Voice

An Introduction To Voice

There are three voices in Koine Greek: active, middle, and passive. These three terms refer to the patterns that verbs follows. These terms can also refer to the function that is associated with each form.

At first, it is best to think of the voice patterns as formal patterns (pertaining to form). In other words, it is best to learn that some verbs end with the -ω, -εις, -ει endings in the present form, while others predominantly (or solely) follow the -μαι, -ῃ, -ται pattern. It is best to familiarize yourself with these patterns before trying to identify functional differences.

Look at the chart below. As you see, the contrast in Koine Greek voice is primarily between active and middle. So while English has a strong contrast between active and passive, Koine Greek is more about active and middle. The passive form is an extension of the nonactive middle.

to wash, to batheactivemiddlepassive
imperfective infinitives
perfective infinitives		λούειν
λῦσαι		λούεσθαι
λούσασθαι		—
λουσθῆναι
present indicative
imperfect indicative
perfective indicative		λούω
ἔλουον
ἔλουσα		λούομαι
ἐλουόμην
ἐλουσάμην		—
—
ἐλούσθην

This verb, λοῦσαι, is a great word to use as an example of form and function. The three different patterns of this word map to three different meanings. The active pattern is used when the subject is doing the action to something other than itself. An example of this is The man washed the horse. The middle form is used when the action is subject-affected. The action is done by the subject, and the subject is affected by the action. An example of this is The man is bathing or The horse got himself washed. The passive form is used when the subject is affected by the action, but the agent is something other than the subject. An example of this is The horse was washed (by the man).

However, while these functions do exist, not every verb can be in all three patterns. For example, some words are “middle-only” words and never show up in the active form. One reason could be that the event is just more commonly envisioned by Greek speakers as being a middle, but the other reason is that the meaning of the verb itself prohibits it from being active. When a verb “lives” in the middle pattern, it is not in contrast to its active form. But when a form “lives” in the active pattern and then takes a vacation to the middle pattern, there is a clearer contrast between the two uses and so the functional difference should be noted.

Active

Here are some examples of active verbs:

  1. βλέπει ὁ ἀνήρ. The mans sees. This just describes the event. There is no object.

  2. εἶδεν ὁ ἀνὴρ τὸν ὄνον. The man saw the donkey.

  3. Μωσῆς ὕψωσεν τὸν ὄφιν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ. (c.f. John 3:14) Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness.

  4. Ὅστις δὲ ὑψώσει ἑαυτόν, ταπεινωθήσεται. (c.f. Matt. 23:12) Whoever lifts himself up will be humbled. Notice that in this example the subject is doing the action to himself. So he is the agent and the patient. This is reflexive.

Middle

Middle verbs describe events that are subject-affected. This means that the subject is affected by the action. This is not the same as reflexive in that a reflexive sentence has the action affecting the object even though that object is the same person as the subject. In a middle, the subject is self-affected by the action. Interestingly, various sensory verbs are good examples of subject-affectedness. ἅπτομαι τοῦ βιβλίου has more to do with the feelings of the subject than it has to do with the book. And γεύομαι τοῦ μήλου has more to do with what the subject tastes than it has to do with the apple being eaten. This is in contrast to φαγεῖν (active) which is more object-focused. 

Here are some examples of middle verbs:

  1. ἐπαύσατο περιπατῶν. He stopped walking. This is nearly always middle. Someone can stop another person (ἐγὼ παύω σε), but most of the time it is middle. Notice this middle is not the same as saying, “He stopped himself (reflexive)” but rather simply, “He stopped.” He does the action, and he is the one affected.

  2. ἐγευσάμην τοῦ μήλου. I tasted the apple. This is a middle-only verb.

  3. τὸ ξῦλον βάλλεται εἰς τὸ πῦρ. The wood is thrown into the fire. Obviously the wood is not the one doing the action, but someone else is. But the subject of the sentence to the one that is affected by this event. Functionally, this is passive. But since this is in the imperfective aspect (present tense here) there is not a passive morphology available, so the middle form is used.

Passive

The passive pattern is an extension to the middle pattern, and is only found in the perfective aspect (aorist aspect). Sometimes middle verbs just happen to follow a passive pattern in the aorist. If this is the case, then there is not really a passive function when it is used. But if a verb is normally active as an aorist and then it is used in the passive, then there is likely a passive function involved.

Here are some examples of passive verbs:

  1. ἐβλήθη τὸ ξῦλον εἰς τὸ πῦρ. The wood was thrown into the fire. This verb is normally active in the aorist (ἔβαλεν). So this passive form has passive meaning.

  2. ἐπορεύθην εἰς Ῥώμην. I went to Rome. This word is a middle-only verb that just happens to take passive morphology in the aorist. There is no meaning associated with this passive form.

  3. ἰδὼν τὸν οἶκον ἐχάρη. Seeing the house, he was happy. Even though this word is active in the imperfective aspect (χαίρειν), there is no active aorist form. This means that the passive form χαρῆναι is the default form in the aorist. Since this is the default, and since it is not in contrast with an active form, there is no passive meaning associated with this passive form.

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