GARLAND C.

asked • 12/03/21

the past participle vs using the "se" form

When is it ok to use the past participle vs using the "se" form? And what are the specific rules governing which is better? What specific grammatical concept determines which form to use so that I can follow up on with my own research.

Here are some examples:

La misma lógica debería aplicarse a los servicios

La misma lógica debería ser aplicado

Algunos progresos pueden atribuirse a la cumbre

Algunos progresos pueden ser atribuido a la cumber

Una paz duradura en Darfur no puede lograrse

Una paz duradura en Darfur no puede ser logrado

Estos asuntos no pueden decidirse en dos lugares

Estos asuntos no pueden ser decides en dos lugares

Thank you

1 Expert Answer

By:

GARLAND C.

It is conversation, not writing that I am concerned about. But i really would like to know the specific description of the grammatical concept that I am referring to (using La misma lógica debería aplicarse a los servicios) so I can google it for further research
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12/06/21

Julie B.

When you use "se + verb," grammatically that is called a reflexive verb. When you use "ser + past participle," grammatically it is called passive voice. Passive voice exists in English with the verb "be + past participle." However in Spanish, a reflexive verb construction can be the equivalent of the passive voice. This is only one use of the reflexive verb construction. I hope this helps in your research of when one use might be preferred over the other.
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12/07/21

Julie B.

Perhaps researching the question, "Use of the passive voice vs. the reflective pronoun se." Or "Rules for using the pronoun se to express the passive voice."
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12/07/21

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