In Hindi-Urdu the inability or unwillingness to perform an action may be expressed by using the passive with negation:
1. m:arð b:as: kñ
( p:an:i ) ep:y:a
n:hiø j:at:a.
'The water smells too bad to drink.'
(Lit: 'The water cannot be drunk because of the smell.')
(from )ðm:c:nd's
YakÙr ka kÙAaú. See context.)
(from Chapter Thirty-five of g:aðdan:. See context.)
4. Aaòr Ab: us:s:ð daò_a B:i
t:að n:hiø j:at:a. v:h harkr v:hiø b:òY g:y:a
. . .
(from Chapter Twenty of g:aðdan:. See context.)
5. m:ØJ:s:ð K:_a n:hiø
hØAa j:a rha hò.
(from Chapter Nineteen of g:aðdan:. See context.)
6. us:n:ð En:ki y:h hal:t:
dðK:i, t:að us:s:ð n: rha
g:y:a. b:aðl:i -- t:Øm: Vy:a
Ab:ki j:a_a y:aðø hi kaX daðg:ð ? v:h Ac:kan: p:hn:t:ð t:Ømhðø S:m:ü
B:i n:hiø Aat:i ?
(from Chapter Thirty-Three of g:aðdan:. See context.)
7. As:ty: s:Øn:kr m:ØJ:s:ð
s:ha n:hiø j:at:a !
(from Chapter Fifteen of g:aðdan:. See context.)
8. eb:n:a us:s:ð em:l:ð
m:ØJ:s:ð rha n:hiø j:at:a.
For more on this see notes on
V- O eb:n:a.
(from Chapter Twenty-one of g:aðdan:. See context.)
10. t:ØJ:ð s:b: j:g:h ka p:t:a hò
ek khaú-khaú j:ay:a j:a s:kt:a hò
b:ahr ?
(from m:aðhn:
rakðS: 's AaD:ð AD:Ürð: p. 86)
(from Chapter Twelve of g:aðdan:. See context.)
13. edll:i Et:n:i dÝr T:i ek v:haú b:_i
m:ØeSkl: s:ð p:hØúc:a j:a s:kt:a T:a.
14. " haðri s:ð
khað, Ab: b:òY kñ
ram:-ram: krðö. "
(Gobar:) "I do tell him that. But when has he
been willing to sit back and relax? " '
(from Chapter Twenty of g:aðdan:. See context.)
To exercise on the passive
of incapacity.
To note on daò_a j:at:a hò and use of passive
to indicate action by unspecified subjects.
Other sections dealing with negation:
1. V-n:ðv:al:a to express disapproval, disbelief, defiance or
denial.
To index of grammatical notes.
To index of m:lhar.
Drafted 27 Jan 2001. Posted 27-28 Jan 2001. Reformatted and augmented
24 Sep 2001. Augmented 1 July 2002. Cross-referenced 22 Aug
2004.
This is the one use of the passive in colloquial Hindi-Urdu which freely
permits the expression of the agent. The accompanying postposition is
s:ð:
3. dada hi ka kl:ðj:a hò ek y:h
s:b: s:ht:ð hòø. us:s:ð t:að Ok edn: n:
s:ha
j:ay:.
'It is only Dada who puts up with all this. He
wouldn't be able to put up with it for a single day.'
The passive of incapacity can be used
with intransitive as well as transitive verbs. Since in such cases there
is no grammatical subject for the verb to agree with it must assume the
masculine singular default form:
'And now he couldn't run (any further). He gave up
and sat down right there.'
'I am unable to get to my feet.'
Certain ones of these intransitive passives have become conventionalized
in the colloquial language, especially ( n:) rha j:an:a (5) 'to
be (un)able to restrain oneself' and ( n:)
s:ha j:an:a (6) 'to be (un)able to stand
it':
'When she saw what state he was in she couldn't
restrain herself: "This is how you're going to get through the winter this
time around? You're not ashamed to be wearing that achkan?"'
'I can't stand hearing something that is not true!.'
The locution n: rha j:an:a often occurs with
V- O eb:n:a in a construction (parallel to
the V-nakute naranai / ikenai of colloquial Japanese) as a double
negative in the meaning of 'have to V' or 'must':
'I simply have to see her!' (lit:
'I cannot bear not seeing her.')
Not surprisingly (given its name),
the passive of incapacity often occurs with some form of s:kn:a 'to be able':
9. hús:ð eb:n:a t:að ej:y:a
n:hiø j:a s:kt:a.
'Man cannot live without laughter.'
While most instances of the passive
of incapacity occur negated, it also shows up in questions, especially
those that expect a negative answer, and in if-clauses:
(a mother speaking to a small child:) 'Do you know
all the places a person can go to in the outside world?'
11. us:ki s:as: hm:ðø g:el:y:aú
dðg:i, t:að us:s:ð
s:Øn:a j:ay:g:a ?
'If her mother-in-law starts bad-mouthing us, will
she bear to hear it?'
12. Aap:s:ð Ag:r y:h s:b: b:y:an: eky:a j:a
s:kð t:að hm: B:i s:Øn:ðø .
'If you can bear to describe it. we'd like to hear
it, too.'
'Delhi was so far away that it was only with
difficulty that one could get there.'
" kht:a t:að
hÜú, l:ðekn: j:b:
un:s:ð b:òYa j:ay:. "
' (Bhola:) "Tell Hori that now he should sit
back and spend his time in prayer."
These notes (without the illustrations from g:aðdan: and elsewhere) are based on Section 17A
of Hindi Structures, pp.
153-4.
2. m:j:al:
hò ! Warning and
warding off.
3. m:ar
K:aO eb:n:a n:hiø m:an:t:a H Without V-ing.
4. b:n:aO
n: b:n:ð H Paired
verbs and incapacity.
5. j:an:ð ka n:am: n:hiø l:ðt:a
H Empahtic
negation.