AM: Lesson - Passive Voice - Perfect System Translation
Translating the Passive Voice for the Perfect System
The English passive is expressed by using a helping verb and a past participle. The image depicts a bowl of figs which has been arranged carefully (painting by Bernardo Polo, called Still Life with Plums and Figs). The helping verb changes tense to indicate the time of the action for the passive construction. What tense would has been arranged be in Latin? The helping verb has been indicates a simple past action, so likely this would be the perfect tense in Latin. The past participle (arranged) will not change in the English translation, no matter what tense is being used:
- Present: the bowl has been arranged
- Pluperfect: the bowl had been arranged
- Future Perfect: the bowl will have been arranged
Perfect System Passive Indicative Translation
Use the following to correctly translate the perfect system tenses. Take particular note that the word carried does not change from tense to tense: English will always use that perfect participle for the passive voice.
- The perfect tense passive indicative translates using have/has been.
- I have been carried.
- The pluperfect tense passive indicative translates using had been.
- I had been carried.
- The future perfect tense passive indicative translates using will have been.
- I will have been carried.
Review Tense Usage - Perfect System
- The perfect tense is used to express a completed past action. This is true whether the verb is active or passive.
- The pluperfect tense is used to indicate a past action occurring before another past action - a past past tense. This is true whether the verb is active or passive.
- The future perfect tense is used to indicate a future action occurring before another future action. This is true whether the verb is active or passive.
Below are the fully conjugated perfect system forms of the verb portare translated:
| Language | Perfect Tense | Pluperfect Tense | Future Perfect Tense |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latin | portatus, a, um sum portatus, a, um es portatus, a, um est portati, ae, a sumus portati, ae, a estis portati, ae, a sunt |
portatus, a, um eram portatus, a, um eras portatus, a, um erat portati, ae, a eramus portati, ae, a eratis portati, ae, a erant |
portatus, a, um ero portatus, a, um eris portatus, a, um erit portati, ae, a erimus portati, ae, a eritis portati, ae, a erunt |
| English | I have been carried You have been carried He/She/It has been carried We have been carried You (pl) have been carried They have been carried |
I had been carried You had been carried He/She/It had been carried We had been carried You (pl) had been carried They had been carried |
I will have been carried You will have been carried He/She/It will have been carried We will have been carried You (pl) will have been carried They will have been carried |
For a chart showing several verbs fully conjugated and translated, please download the Passive Voice Verb Examples Links to an external site. handout.