English Grammar: Personal and Impersonal Passive

Introduction to Passive Forms

• Passive Form: Expresses an action experienced by the subject.
  • Active Form: Subject performs an action, sometimes on an object.
  • Passive Transformation: The object becomes the subject, experiencing the action.

Personal Passive

• Definition: Action is experienced by a specific subject.
• Example: "An author writes a book."
  • Active: Author (subject) writes (verb) a book (object).
  • Passive: The book (new subject) is written (passive verb) by the author (agent).
• Formation:
  • Subject + Verb 'to be' + Past Participle + (optional Agent)
  • Note: The agent, introduced by "by," is optional.
• Conjugation:
  • Conjugate the verb 'to be' to match tense; past participle remains unchanged.
  • Examples by Tense:
    • Present Simple: The book is written.
    • Present Continuous: The book is being written.
    • Past Simple: The book was written.
    • Present Perfect: The book has been written.
    • Past Continuous: The book was being written.
    • Past Perfect: The book had been written.
    • Future Simple: The book will be written.
    • Future Perfect: The book will have been written.
    • Conditionals:
      • Conditional 1: The book would be written.
      • Conditional 2: The book would have been written.

Impersonal Passive

• Definition: Used when there is no identified subject.
• Characteristics:
  • No specific subject; often starts with "it."
  • Common verbs: think, believe, say, report, know, expect, consider, understand, agree.
  • Used for general beliefs, sayings, or opinions.
• Examples:
  • "It is said that the orchestra is the best in the world."
  • "It is believed that the fire started by accident."
  • "It is expected that they will be on time."
• Conjugation: Similar to personal passive but with "it" as the subject.

Special Note on Personal Passive

• Indirect Objects as Subjects:
  • In English, indirect objects (often "to me") can become subjects in passive forms.
  • Example: "He gave me his car." becomes "I was given his car."
  • Works with verbs like say, tell, where "to me" becomes the subject.

Conclusion

• Differences between personal and impersonal passive forms explained.
• Emphasized flexibility in subject choice for passive constructions.
• Encouraged practice with various tenses and structures.

Questions and Feedback: Encouraged to comment with queries or suggestions.