The Passive Voice
Lesson 27
Being Acted Upon……
Learning Target
 Understand the difference between the
active and passive voices.
 Learn to use and understand the passive
voice personal endings in the 4 tenses
we know so far.
 You will need a quarter sheet of paper
that will be turned in. Tear and share,
then write name and class period on
paper now.
What voice have we learned?
 The definition of ‘subject’ that we have
learned is: The subject is the noun
______ the ______.
 This applies to the active voice, which is
the only ‘voice’ we have learned to this
point.
 On a small piece of paper, write a
sentence in Latin that shows the subject
is doing the action. (Some share)
Active VS Passive Voice
 A sentence is in the active voice when
the verb shows that the subject is doing
the action.
 Puella portat. The girl carries.
 When the passive voice is being used,
the verb shows that the subject is being
acted upon. NOTE this definition!:
Passive Voice Subject – the noun that
is being acted upon.
 Puella portatur. The girl is being carried or
The girl is carried.
Passive Voice Verb Endings –
how to recognize the passive
voice
-r
-ris
-tur
-mur
-minī
-ntur
Word Stems Are the Same!
 The Passive Voice endings are added to the
same stems that were used in Active Voice
 There are a few exceptions: any form that ends
in –o in the active voice (ex. amo, amabo)
 These forms keep the original –o ending. The
passive –r ending is added after the ‘o’.
 amor, amabor
 2nd person singular in several tenses is also an
exception. Please mark these exceptions in
your conjugating booklet!
 There are charts for all tenses for each
conjugation on pp 505 – 509. Write them out
for all 4 tenses we’ve had & all conjugations
Present Passive (1st Conj.)
 portor
portāmur
 portāris
portāminī
 portātur
portantur
Present Passive – 3rd Conj.
Notice the ‘exception’* here!
 ponor
ponimur
 poneris*
poniminī
 ponitur
ponuntur
Be Sure to…..
Write out Charts pp 505-509
 Organize your charts by
conjugation. Clearly label the
tenses. We will create a passive
voice conjugation booklet.
CAVEAT - Active Progressive Form
vs Passive Verb Phrase
 Specto – can mean I watch, I do watch or I am
watching. ‘I am watching’ is the active
progressive form (in English). It uses a form of
the ‘to be’ verb as a ‘helper’. Vocabant – ‘they
were calling’ is also active progressive (in
imperfect tense). What is the ‘helper word’?
 In passive voice, we would use the word
spector, which means ‘I am being watched’ or
vocabatur, which means he was being called.
In English, both use a form of the ‘to be’ verb,
but these sets of words have different functions
in a sentence.
 Continued…..
Active Progressive vs
Passive Verb Phrase, cont.
 The use of the ‘to be’ word can create
confusion in English, as we use it to represent
state of being, AND as a helping verb.
 However, it is NOT confusing in Latin. State of
being is shown by forms of the word ‘sum’ and
‘helping words’ are shown by verb endings, so
it is very easy to distinguish between the two.
 Learn the Passive Personal Endings (on the
chart on board!) Also, make charts in your
notebook from pp. 188-189. Also, check the
Grammar Section on pp. 505 – 509.
Ticket Out the Door
 Using the same small paper, conjugate a
verb from the first conjugation in present
tense, passive voice, writing the English
meaning beside each word. Be sure
your name is on the paper!
Passive Voice Conjugation
Booklet
 1st Conjugation
 Porto, portare, portavi, portatus
 Present Tense – I am (being) carried, etc.




portor
portamur
Portaris
portamini
Portatur
portantur
Imperfect Tense – I was (being) carried, etc.