second pattern).
For some time scientists have known that exercise is good for the body.
Until recently, researchers believed that the main benefit of exercise to
older people was maintaining body strength and endurance. However,
recently, a number of studies have shown that exercise even benefits the
mental health of the aging. In one study,researchers found that regular
exercise can make the brain younger. In a recent study at the university
of Illinois, investigators discovered that regular exercise by older people
produced brain patterns typically found in 20-year-olds. Now the
question seems to be « what kinds of exercise produce the greatest
cognitive for old people? »

48. The answer
For some time it has been known that exercise is good for the body.
Until recently, it was believed that the main benefit of exercise to
older people was maintaining body strength and endurance. But
recently it has been shown that exercise even benefits the mental
health of the aging. In one study, it was found that regular exercise
can make the brain younger. In a recent study at the university of
Illinois, it was discovered that regular exercise by older people
produced brain patterns typically found in 20-year-olds. Now the
question seems to be « what kinds of exercise produce the greatest
cognitive for old people? »