PASSIVE VOICEPASSIVE VOICE

MARÍA JOSÉ GUTIÉRREZMARÍA JOSÉ GUTIÉRREZ

ACTIVE VOICE'Voice' refers to the relationship between the subject and the verb in a sentence. A sentence is said to be in the active voice if the subject

performs the action of the verb.

IES Carmen Laffón

In English, as in many other languages, the passive voice is the form of a transitive verb whose grammatical subject receives the action of the verb. The English passive voice is formed using a form of the auxiliary verb be

together with the past participle of the main verb.

PASSIVE VOICE

Tense Subject

Auxiliary Past Participle Singular Plural

Present The car/cars is are designed.

Present perfect The car/cars has been have been designed.

Past The car/cars was were designed.

Past perfect The car/cars had been had been designed.

Future The car/cars will be will be designed.

Future perfect The car/cars will have been will have been designed.

Present progressive The car/cars is being are being designed.

Past progressive The car/cars was being were being designed. IES Carmen Laffón

Use passive instead of active:If the agent is unknown:

Denise’s computer was stolen from her office.

If the agent is not the focus:

The new library was finished about a year ago.

If the agent is obvious from the context:

I had an accident yesterday. The other car went through a red light and hit me. My car was completely destroyed.

To focus on the receiver:

Did you hear the news? Matt was injured slightly in the earthquake, but Jeff was O.K.

To make general explanations, statements and announcements, or in scientific and technical writing:

Passengers are asked to refrain from smoking.

IES Carmen Laffón

Because we most often use passive verbs to describe situations when the agent is not the primary focus, we usually do not include the agent (by noun phrase) in

passive sentences. However, sometimes it is necessary to include the agent:

• When the agent gives us additional new information

Many important scientific discoveries have been made by women.

•When information about the agent is too important to be omitted

Radioactivity was discovered by Marie Curie in 1903.

•When the agent is surprising or unexpected

This picture was painted by a monkey.

IES Carmen Laffón

PASSIVE VOICE EXAMPLES

IES Carmen Laffón

PASSIVE VOICE EXAMPLES

PRESENT: IS, ARE

PAST: WAS, WERE

IES Carmen Laffón

Active Passive Time Reference

They make Fords in Cologne.

Fords are made in Cologne. Present simple

Susan is cooking dinner. Dinner is being cooked by Susan Present continuous

James Joyce wrote "Dubliners".

"Dubliners" was written by James Joyces.

Past simple

They were painting the house when I arrived.

The house was being painted when I arrived.

Past continuous

They have produced over 20 models in the past two years.

Over 20 models have been produced in the past two years.

Present perfect

They are going to build a new factory in Portland.

A new factory is going to be built in Portland.

Future intention with going to

I will finish it tomorrow. It will be finished tomorrow. Future simple

IES Carmen Laffón

The subject of a verb in the passive voice corresponds to the object of the same verb in the active voice.

If you want to change a passive-voice sentence to active voice, find the agent in a "by the..." phrase, or consider

carefully who or what is performing the action expressed in the verb. Make that agent the subject of the sentence, and

change the verb accordingly.

IES Carmen Laffón

Special cases: Verbs with no passive forms and other verbs

with no active forms

Some verbs don’t have passive form because they do not take direct objects. This category includes verbs such as:

occur, happen, take place, appear, seem, look, emerge, vanish, disappear, appear, resemble, consist

of, collide, etc.Few changes have occurred at Stonehenge over the years.

The discovery of Nazca Lines happened in the 1930s.

NOT: A ceremonial function was had by these pictures.

NOT: Some animals are resembled by the pictures.

IES Carmen Laffón