What does passively mean?
Passively is the adverb form of passive and describes behavior that lacks active effort, initiative, or resistance. Someone who waits passively for another person to take responsibility may be described as passive, especially when the situation calls for action. The word can also have a grammatical meaning: in a passive construction, the subject receives the action, as in “The letter was written,” rather than performing it. In everyday use, “passively” can suggest not only inactivity but also a deliberate or resigned failure to intervene. Its meaning depends on context, since receiving an action is grammatically passive but is not always a personal or social failing.
adverbIn a passive manner, without active effort, initiative, or resistance. It can also refer to speaking or writing in the passive voice.
- In a manner involving no active effort, initiative, or resistance.
- In the passive voice of a grammar, with the subject receiving the action.
"The proposal was passively accepted without discussion."
"She listened passively while the meeting continued without any contribution from her."
"The sentence was written passively, so the focus remains on the object of the action."
A passive person is not merely quiet: they are choosing not to act, even when action is available.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of passively
The adverb comes from the adjective passive, which was borrowed from Latin passivus, a term associated with being subjected to an action. Latin passivus was formed from pati, “to suffer” or “to undergo,” the same root found in English words such as patient, passion, and compatible. English began using passive in the grammatical sense in the 16th century, and the adverb form developed later.
Related word forms
How passively is actually used
The adverb is standard in formal and informal English. It often conveys a contrast with active behavior, and in grammar it identifies an action performed on the subject rather than by the subject.
Easily confused with passively
Passive is the adjective describing an action or person; passively is the adverb describing how an action is performed.