#879 What is Middle Voice? from Radiotalk

There is a third "voice" that is neither active nor passive.

In English classes at school, we learn about the "active voice" and the "passive voice," but some languages have a category called the "middle voice" that belongs to neither. It might be familiar to those who have studied languages like Classical Greek. This middle voice has the property where the action reflects back onto the subject, packed with linguistic intrigue.

Let's consider the action of "washing" as an example.

Take the verb "to wash," for instance. In Japanese, we use the same form regardless of the object, but in languages with a middle voice, you might need to use different verb forms to distinguish between "washing a child" and "washing oneself (reflexive)." This feature—where the subject of the action undergoes some kind of change—is a major hint for understanding the middle voice.

The essence of it is hidden within familiar English expressions.

Even in English, which might seem unrelated to the middle voice at first glance, expressions like "This book sells well," where a transitive verb is used intransitively, can play a role similar to the middle voice. The episode also touches on surprising linguistic backgrounds related to verbs expressing emotions and postures. There is much more to explore, so please listen to the full episode.