English Grammar: Passive and Causative Structures
Common English Word Roots
resent – resentment – resentful
manage – manager/management – managerial
differ – difference – different
qualify – qualification – unqualified
advance – advancement – advanced
rely – reliability – unreliable
Passive Voice (subject + to be + past participle)
Examples with Two Objects
→ They gave Mary some bad news = Le dieron (malas noticias) (a María)
Some bad news were given to Mary = A María le dieron malas noticias
Mary was given some bad news = María recibió malas noticias
Special Passive Cases
→ Many people think that foreign films are better than Hollywood films
It is thought that foreign films are better than Hollywood films
Foreign films are thought to be better than Hollywood films
→ They said that India is a very beautiful country = Dijeron que la India es un país muy hermoso
It is said that India is a very beautiful country = Se dice que la India es un país muy hermoso
India is said to be a very beautiful country = Se dice que la India es un país muy hermoso
→ Yo vivo con tres personas. Estas personas tienen oficios diferentes
(informal) The three people I live with have different jobs = Las tres personas con las que vivo tienen trabajos diferentes
(formal) The three people with whom I live have different jobs = Las tres personas con las que vivo tienen trabajos diferentes
Causative (subject + had + object + past participle)
→ El rey hizo que asesinaran a su hermano = the king had his brother killed
→ La abuela encargó una tarta para nuestro cumple = the grandmother had a cake baked for our birthday.
Defining vs. Non-defining Clauses
Defining (no commas) Non-defining (between commas)