I was given...

Question

I haven't written here in a while, but lately I've encountered this problem when speaking Spanish:

If I want to say "It was understood that blah blah" it would translate to "Se entendió que bla bla." But my question is, how would I say something like "I was understood" or "He was given a ball" or something like that, in which the person is being acted upon. (I don't know the technical names for these things as you can probably tell, haha) Would it just be "Me entendieron" and "Se le dieron una pelota"?

---

Also, is passive voice usually used in Spanish? For example, how would I say "I was threatened?" Me amenazaron?

Please help, I've been wondering about this for quite some time, and if you could give an example, that'd be great!

Answer 1

I was given a ball.

IN Spanish this structure is not possible, as you can only convert a direct object to a passive subject.

We do use passive se in these cases:

Se me dio una pelota. or Me dieron una pelota

Se me entendió. Also like you said: Me entendieron.

Answer 2

To form the passive voice in Spanish, you use "ser + past participle" for the direct object and what happened to it, which may be followed by "por + subject" to mark the subject. The past participle must agree in both number and gender to the object.

Technically, all the tenses of "ser" can be used to form the passive, but the preterit is the one you're most likely to hear (and the way to express past passive voice).

Examples:

1. "I was understood" would be "Fui entendido/a (por...)."
2. "He was given a ball" is trickier because "he" is also the indirect object (http://users.ipfw.edu/jehle/courses/passive.htm). It would need to be reworded to: "A ball was given to him (by...)," which would be "Una pelota (le) fue dada a él (por...)."
3. "The squirrels were bitten by the cat" would be: "Las ardillas fueron mordidas por el gato."

According to the website that I mentioned earlier, the Spanish passive voice isn't used as often as it is in English, and the site actually suggests trying not to use it (when the active voice will do instead).

Oh ok, thanks a lot! I really appreciate the help! Would it be the same in the case of "He was recommended"? "Fue recomendado?" I only ask because if I said "I recommended you" It would be "Te recomendí", but in this case is the only was to say it "Fu - mayodude, Jul 14, 2011

e recomendado?" - mayodude, Jul 14, 2011

Yes, it should be the same in that case. I'm having trouble coming up with another way to say it, so yes, I do believe that that's the only way to say "he was recommended." This, by the way, is one of the best purposes of the passive voice: description - freeze10108, Jul 14, 2011

when the subject/doer is unknown. :) - freeze10108, Jul 14, 2011

very nice answer, freeze - 00494d19, Jul 14, 2011

^Gracias, Heidita. - freeze10108, Jul 14, 2011