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passive

pas·sive

UK/ˈpæs.ɪv/ US/ˈpæsɪv/ fairly common
adjective (3) noun (1)

adjective

1.

lacking in energy or will

  • “Much benevolence of the passive order may be traced to a disinclination to inflict pain upon oneself” George Meredith
Synonyms
Antonyms
Similar
2.

peacefully resistant in response to injustice

  • “passive resistance”
Synonyms
Similar
3.

expressing thatthe subject of the sentence is the patient of the action denoted by the verb

  • “academics seem to favor passive sentences”
Antonyms

noun

1.

the voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject of the verb is the recipient (not the source) of the action denoted by the verb

  • “The ball was thrown by the boy”
  • “;”
  • “is an abbreviated passive”
Synonyms
Antonyms

Origin

From Middle English passyf, passyve, from Middle French, French passif, from Latin passivus (“serving to express the suffering of an action; in late Latin literally capable of suffering or feeling”), from passus, past participle of pati (“to suffer”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peh₁- (“to hurt”); compare patient.

Phrases

  • French passive
  • Greek passive
  • impersonal passive
  • long passive
  • passive aggressor
  • passive armour
  • passive box
  • passive defense
  • passive euthanasia
  • passive gravitational mass
  • passive immunity
  • short passive

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.