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From: swatt@ittvax.UUCP (Alan S. Watt)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: reposting of Bi-directional verbs
Message-ID: <1287@ittvax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 13-Feb-84 16:16:42 EST
Article-I.D.: ittvax.1287
Posted: Mon Feb 13 16:16:42 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 15-Feb-84 00:49:02 EST
References: linus.703
Lines: 9

Actually, even withing academia, there are several more which suggest
themselves from your original example of "John failed his science class".
One is "to pass", as in "John passed his science class".  Another is
"to graduate", as in "John graduated his science class", although this
one strains common usage more.  I was always taught that only
institutions "graduate" in the active voice, individuals "are graduated",
but I suspect this usage has slipped.  If you have an O.E.D. handy,
(I don't), you might check to see if "fail" and "pass" were under
a similar distinction in earlier days.