Faciamus Valentines

So, how do we make a passive periphrastic?

As usual, we start with the Infinitive.

For -are, -ēre, and regular -ere verbs, simply remove the “re” and add “ndus -a -um”. amandus, habendus, agendus

If the verb is third “io” or fourth (-ire) take off the entire infinitive ending and add “iendus -a -um.” capiendus, audiendus

This form is known as the future passive participle or the GERUNDIVE!

We combine this gerundive with a form of “esse” to make the passive periphrastic which indicates necessity!

Notice that the ending on the gerundive is “-ndus, -a -um”. This indicates that it is treated like a first and second declension adjective such as “magnus, -a. -um”.

“Well,” you’re probably thinking, “that’s just great, but how am I supposed to know which of the thirty possible endings to use on the darn thing?”

Well, let’s look at just what you are trying to express.

Lets take this expression and turn it into Latin: I must ask the girl. The verb will become my gerundive. The object of the verb will become my new subject. My current subject will move to the dative of agent.

The subject: My old object becomes my new subject, so it will be “girl” Puella I am now rethinking the sentences as “The girl must be asked by me”

The verb: “rogare” would become rogandus -a -um Since I am rethinking the sentence as “The girl must be asked by me”, “asked “ is sort of like an adjective describing the girl. What must she be? Asked!

Well now, since adjectives need to be the same gender, case. and number as the nouns they modify, and since “puella” is fem. and nom. and sing., then “rogandus” would become “roganda”! So now we have “Puella roganda”

“Hey, don’t we need a form of ‘esse’?”

You bet! Since our subject is “puella”, we use “est”! (If it were “puellae”, we’d use “sunt”. Get it?)

So now we have “Puella roganda est.” Now we take our old subject “I” and we change it into something called the dative of agent.* Instead of use “a, ab” and the ablative, we put it in the dative “mihi”. *a dative of agent acts just like an ablative of agent, only it doesn’t use a preposition, and it’s not in the ablative(!)

So, to make a long story, well…just as long… here are the steps: 1. Rethink the sentence to make your old object your new subject. 2. Create a gerundive for your verb and give it an ending that agrees with your new subject 3. Add a form of “esse” that agrees with your new subject. 4. Change your old subject into the dative.