0
Kunhi mon Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

On double - passive

Is it grammatically correct to use the following:

The complainant is ordered to be produced his witnesses by the court.(use of double - passive)
A detailed reply is expected.
  

Top answer

The complainant is ordered to be presented by his witnesses by the court. You need another by-phrase for the first passive, and "produced" does not really fit situation. It is OK, but quite awkward, and does not make much logical sense..

  • The complainant is ordered to be presented by his witnesses by the court.
  • You need another by-phrase for the first passive, and "produced" does not really fit situation.
  • It is OK, but quite awkward, and does not make much logical sense..
  • The court ordered the complainant to be presented by his witnesses.
  • The court ordered the witnesses to present the complainant.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

12 Answers
0
The complainant is ordered to be presented by his witnesses by the court.

You need another by-phrase for the first passive, and "produced" does not really fit situation.
It is OK, but quite awkward, and does not make much logical sense..

The court ordered the complainant to be presented by his witnesses.
The court ordered the witnesses to present the compla
0
kunhi monA detailed reply is expected.
Also expected, when someone is asking for help, are polite expressions such as "please."
0
It is neither grammatically nor semantically correct. If for some strange reason you are trying to build two passives, then it would have to read thus:
His witnesses are ordered by the court to be produced by the complainant.

Be aware, however, that no native speaker would produce that sentence. The normal, direct active would be used:
The court ordered the complainant
0
Mister MicawberBe aware, however, that no native speaker would produce that sentence. The normal, direct active would be used:
Oh Mr. M, it is so true.
However, both the lawyers and the legal system seem to be very adept at mangling the language in all sorts of inane ways.
0
kunhi monA detailed reply is expected.
What planet did you come from. On this planet, no one is to expect anything from anybody without a "please". Just so you know.
0
Iam coming from the very same Planet, Mr/Ms dimsumexpress, perhaps from the opposite side of the globe. This mistake often occurs to me for in my mother tongue even 'please' is omitted the sentence is considered to be polite.Any way thank you
0
kunhi monin my mother tongue even 'please' is omitted the sentence is considered to be polite
Is that so? That may work fine in your mother tongue, but in the English speaking cultures, a "please" is a very important word, especially when one is soliciting help for English; in case you are not aware.
0
thank you for reminding me
0
khoffAlso expected, when someone is asking for help, are polite expressions such as "please."
I have to disagree on the relevance of "please" in this context. The OP's sentences read like a court order. In fact, the word "ordered" is used. An order is not a request. Requests may be softened with "please", but orders lose their character as an order
0
Hi,

I think Khoff was suggesting
A detailed reply is expected, please.

And was interpreting this comment as one addressed not to the complainant but to us here at the Forum.
This is how I saw i

Related Questions