alytical practical grammar - Toronto Public Library

96 ENGLISH GRAMMAR.
INFINITIVE MOOD.
PRESENT, To be loved.
PERFECT, To have been loved.
PARTICIPLES.
PRESEXT, Being loved. PAST, Loved. PERFECT, Having beeu loved.
OBSERVATIOKS ON THE PASSIVE VOICE.
508. The passive voioe, in the finite moods, properly affirms of the
subject the receiving of the act performed by t he actor; and in all tenses,
except the present, exprcsses passively the same thing that is expressed
by the same tense in the active voice: thu~, "C,esar ccmquered Gaul," and
"Gaul was ccmqllered by Cresar," express tbe same thing. Hence, the
subject of the verb in the pa8sive voice, is the object of the act, i.e., it is
acted upon by the actor (369).
509. The present-passive has a somewhat different meanin!? in different
verbs. In some, it represents the act as now in progress-in others, as
now completed. Iu the former, it expresses passively the presellt continuance
of the action, just as the present active does. Thus," James loves
Robert," aud "Robert is loved by James," express precisely the same
thing. In the latter, the present passive expresses not the continuance,
but the reRuit of the act now finbhed, as a predicate of tbe subject; as
"The house is built!" The act of building is here represented not as
continuing, but as completed; and the result of the act expressed by
"built " is predicated of " house."
510. In all such verLs, the idea expressed by the present.passive differs
from that expressed by the present·active; the latter expressing a can·
tinuing, the former, a completed act. A continuing act, in this c1aes of
verbs, can be expressed pas.i..-elyonly when the participle in ing has 1\
passive as well as an active sense (456).
511. There is no passive form corresponding to the progressive form
in the active voice, t'xcept where the participle in i'lg is used passively;
as, "The house is building." The form illtroduced within the last fifty
years, and now defended by some grammarians, viz., "The house l! being
built," ought to be regarded only liS a clumsy solecism. On this Bubject,
see 4;)7 and Appendix VIII. p. ~5:!.
EXERCISES ON THE PASSIVE VOIOE.
EXEROISES, NO. r.
Inflect the following verbs in the same manner as am loved, 507.
Prosel/t. Past. Past partidple.
Am commended, was commended, commended.
Am taught, was taught, taught.
Am told, was told, told.
Am placed, was placed, placed.