Mastering English Sentence Structures: Causatives, Passives, Conditionals, Relative Clauses
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Causative Verbs in English
Causative verbs are used when one person or thing causes another person or thing to do something, or to have something done to them. Here are the main forms:
Form 1: Subject + Have / Get + Object + Past Participle
- Structure: Subject + have / get + Object + Past Participle
- Example: I got my hair cut last week.
Form 2: Subject + Have + Agent + Base Verb + Object
- Structure: Subject + have + Agent + Base Verb + Object
- Example: Sussane had her brother cut.
Form 3: Subject + Get + Person + To + Base Verb
- Structure: Subject + get + Person + to + Base Verb
- Example: She gets her son to do this.
Understanding the Passive Voice
The passive voice is used when the focus is on the action rather than the doer of the action. It is often used when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious from the context.
Passive Voice Structure
- Affirmative: Subject + Auxiliary Verb + Past Participle + Rest of Sentence
- Example: The criminals were arrested.
- Negative: Subject + Negative Auxiliary Verb + Past Participle + Rest of Sentence
- Example: The criminals weren’t arrested.
- Interrogative: Wh-word + Auxiliary Verb + Subject + Past Participle + Rest of Sentence?
- Example: Have any culprits been found?
Active vs. Passive Voice Across Tenses
Here’s a comparison of active and passive voice forms across various tenses:
Tense | Active Voice | Passive Voice |
Present Simple | The waiter serves the customers | The customers are served by… |
Present Continuous | The waiter is serving | The customers are being served by… |
Past Simple | The waiter served | The customers were served by… |
Past Continuous | The waiter was serving | The customers were being served by… |
Present Perfect Simple | The waiter has served | The customers have been served by… |
Past Perfect Simple | The waiter had served | The customers had been served by… |
Future Simple | The waiter will serve | The customers will be served by… |
Future Perfect Simple | The waiter will have served | The customers will have been served |
Modals | The waiter must serve | The customers must be served by… |
Modal Perfects | The waiter must have served | The customers must have been served |
Have to | The waiter has to serve | The customers have to be served |
Be going to | The waiter is going to serve | The customers are going to be served |
Auxiliary Verbs for Passive Voice
The passive voice is always formed with a form of the verb “to be” followed by the past participle of the main verb. Here are the auxiliary verb forms for different tenses:
Tense | Auxiliary Verb Form |
Present Simple Passive | AM / IS / ARE |
Present Continuous Passive | AM / IS / ARE + BEING |
Past Simple Passive | WAS / WERE |
Past Continuous Passive | WAS / WERE + BEING |
Present Perfect Simple Passive | HAS / HAVE + BEEN |
Past Perfect Simple Passive | HAD + BEEN |
Future Simple Passive | WILL + BE |
Future Perfect Simple Passive | WILL / WON’T + HAVE BEEN + PAST PARTICIPLE |
Modals Passive | MODAL + BE |
Modal Perfects Passive | MODAL + HAVE BEEN |
Have to Passive | HAVE / HAS TO BE |
Be going to Passive | AM / IS / ARE + GOING TO BE |
+ PARTICIPLE |
Impersonal Passive Constructions
Impersonal passive constructions are used to report general opinions or beliefs without specifying who holds them. They are common in formal or academic writing.
Type 1: It is said/known/supposed/considered… + that + Sentence
- Structure: It is said/known/supposed/considered… + that + [Sentence]
- Example: It is believed that the economy will improve next year.
Type 2: Subject + Verb 1 (Passive) + to + Verb 2 (Infinitive)
- Structure: Subject + Verb 1 (passive) + to + Verb 2 (infinitive)
- Example: He is known to be a brilliant scientist.
Type 2 Affirmative:
Type 2 Negative:
Conditional Sentences
Conditional sentences express situations and their possible outcomes. They typically consist of an “if” clause (the condition) and a main clause (the result).
Zero Conditional: Facts and General Truths
- Structure: If / When + Present Simple, … + Present Simple
- Use: To talk about general truths, scientific facts, or habits.
- Example: If you heat ice, it melts.
First Conditional: Real and Possible Situations
- Structure: If / Unless + Present Simple, … + Will / Won’t + Base Verb
- Use: To talk about future situations that are real or possible.
- Example: If it rains tomorrow, we will stay home.
Second Conditional: Unreal or Unlikely Situations
- Structure: If + Past Simple, … + Would / Wouldn’t + Base Verb
- Use: To talk about hypothetical or unlikely situations in the present or future.
- Example: If I had a million dollars, I would buy a big house.
Third Conditional: Unreal Past Situations
- Structure: If + Past Perfect (had + past participle), … + Would Have + Past Participle
- Use: To talk about hypothetical situations in the past that did not happen, and their hypothetical results.
- Example: If I had studied harder, I would have passed the exam.
Relative Clauses
Relative clauses (also called adjective clauses) provide additional information about a noun or pronoun. They begin with a relative pronoun or adverb.
- Relative Pronouns/Adverbs: Who, Whose, When, Where, That, Which
1. Defining Relative Clauses
These clauses provide essential information that helps to identify exactly who or what we are talking about. They are not separated by commas.
- Example: The man who lives next door is a doctor. (The clause “who lives next door” tells us which man.)
2. Non-Defining Relative Clauses
These clauses give us extra, non-essential information about people or things. They are separated by commas. The pronoun “that” cannot be used in non-defining relative clauses.
- Example: My brother, who lives in London, is a teacher. (The clause “who lives in London” is extra information; I only have one brother.)