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Building damaged by earthquakeNever Passive - Intransitive Verbs

Verbs With No Passive Forms

 

 

If an object is not used with a verb, then the verb cannot be made passive.

 

Intransitive vs. Transitive Verbs 
INTRANSITIVE VERB TRANSITIVE VERB

Something happens by itself.  The verb is not used with an object. (No passive form exists.) 

Something does something to something or someone. The verb occurs with an object.  (Passive form does exist.) 

The earthquake happened on April 6, 2009 in Italy.

The earthquake killed hundreds of people.

The earthquake was happened on April 6, 2009 in Italy.

Hundreds of people were killed by the earthquake.


 Other intrasitive verb contrasts:  lie-lay  sit-set  rise-raise

 

 

Some Intransitive Verbs

These verbs do not occur with objects and cannot be made passive.

appear

become

collide

consist of

disappear

emerge

happen

look

occur

resemble

seem

take place

vanish

weigh

collapse

last (endure)

have*

sleep

lie

rise

 *Except in slang - "I was had" which means someone took advantage of me.

 

 

A Stative Verb
E.G. INTRANSITIVE VERB TRANSITIVE VERB

 

A stative verb cannot be made into a passive sentence.

An active verb with an object can be transformed into a passive sentence.

weigh

(has two meanings)

Muscle man Doctor with babyscale

Active

Arnold weighs 250 lbs. (stative)

The doctor weighed the baby. (active verb + has an object)

Passive

(no passive possible)

The baby was weighed by the doctor.

(Do not confuse the stative verbs with their "active" forms. See stative verbs.)

 

 

Some Stative Verbs

Most stative verbs do not take passive form.

MENTAL STATES EMOTIONAL STATES STATES OF POSSESSION SENSE PERCEPTIONS OTHER STATES

know / think /  believe

love (can be passive)

have

taste

seem  /  appear /  look

want / need / desire

like   (can be passive)

belong

smell

resemble / look like

feel / suppose / imagine

appreciate   (can be passive)

own

hear

cost  / owe /  weigh / equal

understand / recognize

prefer  (can be passive)

possess

see

be / exist / matter

forget / remember

fear  (can be passive)

 

smell

consist of / contain / include


Also see Stative Verbs (especially note the contrast of passive and active states for some verbs)

 

 

Common Mistakes
ERROR FIX

  *The accident was happened a week ago.
    (A transitive verb has no object and, therefore, cannot be passive)

The accident happened a week ago.

  *My mother bore me in 1981.
   (The active form is hardly ever used.)

I was born in 1981.   

  *The College of San Mateo locates on a hilltop.
   (The verb has a different meaning in active and passive forms.)

The College of San Mateo is located on a hilltop. (exists)
The Board of Regents will locate the new college on a hilltop. (to situate / to build)

 

 

 

 

 

earthquake in italyPractice

Earthquake

 

 

 

Select the word that best complete the sentence.
  1. Select your responses from the pull-down menus.
  2. Afterwards, compare your responses to the feedback by clicking the check buttons. 

 

# YOUR RESPONSE FEEDBACK
1.  I'll never forget the earthquake

 

2.  

 

3. .

(collide=crash)

 

 

4.

 

 

5. After it stopped, I looked around. It had fallen down.

(resembled = look like)

 

 

6.     There were just stones and rocks on the ground.

 

 

 

7. I heard people walking around and shouting.     I was so relieved.

 

 

8.

(emerge = come out of)

 

 

9.

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 


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