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Emilylion Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
ergative verbs !!!
ergative verbs are used like event that is spontaneous ???
for example : window was broken by someone
window broke ( by who ??? ) = ergative --- is it right ??
for example : window was broken by someone
window broke ( by who ??? ) = ergative --- is it right ??
Top answer
It doesn't have to be spontaneous. The key point of an ergative verb is that it can be transitive or intransitive, and its subject when it's used intransitively is its object when it's used transitively. "The window broke / John broke the window" is an excellent example.
- It doesn't have to be spontaneous.
- The key point of an ergative verb is that it can be transitive or intransitive, and its subject when it's used intransitively is its object when it's used transitively.
- "The window broke / John broke the window" is an excellent example.
- Here, "broke" is ergative, because "the window" is the subject of the sentence in which the verb is intransitive, and the object of the sentence in which the verb is transitive.
- To demonstrate that the action doesn't have to be spontaneous, here's another example.
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6 Answers
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It doesn't have to be spontaneous. The key point of an ergative verb is that it can be transitive or intransitive, and its subject when it's used intransitively is its object when it's used transitively.
"The window broke / John broke the window" is an excellent example. Here, "broke" is ergative, because "the window" is the subject of the sentence in which the verb is in
"The window broke / John broke the window" is an excellent example. Here, "broke" is ergative, because "the window" is the subject of the sentence in which the verb is in
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ok thank you well.. i wanna ask something : '' reduced blood volume '' ----- it's spontaneous ???
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i have read from medical book. so all of these are same.
reduced blood volume = its not passsive huh ?
reduced blood volume = its not passsive huh ?
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Hi Emily,
Yes, in the phrase "reduced blood volume", "reduced" is definitely a past participle being used as an adjective. I'm not sure what you meant with your other question - you could say it's passive, I suppose; but since it's an adjective in this context, whether it makes sense to describe it as passive really depends on the rest of the sentence.
I don't think I've answered y
Yes, in the phrase "reduced blood volume", "reduced" is definitely a past participle being used as an adjective. I'm not sure what you meant with your other question - you could say it's passive, I suppose; but since it's an adjective in this context, whether it makes sense to describe it as passive really depends on the rest of the sentence.
I don't think I've answered y
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