§ 51. Passive Voice.

—The passive voice is formed generally by the addition of one of the following terminations to the active: -a, -ia, -hia, -kia, -mia, -ngia, -ria, -tia, -whia, -na, -nga, -ina, -hina, -kina, -rina, -whina, -hanga. Thus:—

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Of these terminations nga appears to be used only with verbs ending in ai^†, mia only with those ending in o or u, and ina only with those ending in a; but in all these cases other terminations also are used. For the rest it is questionable whether any rule can be formulated. Usage varies so much in different parts of the country that it appears to be a mere matter of custom, some regard being had to euphony. In a few cases the consonant of the termination represents the final consonant of the primitive root; but this fact is of no assistance to the beginner, and it will be advisable then, to learn the passive in each case with the active. Verbs which have the first syllable doubled in the active generally drop the repetition in the passive; thus pupuri becomes (not pupuritia, but) puritia. In a few of these cases the vowel is lengthened, as tāria from tatari.