The Passive Voice

The relationship between the agent (the one who performs the action) and the action (verb) is called voice. English has two voices-active and passive.

In the active voice, the grammatical subject performs the action of the verb:

Cervantes wrote Don Quixote.

In the passive voice, the grammatical subject receives the action--something is done to the grammatical subject:

Don Quixote was written by Cervantes.

The meaning of the two sentences is the same. The difference is in emphasis or point of view. In the active sentence, the attention of the reader is focused on the agent or person who performs the action (Cervantes, in the example). The agent receives more emphasis or attention.

In the passive sentence, the attention of the reader is focused on the receiver of the action (Don Quixote, in the example).

Use of Passive

Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action.

Example: My bike was stolen.

In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it.

Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows:

Example: A mistake was made.

In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.).

Form of Passive

Subject + finite form of to be + Past Participle (3rd column of irregular verbs)

Example: A letter was written.

When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:

• the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence
• the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)
• the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)

In order to change the active verb to its corresponding passive form, we need to do two things:

1. Put the verb to be in the same tense as the verb in the active sentence. In this example the verb is in the simple past, so we use the past tense of be.

2. Use the past participle of the verb in the active sentence.

The passive verb, therefore, has two parts. The verb to be indicates the tense, and the past participle indicates the action.

Only sentences containing direct objects can be made into passive sentences because the direct object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. If the sentence does not have a direct object, you cannot change it into a passive sentence.

Examples of Passive

Tense		Subject	Verb	Object
Simple Present	Active:	Rita	writes	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	is written	by Rita.
Simple Past	Active:	Rita	wrote	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	was written	by Rita.
Present Perfect	Active:	Rita	has written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	has been written	by Rita.
Future I	Active:	Rita	will write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	will be written	by Rita.
Hilfsverben	Active:	Rita	can write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	can be written	by Rita.

Tense		Subject	Verb	Object
Present Progressive	Active:	Rita	is writing	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	is being written	by Rita.
Past Progressive	Active:	Rita	was writing	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	was being written	by Rita.
Past Perfect	Active:	Rita	had written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	had been written	by Rita.
Future II	Active:	Rita	will have written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	will have been written	by Rita.
Conditional I	Active:	Rita	would write	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	would be written	by Rita.
Conditional II	Active:	Rita	would have written	a letter.
	Passive:	A letter	would have been written	by Rita.

Passive Sentences with Two Objects

Rewriting an active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on.

	Subject	Verb	Object 1	Object 2
Active:	Rita	wrote	a letter	to me.
Passive:	A letter	was written	to me	by Rita.
Passive:	I	was written	a letter	by Rita.

As you can see in the examples, adding by Rita does not sound very elegant. That’s why it is usually dropped.

Personal and Impersonal Passive

Personal Passive simply means that the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. So every verb that needs an object (transitive verb) can form a personal passive.

Example: They build houses. – Houses are built.

Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence). If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal construction – therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.

Example: he says – it is said

Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g. German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of perception (e.g. say, think, know).

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – It is said that women live longer than men.

Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common.

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – Women are said to live longer than men.

The subject of the subordinate clause (women) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped).

Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.

Omission of BY

It has been estimated that only 15 to 20 percent of passive sentences mention the agent (in a phrase with by). We do NOT normally use the by-phrase in the following cases:

1. When the agent is unknown.

• My car was stolen. ( I do not know who stole it.)
• This table was made in England. (I do not know who made it.)

2. When the agent is obvious or unimportant.

• A lot of rice is eaten in Japan. (Obviously by the Japanese.)
• Oranges are grown in California and Florida. (Obviously by orange growers.)
• An incision is made around the optic nerve and the optic nerve is released.
  (This example is a good illustration of using the passive to emphasize a procedure or process. It is obvious that a surgeon performs the operation. What is important here is what the surgeon must do, not the surgeon himself.)
  
  

3. When we do not want to mention the agent.

• The administration admitted that mistakes were made in its handling of the affair.
  (The administration does not want to blame anybody, or perhaps does not want to accept responsibility, so the by-phrase is not used.)
  
  

4. When the agent has been mentioned previously.

• Don Quixote was written by Cervantes. It was finished in 1616.
  (It was finished by Cervantes, who has already been mentioned.)
  
  

5. When the agent is very general.

• His writings are now widely accepted and can no longer be described as controversial.
  (by his readers in general)
  
  
• Antibiotics should not be considered as a replacement for aseptic procedures.
  (by doctors in general)
  
  
• His theories have never been refuted or even attacked.
  (by anyone)
  
  

WARNING

Some sentences change meaning when transformed into the passive. Be careful with general statements such as:

• Beavers build dams.
  (True - This is normal activity for beavers.)
  
  
• Dams are built by beavers.
  (False - Humans also build dams, not only beavers.)
  
  

Inclusion of BY

The agent with by is usually expressed

1. When the agent is new information.

• This is a true story and was told to me by my mother when I was a little boy.
• A: I really like the red paint on your car. B: Thanks. It was painted by my friend Bob.

2. When the agent is not human.

• In a shunt motor, speed is usually controlled by a rheostat connected in series with the field windings.
• Most standardized tests are corrected by a computer.

3. When the agent is well known and should be included because it is important information.

• The fountain in Lyon, located in front of Lyon's city hall, was designed by Bartholdi, the designer of the Statue of Liberty.

Verbs with Direct and Indirect Object (Ditransitive Verbs)

Many verbs take an indirect and direct object. Consider a verb such as give, which has two patterns:

• My father gave me this ring.
• My father gave this ring to me.

We can make the direct object the subject of the passive sentence:

• This ring was given (to) me by my father. (with or without to)

Or we can make the indirect object the subject of the passive sentence:

• I was given this ring by my father.

Exercises:
Elementary

exercise 1 - Put in order 

exercise 2 - Complete the sentences (Active or Passive Voice). Use Simple Present.

exercise 3 - test on the Passive voice

exercise 4 - Decide whether the sentences are written in Active or Passive

exercise 5 - Form questions in Passive using the given words/phrases

exercise 6 - Rewrite the sentences using Passive voice
exercise 7 - Put in the correct form of the verb in Passive into the gaps. Use Simple Past

exercise 8 - Complete the sentences in the passive voice

exercise 9 - Put in the correct form of the verb in Passive into the gaps, using the verb and the tense given in brackets

exercise 10 - Are the sentences in Active or Passive

Intermediate 

exercise 1 - Make passive sentences

exercise 2 - Write passive sentences in Simple Present

exercise 3 - Choose the correct answer

exercise 4 - Choose the right sentense

exercise 5 - Put the sentences into passive voice

exercise 6 - Write passive sentences in Simple Past

exercise 7 - Write down the sentences in the passive! (present and past)

exercise 8 - Write the correct form of each verb in brackets

exercise 9 - Choose the correct answer

exercise 10 - Rewrite the following sentences in the passive voice

Advanced

exercise 1 - Choose the most appropriate answer

exercise 2 - Complete the sentences with the correct verbs

exercise 3 - Fill in the missing word in each sentence - one word in each sentence

exercise 4 - Choose the correct words

exercise 5 - Rewrite the following sentences in the Passive Voice

exercise 6 - Fill in the gaps with a form of the passive. The tense could be past, present or future

exercise 7 - Choose the correct answer for each question

exercise 8 - Write the correct response, changing the SIMPLE PAST sentences into PASSIVE CAUSATIVE FORM sentences

exercise 9 - Choose the selected part that is incorrect

exercise 10 - Transform these sentences into the passive voice

TEST
KEYS