Rex  +  354212 Sun, 22 Apr 07 07:52 PM 1. He is believed to be good at programming.  The above is a passive sentence. What is the best translation of this into active voice? 1. Everybody believes  he is  good at programming. 2. People believe he is good at programming. You might come with some brilliant translation. ------------------------------------------------------------ He is allergic to pollen grain. How do you translate this into passive? Rex Joined on Wed, Jul 28 2004 Full Member 358 Passive Sentences, Translation

	Doll  +  354234 Sun, 22 Apr 07 09:40 PM What is the best translation of this into active voice? 1. Everybody believes  he is  good at programming. 2. People believe he is good at programming.---- I think this one is best though I couldn't find any imprtant difference between them.    He is allergic to pollen grain.--- I couldn't find! Doll Joined on Sat, Mar 10 2007 Senior Member 2,811 Difference Between, Translation

	Rex  +  354451 Mon, 23 Apr 07 01:20 PM Un soldat américain a été tué en Iraq hier. The above is a passive sentence in French. I would translate the above into English as follows: An American soldier was killed in Iraq yesterday     OR Yesterday, an American soldier was killed in Iraq. I don't think my English version is a passive sentence. If you wrote, a soldier had been killed, it would be incorrect. Because it borders the past perfect tense, as far as I am concerned. You write the past perfect tense to push one action before the other. How do you translate the French sentence into English? Rex Tenses, Past Perfect, Passive Sentences

	Yankee  +  354453 Mon, 23 Apr 07 01:27 PM Hi Rex Your translation sounds fine to me ('was killed').  That is passive in English.  The active sentence would be: Someone killed an American soldier in Iraq yesterday. Yankee Joined on Sat, Apr 15 2006 Connecticut, USA Veteran Member 6,494 Amy "You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." - Mark Twain Translation

	Rex  +  354479 Mon, 23 Apr 07 02:13 PM Thanks Yankee. 3. He is wounded in the accident.             --> Il est blessé dans ... 4. He was wounded in the accident.         --> Il était blessé  ... So the fourth sentence is a passive one. If the accident took place yesterday or 100 years ago, I think the fourth sentence represents a past event. Is it still a passive sentenece? Rex

	Cool Breeze  +  354512 Mon, 23 Apr 07 02:54 PM Hi Rex I'll join the conversation, if I may. An American soldier was killed in Iraq yesterday is structurally passive (was + killed), but in English that need not mean that the sentence has to be understood in the passive. You could just as well say: An American soldier died in Iraq yesterday. English is sometimes a little inexact. There are quite a few expressions that are passive in structure (= be + past participle) even though they are active in actual meaning: The house is situated on a hill. We were surprised at his disappearance. Sometimes both active and passive are possible and yet the meaning may remain unchanged: He (was) drowned in the lake. There is no knowing whether he was the victim of a crime or an accident without more context. Only the active is possible in a sentence like this: The two men deliberately drowned the boy in the lake. Cheers CB Cool Breeze Joined on Fri, Apr 7 2006 Senior Member 3,970 "I hope you'll all live to be 150 years old - and the last voice you hear is mine!" Frank Sinatra on stage in Oslo, Norway, 28 September 1991 Conversations

	Rex  +  354541 Mon, 23 Apr 07 03:24 PM Thanks Cool Breeze. It was a good explanation. Are you a Finn? I guess you are an American living in Finland. Rex

	Cool Breeze  +  354566 Mon, 23 Apr 07 03:51 PM  Rex wrote: Thanks Cool Breeze. It was a good explanation. Are you a Finn? I guess you are an American living in Finland. Yes, Rex, I'm as Finnish as can be! CB Cool Breeze