Passive Voice
Subject receives the action
In the passive voice, the subject receives the action rather than performing it.
"The students are taught by the teacher" - students receive the teaching.
Key features of Greek passive:
• Agent (doer) expressed by ὑπό + genitive: ὑπὸ τοῦ διδασκάλου (by the teacher)
• Shares forms with middle in most tenses
• Distinct forms only in future passive (-θησ-) and aorist passive (-θη-)
Formation of aorist passive:
• Augment + stem + θη + secondary active endings
• ἐλύθην (I was loosed)
Future passive: stem + θησ + middle endings (λυθήσομαι - I will be loosed)
Examples from Texts
Here are some words showing the passive voice in actual Greek texts:
ἐτέθησαν
τίθημι
set, put, place
verb
plural
aorist
passive
indicative
ἐκτεθέντα
ἐκτίθημι
set out, place outside
participle
accusative
masculine
singular
aorist
passive
παροραθέντα
παρορέω
to be adjacent
participle
nominative
neuter
plural
aorist
passive
καταρραφέντα
καταρράπτω
stitch on
participle
accusative
masculine
singular
aorist
passive
προχυθῆναι
προχέω
pour forth
verb
aorist
passive
infinitive
ἐκφαυλισθέντα
ἐκφαυλίζω
depreciate, disparage, pour contempt on
participle
accusative
masculine
singular
aorist
passive
ἀνεγέρθητε
ἀνεγείρω
wake up, rouse
verb
plural
aorist
passive
indicative
μετετέθη
μετατίθημι
place among
verb
singular
aorist
passive
indicative