Search results for 'tag:Passive sentences' matching tag 'Passive sentences'

Re: Help revising an argumentative essay

ferpectedit — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 05:21:51 GMT

I work for an online editing and proofreading service. Please see my profile for more info. I won't revise your whole essay here, but I will show you the changes I would make in the first paragraph. When humans battle one another they are at their worse. We have made guns and other implements capable of doing great damage, but our deadliest invention are the weapons of mass destruction: nuclear, biological and chemical. These weapons kill, contaminate or infect whatever they touch. Dictators and countries hostile to one another use these weapons to jockey for power. No one should develop these weapons that sustain dictatorships and bring war, sickness and death into this world. Be careful of cliches like "hell on earth":...

Re: targeted/meant

califjim — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 07:06:41 GMT

Is the word targeted in above the sentence above is appeared as a past participle or adjective? It's the past participle of the verb target . Note that a word can be both a past participle and an adjective, however, so it has some adjectival qualities. become a passive sentence? Yes, it has many qualities of passive voice, but I would not call it a true passive. Past participles can occur even when the sentence is not in the passive voice. This is really more like a semi-passive. (1) it It is hoped that the things which i I learn are correct (2)it is meant that all students can go back home now. The second sentence is incorrect. It is meant that is not English. hoped and meant are past participles. These are passive sentences....

targeted/meant

evo25 — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 06:31:46 GMT

The event is targeted at a young,urban sophisticated group who understands the brand.(sentence taken from newspaper) the word targeted in above sentence is appeared as past participle or adjective? if the targeted consider as past participle, the sentence above can be said that become a passive sentence? i'm sure when ver to be + a past participle word, the word will change a sentence become a passive sentence!(i learn from grammar book) such as 1.I eat the apple. The apple was eaten by me. I understand these sentences above. But,how about in these cases. (1)it is hoped that the things which i learn are correct (2)it is meant that all students can go back home now. how about the word hoped and meant?considered as past participle?...

Re: Passive sentences-it

califjim — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 07:55:59 GMT

The "rule" of not mixing active and passive only applies where it is possible to make all the parts active or all passive. Further note that the example on that website is of a sentence of two independent clauses joined by "and". I don't think the "rule" necessarily has to apply to subordinate clauses. There is no passive sentence possible when there is no object in the active sentence. Because of this "it does not rain" does not have a passive form. ("it has not been raining" is not passive. It is simply a different active tense -- present perfect continuous.) CJ

Passive sentences-it

bhikkhu1991 — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 07:45:06 GMT

Hello, The beach will be crowded by foreign tourists if it does not rain. Could you change the above sentence to a complete passive sentence or more sentences without changing its meaning? I am wondering whether the whole sentence qualifies as a passive sentence because the second part 'if it does not rain' cannot change into the passive one. In other words, the first passive part 'The beach will be crowded by foreign tourists' is mixing with the active part 'if it does not rain' in the same sentence. According to 'Guide to Grammar and Writing', the principle is no-mix-active-passive sentence: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/passive.htm . By the way,I managed to change it to the following way of a...

Re: was admitted to

mr wordy — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 11:36:41 GMT

(b) is fine. I'm not keen on (a). It's fairly common to omit second and subsequent instances of "was" in passive sentences. For example "She was bitten by a snake and admitted to hospital". However, if the first item is an adjective (as "sick" in your example) then this style doesn't read so well (to me). I think this is because you get no cue from "was sick" that the construction is a passive one (unlike "was bitten"), so you tend to initially read "admitted" as an active verb before realising that this doesn't work and then having to backtrack. "... was admitted to/into (the) hospital" are all OK. I would normally use "admitted to"....

Re: Passives (Like & Love) "-"- Subject & Object

mister micawber — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 03:02:07 GMT

. John likes pizza. Pizza is liked by John. There is no object in the second sentence. The subject of the passive sentence ( pizza ) is the object of its active equivalent. By John is an adverb. John is the agent in both sentences. Of course, some passive sentences can have objects: John gave Mary a pizza .-- John is subject and agent, pizza is direct object, Mary is indirect object. Mary was given pizza by John .-- Mary is subject, pizza is object, by John is adverb and agent.

Re: as been taken off

yankee — Fri, 23 May 2008 13:20:31 GMT

Your second sentence uses the causative form 'have something done'. This structure is used when someone causes something to happen. For example: If you call a company named ABC Painters and make arrangements for them to paint your son's house, you might later use one of these sentences after the job is finished: - I had my son's house painted (by ABC Painters) - I had ABC Painters paint my son's house. Both of the above sentences clearly indicate that you ( not your son ) 'caused' your son's house to be painted. On the other hand, if you use the passive sentence "My son's house was painted (by ABC Painters)", there is no indication of who caused ABC Painters to paint your son's house.

Re: passive voice

yankee — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 01:00:14 GMT

Many ESL grammar books require learners to convert active sentences to passive ones. If the book was well-written, the active sentences will be appropriate for conversion to passive ones. Unfortunately, there are plenty of grammar books and exercises that are not terribly well-written. Such books often ask learners to create passive sentences that would rarely (if ever) be used by native speakers. Although the passive sentences may be technically grammatically correct, too often they are completely unnatural and/or awkward. They sound contrived, forced and just plain strange. 1/ People saw him steal your car => should it be "he was seen to steal your car" or: he was seen stealing your car I'm guessing that your...

passive voice

anonymous — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 16:37:14 GMT

Hi, please help me with these transformation exercise: 1/ People saw him steal your car => should it be "he was seen to steal your car" or: he was seen stealing your car 2/ He won't let you do that silly thing again => should it be "you won't be let to do that silly thing again" or: you won't be let do that silly thing again Many thanks P.S: three of my teachers have told me the exact answer for question 1 is "he was seen to steal your car". They said both sentences are correct but because the original sentence is not in the -ing form, the passive sentence shouldn't be, either. I told them I think "he was seen to steal your car" is wrong, but they told me it is right, and...

Re: Transformational Rules and Subject-Verb Agreement

miriam — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 09:01:07 GMT

In response to the questions posed in the first post of this thread, "the officer" is NOT the subject of the sentence regardless of whether the sentence is active or passive. "The officer" is undoubtedly the doer of the action in both sentences, but it is the subject only in the sentence with the active verb. In the sentence with the passive verb, it can only appear in the predicate as "agent". It is still the doer of the action but no longer the subject of the sentence. The subject, in a sentence with a monotransitive verb such as "capture" is always the "receiver" or "undergoer" of the action, and it will change from subject to direct object in an active sentence. If we have a...

Re: Sentence Fragments, danglers, comma splices, lacking parallel parts

tanit — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:30:13 GMT

This material has been tested by our engineers - this would be Active because the subject is doing? it will be returned to you today - Passive since it stands for material - so there is no doer? Hi Corinna 1. This material has been tested by our engineers >> It's passive. The subject of the sentence is " material ", but the agent is " engineers " (in passive sentences, the " doer " - if clearly stated - is preceded by " by "). The active equivalent of this sentence would be " Our engineers have tested this materials " (You see? Here the subject of the sentence is the " doer " of the action). 2. It will be returned to you today >> Correct, it's...

Re: meaning please

tanit — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 20:38:14 GMT

Could the following sentences be used in a formal letter? Would the two of them be right? If so, when would you use number 1 and when number 2? 1. I look forward to meeting you. 2. I am looking forward to meeting you. Use the first one though. No need to be passive and say "I am looking forward to." "I look forward to meeting you" is more assertive. I'm sorry, Anon, but there's no passive sentence here! No. 1 uses the simple present (active), and no. 2 the present progressive (active). I was taught that no.2 is an appropriate ending for an informal letter.

Re: active\passive

yankee — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 17:59:04 GMT

Hi Kooyeen I really don't have any statistics on which tense would be more frequently used in informal AmE in a passive sentence like yours. But I do think that we're more likely to the present perfect in "Damn! My bike's been stolen!" than to use the present perfect in "Damn! Somebody has stolen my bike!" I found your first response to be misleading because you were assuming/presenting a context that simply was not provided in the original question. You really can't go too wrong if you change a simple past tense active sentence to a simple past tense passive sentence. And I'm not talking about just on tests -- I'm talking about everyday speech, too. However, you can go very wrong if you run around blindly changing simple past tense...

Re: active\passive

kooyeen — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 16:37:29 GMT

Yankee wrote: I do see your point, though. I suppose we would tend to be more "willing" to use the present perfect in a sentence such as " My bike's been stolen. " -- especially with "Damn!" preceding it. Still, I wouldn't find " Damn! My bike was stolen! " particularly odd in everyday AmE. Thanks Amy. So you mean that both tenses would be equally good in American English, in passive sentences like that one? I mean, both of these are ok in AmE... Damn, someone stole my bike! Where is it? Damn, someone's stolen my bike! Where is it? ...but I think the past simple is probably more common. If you now consider the passive versions, does the preference change so it's the other way around? (= the past simple is not the most common...

Re: "a" or "one of"

marvinthemartian — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 20:38:59 GMT

Thank you Yankee - you've been a tremendous help. My English has become so corrupted over the years that I can no longer tell when a sentence sounds idiomatic, which often causes me to second-guess myself. One more thing: for some reason, it seems more natural to use the present perfect in passive sentences. For example: "Look! The great oak tree in front of our house has been cut down" as opposed to "Look! The great oak tree in front of our house was cut down" which, to me, sounds a bit odd. (Oddly enough, the same sentence sounds fine if I substitute was with got . I gives it a somewhat more informal feel, however. At least, that's what I think.) Do you agree with me, or am I just losing what little grasp of the English...

Re: Passive Voice

goodman — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 17:46:34 GMT

Anonymous wrote: Hi~ I would like to know what's the difference (in terms of the underlined parts) between sentences 1 & 2. 1. Rob was devastated by the news of her death. 2. Rob was devastated . Is sentence 1 a passive construction while sentence 2 a linking verb 'be' + past participle? Hi Anon, 1. Rob was devastated by the news of her death. 2. Rob was devastated . To analyize sentences of this nature, we have to realize that in english there are certain verbs which by nature are often used passively. These verbs tend to have physical and emotional affects to the subject. The "be + past participle"structure traditionally is viewed as passive. i.e. Everyone in the office was saddened by her sudden...

Re: has she or was she?

goodman — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 19:22:37 GMT

#1 - The party took place last night and you weren't there. You wanted to know if Jane was invited to the party. So you asked " was she invited to the party?". #2 - The party is next week and you wonder ifJ ane is among the guests invited. So you ask "has Jane been invited?" # 1 and 2 are passive sentences and # 3 has what appears to be an active construction but missing an object. “ Has John invited to the party “ is incorrect because of the missing object after the verb. The correct construction is “ has John invited Mary to the party ”

Re: to measure or to be measured?

yankee — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 00:15:19 GMT

Hi Goodman I understood that you added 'by' in order to indicate a passive. However, your second sentence would be passive even without the word 'by'. In your second sentence, the word 'by' could be followed either by the agent who does the measuring (1) OR the method by which the measurement is done (2): 1. Microsoft's fiscal performance is easily measured by them. 2. Microsoft's fiscal performance is easily measured by comparing this year's stock price to last year's. It would also be possible to add 'by' and the method of measurement to your first sentence (i.e. similar to passive sentence 2): - It is easy to measure Microsoft's fiscal performance by comparing this year's stock price to last year's. - Microsoft's fiscal...

Re: Could anyone give a brief explanation about passive/active

califjim — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 08:05:22 GMT

I didn't use any parentheses in my discussion of how to form the passive because I wanted to show how to do it using all the elements of the active structure in the passive structure. Nevertheless, a sentence does not cease to be passive just because the by phrase is left out. It's still a passive sentence. So sometimes passive sentences are illustrated with parentheses around the by phrase. It means that the sentence is regarded as passive with or without the by phrase. The usual meaning of parentheses, as you have already guessed, is that the word or words in parentheses are optional. CJ

Re: Could anyone give a brief explanation about passive/active

califjim — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 20:17:07 GMT

How to form the passive sentence that corresponds to a given active sentence. Active: The dog bit the man. 1. Divide into subject, verb, and object. The dog || bit || the man. 2. Exchange subject and object. The man || bit || the dog. 3. Add by to the beginning of the last element. The man || bit || by the dog. 4. Change the verb from its active form to its passive form. The man || was bitten || by the dog. Sub-steps of 4. 4a. Determine the tense of the verb: bit: Past . 4b. Form that tense of the verb be : was / were 4c. Use the form that agrees with the subject: The man was 4d. Add the past participle of the original verb: bit: bitten . The...

Re: get + past participle

goodman — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:32:26 GMT

Anonymous wrote: Hi, all I'd like to ask you about using get + past participle in the sentences like that: When are we going to get paid? Pull over or you are going to get stoped in a different way. (I just made them up, so I may be wrong, but I think you get the point). It looks to me that we have to use the passive voice here. So, the point I'd like to clarify is if this is correct to use the get + past participle construction instead of the passive construction in such sentences. Can I use these to express the same idea? When are we going to be paid? Pull over or you are going to be stoped in a different way. And is it OK if i use get + past participle in a formal writing? Thanks in advance, ND Anon, ...

Re: present simple after adjective

yankee — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 02:13:58 GMT

Hi Musesun "This forbidden to make money in the university" is not a correct sentence. The word "forbidden" is not a tense at all -- it is just the past participle (V3) of the verb 'forbid'. You can say "This is forbidden", but you cannot say "This forbidden". Have you learned how to make passive sentences yet? That seems to be what is confusing you. The following pairs of sentences have the same meanings. The second sentence in each pair is the passive form of the first sentence: Cowboys ride horses. = simple present tense, active voice Horses are ridden by cowboys . = simple present tense, passive voice He wrote that book. = simple past tense, active voice That book was written by him. = simple past tense, passive voice In...

Re: Passives - prepositional verbs

yankee — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 13:35:39 GMT

Hi Peta I don't know that there is any "official" list of which prepositional verbs can/should be made passive. As is always the case with passives, however, you should first ask yourself if turning an object into the subject of a sentence (which is always what the passive does) is really justified. Turning the object into the subject puts more focus (or strength) on the original object and relegates the original subject of the sentence to a position of lesser importance. In the case of your "these caves" sentence, the caves are much more specific than "primitive men" and the caves are obviously a focus of the on-going conversation. In your tunnel sentence, you wrote "a tunnel", which is very non-specific. I assume the end of the...

Re: are these sentences correct'

yankee — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 21:35:54 GMT

'Hold up' can be used in a number of ways, and with more than one meaning. active: My last appointment held me up................passive: I was held up by my last appointment. OK active: She held her hand up..........passive: Her hand was held up. In the first sentence, she held her own hand up. In your passive sentence, it sounds as though someone else (not 'she') held her hand up. active: Robbers held up the bank. ......... passive: The bank was held up.

Re: are these sentences correct'

nona the brit — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 21:13:32 GMT

Are you trying to create passive sentences with 'gone down'?

Re: passive verbs are adjectives

new2grammar — Wed, 30 May 2007 21:53:23 GMT

Correct me if I am wrong, You would say, The car is smashed. => passive , The smashed car is... You won't say. The people are met by me. => it's passive but doesn't make sense, therefore the compound noun also illogical, The met people So, I think the question is, as long as the passive sentences are logical, so will the compound nouns, right?

Re: Why and where do we use passive and active? please help

kooyeen — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 15:21:55 GMT

Hi, there is too much to say about passive and active sentences. If you search this forum for that, you'll find some useful threads, I believe. Just a quick example: I eat a red apple. Active sentence A red apple is eaten (by me). Passive sentence. I ate a red apple. Active sentence A red appple was eaten (by me). Passive sentence If you have some specific doubts about certain sentences, post here and we will see how to solve your problem.

Re: Active and passive

cool breeze — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 22:40:32 GMT

Goodman wrote: I don’t see how your sentences are not written in passive voice. They are as passive as passive can get. You wrote: 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. Hi Goodman It is obvious you don't speak French. The structure of the English was killed/has been killed/ had been killed is passive as in English the passive is formed by...

Re: Active and passive

goodman — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 18:27:52 GMT

Rex wrote: 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? Hi Rex, I don’t see how your sentences are not written in passive voice. They are as passive as passive can get. You wrote: I would translate the...

Re: Is grammar essential for learning a language?

kooyeen — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 15:12:52 GMT

Hi everyone, I read some articles about this, not long ago. Clive wrote: Is grammar essential for learning a language? The answer is NO, NO, NO. Bird of Paradise, the book you read is right. We didn't learn the grammar of our first language before we were able to use it. I believe no native speaker of English was taught that you have to say "Do you have a car?", using the auxiliary "do" and subject-auxiliary inversion, instead of "You have a car?" or "Have you a car?" I believe every native speaker started to say sentences like "The bank was robbed" before they knew what a passive sentence is. I also believe no native speaker has ever been taught when to use the present perfect and when to use the...

Re: Are ''eaten'' and ''beaten'' being used as adjective in the...?

yankee — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 19:04:36 GMT

Bokeh wrote: Yoong Liat wrote: Jackson6612 wrote: Are eaten and beaten being used as adjective in the following sentences? 1: Sweets have been eaten by me. (eat, ate, eaten). The word 'eaten' is used as a verb. 2: He has not been beaten by us. (beat, beat, beaten) The word 'beaten' is used as a verb.

Re: have been robbed

kooyeen — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 14:28:12 GMT

Hi, this is another thread to take advantage of. I get the feeling that in passive sentences the present perfect is used even if in active sentences the past simple is the common choice (at least in AmE). Did you hear the latest news? Someone robbed the bank! Did you hear the latest news? The bank 's been robbed ! (This is the passive version but instead of saying "was robbed", which is the passive of "robbed", we say "has been robbed") Damn! Where are my cookies? Someone ate them! Damn! Where are my cookies? They' ve been eaten ! (Same comment as above, "were eaten", which is the passive of "ate", is not as good as "have been eaten") What do you think of my comments? Thanks

Re: In sentences ''they are worth it'' ''I am sorry'' what Tense is being used?

doll — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 07:10:17 GMT

1 : They are worth it. I m not sure of this sentence. They worth it seems correct to me. 2 We are proud of ourselves.Sentences like I am proud of, I am afraid of , I am scared of aren't passive sentences.Here proud, adraid and scared are adjectives. 3.I am sorry .Here sorry is adjective,too. I am happy, I am sad , I am clumsy.Happy, sad and clumsy are adjectives. You sholdn't change such sentences into passive.In fact they have nothing to do with passive voice.Adjectives like scared, afraid may seem you as the past form of their original one but they aren't.

active and passive sentences

chevy bel air 01 — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 15:52:34 GMT

hello, I have a couple of questions with reference to active and passive sentences. A simple example A.: He drove the car. P.: The car was driven by him. So far all right. An another example A.: A earthquake destroyed the hotel. P.: The Hotel was destroyed by a earthquake (wrong). The Hotel was being destroyed by a earthquake (correct). Could anyone tell me the exceptional case? thanks in anticipation Cevy Bel Air 01

Re: Persona question #3a

kooyeen — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 00:26:51 GMT

Hi Archi, you are asking about very general subjects. I think it would be difficult to explain everything about active and passive sentences in a single post... Maybe someone else will post something useful for you, anyway you could try to post again and ask about some specific examples, so that we can understand exactly what your problems are. Let us know...

Re: Question about Passive

califjim — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 02:13:34 GMT

Sometimes passive sentences are described without using auxiliary verb, when don't we use aux verbs in passive sentence? Example:- Insulin: A hormone secreted by the Pancreas First of all, a hormone secreted by the pancreas is not a sentence. It is a noun phrase, that is, an expression that refers to something. It refers to this hormone called insulin, but it says absolutely nothing about the hormone, so it is not a sentence. The implied sentence in such a definition is Insulin IS a hormone secreted by the pancreas . And, as others have already explained, this is a short way of saying Insulin is a hormone which is secreted by the pancreas , that is, Insulin is a hormone. This hormone is secreted by the pancreas....

Re: Question about Passive

penicillin — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 21:49:56 GMT

Thanks, I got it But are there other cases else for omitting the aux very when describing passive sentences?

Question about Passive

penicillin — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 20:55:16 GMT

Hello I have a question about passive. Sometimes passive sentences are described without using auxiliary verb, when don't we use aux verbs in passive sentence? Example: - Insulin: A hormone secreted by the Pancreas; why we don't say "A hormone is secreted by the Pancreas."? Thanks

ANYBODY WHO CAN HELP ME, PLEASE?

saris — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 11:35:55 GMT

Hi every one, i need help with my grammar. How should I make passive sentences from these active ones: 1.They say he is the best. He is said to................? 2.They say he stole the purse. He is said to.............? 3.They say that the new store will be opened next week. The new store is said to............? 4.They couldn't see him anywhere. He was...........? 5.Can one trust such people? Are......................? Are there any rules about making passive? And what about overlapping and ateriority? Thanks in advance , Bebe.

Re: passive

philip — Sat, 27 Jan 2007 21:07:01 GMT

Saris wrote: Hi Clive... I'm new here, don't know whether it will work..but I hope you will receive my message. I need help with active to passive transformation. There are sentences i need to rewrite to passive voice: 1. They say that Helen is the best teacher. The passive sentence should begin : Helen is said to..................................? 2. They say that Helen was the best teacher. Helen is said to ..................................? 3. They say that Helen will be the best teacher. Helen is said to....................................? 4. They said they would rather Diana didn't listen to music at work. Diana ...............................? Are there rules how to make passive in examples above? Thanks in advance. Hi,...

passive

saris — Sat, 27 Jan 2007 19:45:51 GMT

Hi Clive... I'm new here, don't know whether it will work..but I hope you will receive my message. I need help with active to passive transformation. There are sentences i need to rewrite to passive voice: 1. They say that Helen is the best teacher. The passive sentence should begin : Helen is said to..................................? 2. They say that Helen was the best teacher. Helen is said to ..................................? 3. They say that Helen will be the best teacher. Helen is said to....................................? 4. They said they would rather Diana didn't listen to music at work. Diana ...............................? Are there rules how to make passive in examples above? Thanks in advance.

Active to Passive

saris — Sat, 27 Jan 2007 19:17:15 GMT

Hi Mister MIcawber. I'm new here, don't know whether it will work..but I hope you will receive my message. I need help with active to passive transformation. There are sentences i need to rewrite to passive voice: 1. They say that Helen is the best teacher. The passive sentence should begin : Helen is said to..................................? 2. They say that Helen was the best teacher. Helen is said to ..................................? 3. They say that Helen will be the best teacher. Helen is said to....................................? Are there rules how to make passive in examples above? Thanks in advance.

Re: what is the difference between "was" and "were"

marius hancu — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 22:06:07 GMT

It's not diferent, but you don't seem to know to see where the subject is in passive sentences: The exam: this is the singular subject, thus in passive form you should use was failed The brakes: this is plural subject, thus in passive form you should use were slammed

Re: Correct order in which to parse a verb?

garnett — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 14:29:51 GMT

Mister Micawber wrote: Future Simple (I will sit) Future Continuous/Progressive (I will be sitting) Future Perfect (I will have sat") Present Simple (I sit) Past Simple (I sat) Past Continuous/Progressive (I was sitting) Past Perfect (I had sat) Past Perfect Continuous/Progressive (I had been sitting) Any I've missed? -- See VERB FORMS Also can you hjelp me with Moods: Indicative, Subjunctive, Imperative. -- See VERB MOODS In Latin you use the Jussive Subjuntive for sentences like "Let them eat cake", or "Let's go to the park". What is this construction in English? This is a causative imperative (I think). Awesome. Thanks for those references.

passive to active voice. Pls help me

anonymous — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 19:03:41 GMT

Rewrite these passive sentences in the active form. Begin with the word (s) given. 1. The first fax machines were installed in 1988. The Firm_____________________ 2. Further modifications will be made to this service to other customers. The suppliers ________________________________________ 3. The systems can easily be operated by ordinary office staff. Ordinary office staff ____________________________________ 4. The new software can be mastered easily in a couple of days. You ________________________________________________ 5. Increased productivity has been achieved by using better trained staff. Using better trained staff _______________________________ 6. The invoices are now sent out...

Re: Odd sentence out !

milky — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 20:23:19 GMT

Clive wrote: Hi, odd - adjective : beyond or deviating from the usual or expected You didn't state your point. Mine is that I don't find 'The trains collided by a river' to be an unusual sentence. Nor do I find it unexpected, since I had no expectations in mind when I read this set of sentences. Clive Clive, in a group of passive sentences, the "by a river" one is odd. It doesn't fit. Simple really . If you want to go on arguing petty semantics, do it alone. I'm outa here.

Re: confused about present perfect

pieanne — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 14:24:40 GMT

Rotter wrote: 1.Pasta is eaten daily by Italians. (As a present-day habit.) 2.Italians eat pasta. What is the difference between the two sentences? I guess the first sentence is a passive sentence and the second one is an active sentence. I maybe wrong. Please tell me. They have basically the same meaning. The difference is that, in the first sentence, the focus is on "pasta"; you're talking about pasta. It couls belong to a speech about "pasta through the centuries". In the second one, the focus is on "Italians"; you're talking about the Italians and their habits.

Re: confused about present perfect

rotter — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:11:55 GMT

1.Pasta is eaten daily by Italians. (As a present-day habit.) 2.Italians eat pasta. What is the difference between the two sentences? I guess the first sentence is a passive sentence and the second one is an active sentence. I maybe wrong. Please tell me.

Re: Present perfect tense question

paco2004 — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 01:53:57 GMT

"Retire", when it is used to describe persons, it is, in its origin, an intransitive verb to mean "draw (oneself) away from the contact with other people", although it has been used as a transitive verb since ME days in the case it is used to talk about things. It is only in 18th century people began to use it in the sense of "cause someone to retire". "Retired" in "Someone is retired" is analyzed in the current English grammar as an adjective to mean "being in retirement" rather than a past participle in a passive sentence of "Somebody retires someone" (=somebody causes someone to retire). Actually "Someone is retired" has no relation to "Somebody retires someone". Historically speaking, I think, "Someone is retired" should be parsed as...