Passive 2
SPECIAL FORMS
Several special forms of the passive are used in English when reporting news or information, or when describing things that people say are true.
it is said...
The first of these is IT IS SAID THAT.
It is said that he is a hard man to work for.
(People say that he is hard to work for.)
It is said that they haven't spoken to each other for years.
(People say that they haven't spoken to each other for years.)
Another form is HE IS SAID TO.
He is said to be a hard man to work for.
(People say that he is a hard man to work for.)
This of course works with I, YOU, SHE, WE, THEY and THERE as well:
You are said to be a hard man to work for.
(People say you are a hard man to work for.)
They are said to have not spoken to each other for years.
(People say that they haven't spoken to each other for years.)
There is said to be pirate treasure buried somewhere on this island!
(People say that pirate treasure is buried somewhere on this island.)
In this form, the phrase BY PEOPLE or BY SOME PEOPLE is omitted. It would be unusual to write:
It is said by some people that he is a hard man to work for.
(Here, BY SOME PEOPLE is understood, and does not need to be included in the sentence.)
In these situations, we either do not care, or do not know exactly, who "SOME PEOPLE" are, and we focus more on the information given, so we use the more general passive to reflect this fact. This is the same idea as the standard passive:
The house was built in 1887. (The name of the builder is not important, but the date of construction is.)
This passive form is also common with several other verbs, such as THOUGHT, REPORTED, KNOWN, EXPECTED, BELIEVED, CONSIDERED, UNDERSTOOD, RUMORED, and ALLEGED:
It is believed that the same criminals are responsible for all three bank robberies.
It is widely known that he left his job due to personal problems.
It is expected that the President will appoint a new Chief of Staff soon.
He is considered to be a brilliant businessman.
It is generally thought that his death was an accident, but I am not convinced.
supposed to
Another of these special forms is (BE) SUPPOSED TO.
This form has more than one meaning in English:
- (BE) SUPPOSED TO can mean IT IS SAID TO:
I want to try that new restaurant on 5th Street. It is supposed to be excellent.
(It is said to be excellent.)
I hired Robert Smith. He is supposed to be the best lawyer in town.
(It is said that he is the best lawyer in town.)
- (BE) SUPPOSED TO can also talk about things that are planned, arranged, or expected to happen. We often use this form to talk about when something else in fact happens:
I have to leave. I am supposed to meet my mom for lunch in thirty minutes.
(I have arranged to meet my mom for lunch in thirty minutes.)
I'm sorry I'm late. My flight was supposed to arrive at noon, but it was delayed for two hours in Paris.
(The flight was scheduled to arrive at noon, but didn't.)
You were supposed to wear a bunny costume to the party, not a business suit!
(We wanted and expected you to wear a bunny costume to the party.)
- NOT SUPPOSED TO DO SOMETHING means that it is not allowed or not a good idea to do something:
You are not supposed to smoke in the lobby. Please take your cigarette outside.
(Smoking in the lobby is not permitted.)
You are not supposed to drink alcohol while taking this medication.
(It is not advised to mix alcohol with this medication.)
have something done
The last special passive we will look at is TO HAVE SOMETHING DONE. This phrase also has more than one meaning:
- TO HAVE SOMETHING DONE normally means to arrange for someone else to do something for you instead of doing it yourself. Compare the following examples:
I repaired my car yesterday. (I did the work myself.)
I had my car repaired yesterday. (I arranged for someone else to repair it for me.)
Do you have this room painted? >>> No, I painted it myself.
Note that word order is very important in these situations. The normal order is HAVE / HAD + OBJECT + PAST PARTICIPLE
We normally say "I had my hair cut", and NOT "I had cut my hair".
- TO HAVE SOMETHING DONE can also mean that something happened to someone or their possessions.
Last week, when I was on the bus, I had my purse stolen.
(Of course, this does not mean that I arranged to have my purse stolen, but that my bag was stolen from me by someone.)
Usually, when something happens to you in this way, it is unpleasant or unwanted:
My brother had his arm broken in a car accident.
I had my driving licence revoked after my accident.
It would be unusual to describe positive situations in this way. We do not say:
I had my salary increased as a result of my good work.
(More normal would be – "My salary was increased as a result of my good work").