USOS DA VOZ PASSIVA

1. A voz passiva é empregada para enfatizar mais a ação ou o seu resultado do que a pessoa que pratica a ação. Assim é enfatizado o que acontece a alguém ou a algo:

Alfred raises cows and pigs. (active voice) - Dá ênfase a Alfred.

Cows and pigs are raised by Alfred. (passive voice) - Dâ ênfase ao que Alfred cria - vacas e porcos.

2. Em situaçãos formais, na linguagem jornalística, acadêmica e em descrições técnicas e/ou científicas*:

Heart disease is considered the leading cause of death in the United States.

The balloon is positioned in an area of blockage and is inflated.

* Na maioria das vezes, o agente da passiva não é mencionado nestes tipos de escrita, pois o mais importante, nestes casos, é o resultado, a ação e não quem a praticou.

3. Usa-se a voz passiva, em Inglês, quando o sujeito é indefinido, equivalente ao nosso sujeito indeterminado:

They play baseball everywhere in the United States. (active voice) (Jogam beisebol por toda parte nos Estados Unidos.) Baseball is played everywhere in the United States. (passive voice) (O beisebol é jogado em toda arte nos Estados Unidos.)

People eat avocado with sugar in Brazil. (active voice)
(No Brasil, as pessoas comem abacate com açúcar.)

Avocado is eaten with sugar in Brazil. (passive voice)
(No Brasil, abacate é comido com açúcar.)

Observe que o uso da voz ativa com they ou people (as pessoas, a gente) é mais comum na linguagem informal, ao passo que a voz passiva é mais usada na linguagem formal.

4. Em Português, temos a voz passiva analítica (Fernanda foi socorrida por Rafael) e a voz passiva sintética (Vendem-se roupas usadas); no Inglês, porém, existe apenas uma forma para a voz passiva, que equivale às duas formas em Português. A construção com one (linguagem escrita ou formal) e com you (linguagem falada, informal) também é empregada nestes casos:

It is said that power and ambition corrupt people. (Diz-se que o poder e a ambição corrompem as pessoas.)

It is reported that... (Relata-se que...)

English is spoken in Australia. (Fala-se Inglês na Austrália.)

A lot of rice is eaten in China. (Come-se muito arroz na China.)

A lot has been written about that. (Tem-se escrito muito sobre isso.)

One doesn't know exactly what happened that night. (Não se sabe ao certo o que aconteceu naquela noite.

You never know what to do in a moment like this. (Nunca se sabe / A gente nunca sabe o que fazer em um momento como esse.)

You can't work in such an environment. (Não se pode trabalhar num ambiente desses.)

You shouldn't believe everything you read. (Não se deve acreditar em tudo o que se lê.)

5. Somente verbos transitivos podem ser transformados em construção passiva. Verbos intransitivos não possuem objeto, dessa forma não há como formar o sujeito na voz passiva, já que o objeto da voz ativa torna-se o sujeito da voz passiva. Alguns verbos transitivos também não podem ser transformados em construção passiva; a maioria deles são verbos que se referem a estados e não a ações, como fit, have, lack, resemble, suit. Veja alguns exemplos de frases com verbos transitivos em que a voz passiva não ocorre:

They have a nice house. (NOT A nice house is had by them.) My shoes don't fit me. (NOT I'm not fitted by my shoes.) She was having a bath. (NOT A bath was being had by her.) Angela resembles a Greek goddess. (NOT A Greek goddess is resembled by Angela.) Your mother lacks tact. (NOT Tact is lacked by your mother.)

6. Em estruturas ativas, os verbos hear, see, make e help podem ser seguidos por objeto + verbo no infinitivo sem to, já em estruturas passivas, estes verbos devem ser seguidos pelo verbo com o to. Observe:

- I saw him (to) come out of the house. (active structure)

He was seen to come out of the house. (passive structure)

- They made him (to) tell them everything. (active structure)

He was made to tell them everything. (passive structure)

- They helped him (to) get out of the country. (active structure)

He was helped to get out of the country. (passive structure)

7. Alguns verbos como say, believe, consider, expect, know, report, think, understand, allege admitem duas formas para a voz passiva. Observe alguns exemplos:

She is said to work 14 hours a day.                            ou It is said that she works 14 hours a day.

The boy is believed to be wearing a white pullover and blue jeans.
                                              ou
It is believed that the boy is wearing a white pullover and blue jeans.

The strike is expected to end soon. ou It is expected that it will end soon.

He is alleged to have hit a policeman. ou It is alleged that he hit a policeman.

John is said to be working very hard.
                                      ou
It is said that John is working very hard.

Two people are reported to have been injured in the explosion.
                                       ou
It is reported that two people were injured in the explosion.

He has been said to love Lauren. ou It has been said that he loves Lauren.

Mark was believed to have translated the lyrics. ou It was believed that Mark had translated the lyrics.

8. Para formar a interrogativa, antepomos ao sujeito o verbo auxiliar que compõe o tempo verbal da voz passiva. Para a negativa, basta acrescentar not ao auxiliar. Observe:

The office is cleaned every day. (affirmative form)

Is the office cleaned every day? (interrogative form)

The office is not cleaned every day. (negative form)

OBSERVAÇÃO: Os tempos verbais Present Perfect Progressive, Past Perfect Progressive, Future Progressive e Future Perfect Progressive não são comuns na voz passiva.

(BE) SUPPOSED TO

- Algumas vezes, (it is) supposed to ... significa o mesmo que (it is) said to ... Observe:

I want to see that film. It is supposed to be good. (= it is said to be good.)

Contudo, em alguns casos, supposed to tem um significado diferente. Isso ocorre quando usamos esta expressão para dizer que algo é planejado (intended), programado, combinado (arranged) ou esperado (expected). Veja:

The plan is supposed to be a secret, but everybody seems to know about it.
(= the plan is intended to be a secret.)

What are you doing at work? You're supposed to be on holiday.
(= you are arranged to be on holiday)

Our guests were supposed to come at 8:30, but they were late.

Cecily was supposed to call me last night, but she didn't.

I'd better hurry. I'm supposed to be meeting Erica in ten minutes.

- You are not supposed to do something significa o mesmo que it is not allowed or advisible:

You are not supposed to park your car here. It is private parking only.

Bernard is much better after his illness, but he is still not supposed to do any heavy work.

USO DO GET EM CONSTRUÇÃO PASSIVA:

- Às vezes, pode-se usar get ao invés de be na voz passiva:

I got bitten by a dog. (= I was bitten...)

Richard got promoted last weekend. (= Richard was promoted...)

The cat always gets scared when the dog barks. (= The cat always is scared...)

There was an accident, but nobody got hurt. (= ..., but nobody was hurt.)

I never get invited to parties. (= I am never invited to parties.)

→ Get pode ser empregado nos seguintes casos:

1) Para expressar mudanças ou acontecimentos, geralmente inesperados e acidentais:

Mark got hurt in the car crash.

2) Para descrever o feito negativo de uma ação sobre alguém:

The computer got broken.

3) Para descrever rotinas:

The gym gets cleaned every Sundays.

4) Para descrever o resultado de uma ação deempenhada por alguém em benefício próprio:

He worked hard and got elected the Director of the company.

- O uso de get em construções passivas é considerado bastante informal e não é comum quando nos referimos a ações que ocorreram há muito tempo e ações planejadas:

This house was built in 1815. (NOT This house got built in 1815.)

Parliament was opened on Thursday. (NOT Parliament got opened on Thursday.)

- Existem, porém, muitas outras situações em que o get não pode ser usado. Observe os exemplos abaixo:

That actor is admired by many people.

NUNCA: That actor gets admired by many people.

Jamey is liked by everybody.

NUNCA: Jamey gets liked by everybody.

OBSERVAÇÃO: Há expressões com get seguido de particípio em que não há significado passivo: get married, get divorced, get engaged, get dressed (put on your clothes), get lost (= not know where you are), get started, get changed (change your clothes). Estas exprssões chamam-se de Phrasal Verbs. Observe o exemplo abaixo:

After getting engaged, they soon got married. (Depois de noivarem, eles logo casaram.)

CONSTRUÇÃO DA VOZ PASSIVA COM VERBOS QUE EXIGEM PREPOSIÇÕES:

- Os objetos de verbos que exigem preposições (look at, listen to, pay for, etc) podem tornar-se o sujeito em construções passivas. Observe:

We have looked at the plan carefully. (active voice)
                            (objeto)

The plan has been carefully looked at. (passive voice)
(suj.)

Nobody listens to her. (active voice)
                           (obj.)

She is never listen to. (passive voice)
(suj.)

Somebody has paid for your meal. (active voice)
                                     (objeto)

Your meal has been paid for. (passive voice)
(sujeito)

Atente para a ordem das palavras (word order); a preposição não pode ser suprimida.

I don't like to be shouted at. (NOT I don't like to be shouted.)

- Se já há objeto direto na oração, o segundo objeto (objeto preposicionado), que vem depois da preposição, não pode transformar-se em sujeito na voz passiva:

They threw stones at him. (active voice)
                 (o. d.)    (o. p.)

Stones were thrown at him. (passive voice) (BUT NOT He was thrown stones at.)
(suj.)

They stole a bicycle from him. (active voice)
                  (o. d.)         (o. p.)

A bicycle was stolen from him. (passive voice) (BUT NOT He was stolen a bicycle from.)
(sujeito)

They poured water on us. (active voice)
                   (o. d.)   (o. p.)

Water was poured on us. (passive voice) (BUT NOT We were poured water on.)
(suj.)

Observe que pronomes e substantivos possessivos também não podem tornar-se sujeito na voz passiva:

They called Mr. Peteron's name. (active voice)

Mr. Peterson's name was called. (passive voice) (BUT NOT Mr. Peterson was name called.)

I broke her mirror. (active voice)

Her mirror was broken. (passive voice) (BUT NOT She was mirror broken.)

CAUSATIVE FORM: HAVE SOMETHING DONE

A estrutura have + objeto + particípio passado do verbo principal tem sentido passivo e expressa uma ação que alguém faz a nosso pedido ou em nosso favor, ou seja, não somos nós que realizamos a ação. Analise a situação abaixo:

The roof of Lisa's house was damaged in a storm. Yesterday a workman came and repaired it. Lisa had the roof repaired yesterday. This means: Lisa arranged for somebody else to repair the roof. She didn't repair it herself.

O tempo verbal de have pode mudar:

I have my hair cut once a month. (Eu corto meu cabelo uma vez por mês.) I had my hair cut last month. (Eu cortei meu cabelo no mês passado.) I will have my hair cut nex week. (Vou cortar meu cabelo na semana que vem.) I'm going to have my hair cut this afternoon. (Vou cortar meu cabelo hoje à tarde.)

Observe outros exemplos:

She doesn't have her nails done every week.
(Ela não faz as unhas toda semana.)

I didn't have my bike fixed last Friday.
(Não consertei minha bicicleta na sexta-feira passada.)

I won't have my car serviced next month.
(Não vou fazer revisão em meu carro no mês que vem.)

If you don't get out of my house I'll have you arrested.
(Se você não sair da minha casa, vou mandar lhe prender.)

Do you have your house cleaned every week?
(Você limpa sua casa toda semana?)

Did you have your picture taken last Wednesday?
(Você tirou sua foto na quarta-feira passada?)

Will you have your car washed on Saturday?
(Você vai lavar o seu carro no sábado?)

LEMBRE-SE: Usamos have something done para dizer que alguém fez algo por nós. Compare:

Lisa repaired the roof. (= she repaired it herself.)

Lisa had the roof repaired. (= she arranged for somebody else to repair it.)

Did you make those curtains yourself? Yes, I enjoy making things. Did you have those curtains made? No, I made them myself.

Atente para a ordem das palavras (word order) neste tipo de construção - o particípio passado do verbo principal vem sempre depois do objeto:

have	object	past participle
Lisa had	the roof	repaired.
Where did you have	your hair	cut?
Your hair looks nice. Have you had	it	cut?
Our neighbor has just had	a garage	built.
We are having	the house	painted at the moment.
How often do you have	your car	serviced?
I think you should have	that coat	cleaned.
I don't like having	my picture	taken.
We are going to have	our house	built.
We must have	our clothes	washed.
Mark is going to have	his car	serviced.
I must have	my watch	repaired.
He would have	his hair	cut if it was/were necessary.
She will have	her computer	fixed.

OBSERVAÇÃO:

Algumas vezes, have something done possui um significado diferente, dependendo do sentido do verbo. Por exemplo:

Paul and Karen had all their money stolen while they were on holiday.

Nesta oração, não usamos usamos a estrutura have something done para dizer que alguém fez algo a nosso pedido ou em nosso favor. 'They had all their money stolen' significa apenas 'All their money was stolen from them'.

Com este significado, usamos have something done para dizer que algo acontece a alguém ou aos seus pertences. Geralmente o que acontece não é bom:

Gary had his nose broken in a fight.

Have you ever had your passport stolen?

GET SOMETHING DONE

Podemos usar get something done no lugar de have something done (principalmente em linguagem falada e informal.):

When are you going to get the roof repaired?

I think you should get your hair cut really short.

I got my bike fixed yesterday.

A formação da voz passiva em cada um dos tempos verbais

Veja na tabela abaixo um esquema geral mostrando como formar a voz passiva (afirmativa, negativa e interrogativa) em cada um dos tempos verbais:

VERB TENSE	ACTIVE VOICE	PASSIVE VOICE
Simple Present	Paul paints the house every year.	am/is/are + particípio ¹
		The house is painted by Paul every year.
		The house isn't painted by Paul every year.
		Is the house painted by Paul every year?
Present Progressive	Paul is painting the house.	am/is/are being + particípio
		The house is being painted by Paul.
		The house isn't being painted by Paul.
		Is the house being painted by Paul?
Simple Past	Paul painted the house.	was/were + particípio
		The house was painted by Paul.
		The house wasn't painted by Paul.
		Was the house painted by Paul?
Past Progressive	Paul was painting the house.	was/were being + particípio
		The house was being painted by Paul.
		The house wasn't being painted by Paul.
		Was the house being painted by Paul?
Simple Future	Paul will paint the house.	will be + particípio
		The house will be painted by Paul.
		The house won't be painted by Paul.
		Will the house be painted by Paul?
Future with "Be going to"	Paul is going to paint the house.	am/is/are going to be + particípio
		The house is going to be painted by Paul.
		The house isn't going to be painted by Paul.
		Is the house going to be painted by Paul?
Present Perfect	Paul has painted the house.	has/have been + particípio
		The house has been painted by Paul.
		The house hasn't been painted by Paul.
		Has the house been painted by Paul?
Past Perfect	Paul had painted the house.	had been + particípio
		The house had been painted by Paul.
		The house hadn't been painted by Paul.
		Had the house been painted by Paul?
Future Perfect	By next week, Paul will have painted the house.	will have been + particípio
		By next week, the house will have been painted by Paul.
		By next week, the house won't have been painted by Paul.
		Will the house have been painted by next week by Paul?

- Can, could, could have, would e would have podem ser usados na voz passiva:

This bird can be seen in the tropics.

No language can be learned so quickly.

This painting could be sold for a high price.

This abstract could have been written by hand.

The house would be painted this year.

The e-mails would be sent if the secretary were here now.

The cake would have been made if we had all the ingredients.