basic structure of passive voice

[outofdejavu]

Dear Teachers:

=================
1-a: He was bitten by a dog in the park.
1-b: He was bitten in the park by a dog.

2-a: The eggs were put in the refrigerator by him.
2-b: The eggs were put by him in the refrigerator.

3-a: The movie has been seen many times by him.
3-b: The movie has been seen by him many times.

4-a: He was asked to clean this room by his mom.
4-b: He was asked by his mom to clean this room.

5-a: David was killed by his neighbor yesterday.
5-b: David was killed yesterday by his neighbor.
==================

In each set, is there an improper sentence?
In my opinion, all of them are right, except that 3-a and 3-b are kinda unnatural in passive voice.
(These sentence were not written by me.)

What are/is your opinion(s)?

Is there a rule for arranging adverbial phrase and "by [agent]"?
How should an EFL teacher teach EFL learners about this?


Thank you.

[aya_aya7121]

Dear Teachers:

=================
1-a: He was bitten by a dog in the park.
1-b: He was bitten in the park by a dog.

2-a: The eggs were put in the refrigerator by him.
2-b: The eggs were put by him in the refrigerator.

3-a: The movie has been seen many times by him.
3-b: The movie has been seen by him many times.

4-a: He was asked to clean this room by his mom.
4-b: He was asked by his mom to clean this room.

5-a: David was killed by his neighbor yesterday.
5-b: David was killed yesterday by his neighbor.
==================

In each set, is there an improper sentence?
In my opinion, all of them are right, except that 3-a and 3-b are kinda unnatural in passive voice.
(These sentence were not written by me.)

What are/is your opinion(s)?

Is there a rule for arranging adverbial phrase and "by [agent]"?
How should an EFL teacher teach EFL learners about this?


Thank you.

Dear Outofdezavu,
Of course I'm not a teacher, but I want to make a suggestion.
In passive voice, the order is Place + By.... + Time
so I think that 1b, 2a, 3b, 5a are correct

I'm not sure, but in my opinion, 4a is correct

[Raymott]

dear teachers:

=================
1-a: He was bitten by a dog in the park. preferred
1-b: He was bitten in the park by a dog. ok

2-a: The eggs were put in the refrigerator by him. don't use the passive here
2-b: The eggs were put by him in the refrigerator. don't use the passive here

3-a: The movie has been seen many times by him. don't use the passive here
3-b: The movie has been seen by him many times. don't use the passive here

4-a: He was asked to clean this room by his mom. ok
4-b: He was asked by his mom to clean this room. ok

5-a: David was killed by his neighbor yesterday. preferred
5-b: David was killed yesterday by his neighbor. ok
==================

in each set, is there an improper sentence?
In my opinion, all of them are right, except that 3-a and 3-b are kinda unnatural in passive voice.
so are 2a and 3a. The passive often sounds strange when the agent is a pronoun. It's almost always easier to say "he did something" than "something was done by him".
(these sentence were not written by me.)

what are/is your opinion(s)?

Is there a rule for arranging adverbial phrase and "by [agent]"?
i have preferred subject + verb + by agent + adverbial in the above.
But that's not always the case.
If there was a more substantial agent in 2 and 3, i would say:
2-a: "the eggs were put in the refrigerator by her younger son".
3-a: "the movie has been seen many times by the same three girls".

how should an efl teacher teach efl learners about this?
Thank you.

My opinions
r.

[aya_aya7121]

Dear Raymott,
I don't understand.
All of my friends said that :" The order is PLACE + BY... + TIME "
But you said that 1a, 1b 5a, 5b was correct
contradiction!!!!!!!!

[Raymott]

Dear Raymott,
I don't understand.
All of my friends said that :" The order is PLACE + BY... + TIME "
But you said that 1a, 1b 5a, 5b were correct
contradiction!!!!!!!!

There's no contradiction at all. I have given my opinion as a native speaker.
Your friends have given theirs as foreign followers of overly prescriptive grammar books.
"David was killed yesterday by his neighbor." is a normal, unremarkable English sentence.
"Obama was elected as the new US President on Tuesday by a disaffected nation wanting change". Compare this with:
"Obama was elected as the new US President by a disaffected nation wanting change on Tuesday".

PS: Only one exclamation point is necessary in English.