[Grammar] "has sold very well"

kwsue said:

What is the grammar structure underlying the sentence: It is just as it appears to be.

"This product (subject) has sold (present perfect verb) very well (adverbs)"?

Is this sentence written in the passive form, no as a product cannot really "sell" itself?
But we do say things like 'This car is so good it sells itself.'

Or can "sold very well" be considered an adjective modifying "this product"? no

The answer is simply that we do speak of inanimate objects doing things.

That movie made me laugh so much.
The sun rises in the east.
The theory has stood up to scrutiny very well.
Thank you in advance for your help!

Click to expand...

kwsue said:

What is the grammar structure underlying the sentence: "This product has sold very well"?

Is this sentence written in the passive form, as a product cannot really "sell" itself? Or can "sold very well" be considered an adjective modifying "this product"?

Thank you in advance for your help!

Click to expand...

kwsue said:

What is the grammar structure underlying the sentence: "This product has sold very well"?

Is this sentence written in the passive form, as a product cannot really "sell" itself? Or can "sold very well" be considered an adjective modifying "this product"?

Thank you in advance for your help!

Click to expand...

TheParser said:

***** NOT A TEACHER / ONLY MY OPINION


Kwsue,

May I contribute something to this thread? I found it in

Professor George O. Curme's extremely scholarly A Grammar

of the English Language.

(1) It seems that your idea of the passive is right on.

(2) Professor Curme writes:

[P]assive force is often associated with intransitive

form.

(1) The professor gives this example:

Such houses sell easily.

He says that the sentence = Such houses can be sold easily. This sentence is passive voice, but I'm not convinced that the one above it is. Rewording a sentence by using the passive tense doesn't mean the original sentence is passive tense.

Thank you

Click to expand...