Passivne

Passivne is a term used in linguistics to refer to the passive construction found in many languages. It marks the patient, recipient, or undergoer of an action as the syntactic subject, while the agent may be demoted or omitted. The exact realization of passivne varies by language, but it commonly serves to foreground the affected participant or to generalize a statement.

Two broad strategies realize passivne. In synthetic or morphological passives, the verb carries a passive marking as part of its morphology, sometimes with a separate participle. In analytical or periphrastic passives, an auxiliary verb combines with a past participle to form the passive clause. English illustrates the latter: The cake was eaten. German shows a mixed pattern with werden plus past participle in many contexts.

Some languages maintain multiple passive forms, including long passives that explicitly mention the agent (often with a by-phrase), and short or impersonal passives where the agent is not stated or is general. Others use antipassive structures that suppress the patient rather than mark the agent, changing the valency of the verb.

Functions and use: Passivne allows focus on outcomes, processes, or affected entities; it can eliminate the agent for politeness, tact, or general statements. It interacts with tense, aspect, mood, and voice, and may influence word order.

Cross-linguistic note: While the passive is widespread, the term passivne reflects its recognition in many grammars and typologies. Some languages have rich passive systems with several subtypes; others rely mainly on periphrastic strategies.

See also: passive voice, voice (grammar), detransitivization, antipassive.