Breakdown of Ce roman est publié par un éditeur canadien.
être
to be
un
a / an (masculine)
ce
this (before a noun)
publier
to publish
par
by, through / out of (motive)
canadien
Canadian
le roman
the novel
l'éditeur
the publisher
Questions & Answers about Ce roman est publié par un éditeur canadien.
How is the passive voice constructed in this sentence?
Just like in English, the French passive voice uses the verb être (to be) followed by a past participle. Here, we see the present tense est paired with the past participle publié (published), followed by the preposition par to introduce who is doing the publishing.
Does the past participle publié need to agree with the subject?
Yes! Because the passive voice is built with the verb être, the past participle acts like an adjective and must agree in gender and number with the subject. Since Ce roman is masculine singular, publié gets no extra endings. If the subject were Cette histoire (feminine), it would be est publiée.
Why do we use par here instead of de for "by"?
In the passive voice, the "agent" (the person doing the action) is almost always introduced by par when the verb describes a specific, physical action, like publishing. De is used mostly with verbs expressing emotions (like being loved or respected by someone) or states of being.
Are roman and éditeur false friends?
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