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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
Passive Voice - to be supposed to
How do you form the past pefect passive voice with "to be supposed to"
Do you actually just conjugate "be" and then put a "be" after the second "to" plus an "infinitive"? - where can I find a grammar rule to this?
"The butterfly had been supposed to be caught by the girl"
Thank you!
Do you actually just conjugate "be" and then put a "be" after the second "to" plus an "infinitive"? - where can I find a grammar rule to this?
"The butterfly had been supposed to be caught by the girl"
Thank you!
Top answer
Intransitive verbs (verb that do not take an object) have no passive form. There are passive forms of the infinitive. But an infinitive is a non-finite form and does not have "tense" Catch Gazelles are supposed to be caught by lions.
- Intransitive verbs (verb that do not take an object) have no passive form.
- There are passive forms of the infinitive.
- But an infinitive is a non-finite form and does not have "tense" Catch Gazelles are supposed to be caught by lions.
- (passive infinitive) This gazelle was supposed to have been caught by a cheetah.
- (Perfect infinitive, passive)
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15 Answers
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Intransitive verbs (verb that do not take an object) have no passive form.
There are passive forms of the infinitive. But an infinitive is a non-finite form and does not have "tense"
Catch
Gazelles are supposed to be caught by lions. (passive infinitive)
This gazelle was supposed to have been caught by a cheetah. (Perfect infinitive, passive)
There are passive forms of the infinitive. But an infinitive is a non-finite form and does not have "tense"
Catch
Gazelles are supposed to be caught by lions. (passive infinitive)
This gazelle was supposed to have been caught by a cheetah. (Perfect infinitive, passive)
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AlpheccaStarsIntransitive verbs (verb that do not take an object) have no passive form.There are passive forms of the infinitive. But an infinitive is a non-finite form and does not have "tense"CatchGazelles are supposed to be caught by lions. (passive infinitive)This gazelle was supposed to have been caught by a cheetah. (Perfect infinitive, passive)Does the
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It is ambiguous, and that is why these sorts of phrasings are avoided by good writers.
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I think I haven't understood this topic good enough:
Why can you use a past perfect alike form after the "to" and not before "supposed"?
Am I right with the assumption that you can't say "I have been (=past perfect form of "be) supposed to do..." or is only the passive voice missing?
Or do you really only use "is supposed to" and "was supposed to" and nothing else?
These modal verb
Why can you use a past perfect alike form after the "to" and not before "supposed"?
Am I right with the assumption that you can't say "I have been (=past perfect form of "be) supposed to do..." or is only the passive voice missing?
Or do you really only use "is supposed to" and "was supposed to" and nothing else?
These modal verb
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Anonymousdo you really only use "is supposed to" and "was supposed to" and nothing else?That's about it. It's like "is going to" and "was going to" (the semi-modal). That's another one where we only use the present and past. Among the millions of sentences you can find on the internet, you just might find "supposed to" or "going to" in another tense, but s
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I don't want to annoy you, but why can you use "be allowed to do" something differently?
In my grammar book from school (years ago...) I have found the construction "He has been allowed to drive the car" and "He schould have been allowed to drive home." Why are these correct? Or are these just more common than the "supposed to" tenses?
Thank you!
In my grammar book from school (years ago...) I have found the construction "He has been allowed to drive the car" and "He schould have been allowed to drive home." Why are these correct? Or are these just more common than the "supposed to" tenses?
Thank you!
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Anonymouswhy can you use "be allowed to do"Hmm. There are all kinds of words that can go in that pattern, but they all mean different things.something(somewhat) differently?
He is allowed to ... / He is supposed to ... / He is going to ... / He is eager to ... / He is afraid to ...
The gramma
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See this article on semi-auxiliaries (semi-modals).
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/verbs/semi.htm
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/verbs/semi.htm
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Thank you! Let me put it in a nutshell:
allow = full verb. "He was allowed to do.." = just the passive voice past form like "The man was biten by...", correct?
be supposed to = semi-auxiliaries = only with is/was used.
But wait! Isn't there a full verb "to suppose" something with the meaning that you think something will be possible or true?
How can I distinguish between "suppose"
allow = full verb. "He was allowed to do.." = just the passive voice past form like "The man was biten by...", correct?
be supposed to = semi-auxiliaries = only with is/was used.
But wait! Isn't there a full verb "to suppose" something with the meaning that you think something will be possible or true?
How can I distinguish between "suppose"
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If it is acting as a (semi) auxiliary, then it is not the main verb.
Here are some examples.
He is supposed to act responsibly.
He is supposed to be here at 8.
He is supposed to pick up the kids..
Here are examples of the verbs as the main verb. Suppose can be followed by a clause.
The present perfect is possible, but rarely used
Here are some examples.
He is supposed to act responsibly.
He is supposed to be here at 8.
He is supposed to pick up the kids..
Here are examples of the verbs as the main verb. Suppose can be followed by a clause.
The present perfect is possible, but rarely used
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