passive voice

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)

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.

Examples of Passive 

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.

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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.

Forming Present Progressive Passive

Affirmative Form	Object + am / is / are + being + verb3
Question Form	Am / is / are + Object + being + verb3 ?

Something is being done by someone at the moment.

Active : The postman is delivering the mail.
Passive: The mail is being delivered by the postman.

Active : Harry Potter is measuring the room. 
Passive: The room is being measured by Harry Potter.

Active : The coach is congratulating the team at the moment.
Passive: The team is being congratulated by the coach.

Active : Are they opening the gifts now?
Passive: Are the gifts being opened by 

them ? (now)

Active and Passive Voice – Present Continuous Tense

Active sentences in the present continuous tense have the following structure:
Subject + is/are/am + -ing form of the verb + object
Passive sentences in the present continuous tense have the following structure:
Object of the active sentence + is/are/am + being + past participle form of the verb + by + subject of the active sentence.

Examples are given below.

Active: I am reading a story.
Passive: A story is being read by me.
Active: The engine is driving the train.
Passive: The train is being driven by the engine.
Active: She is singing a song.
Passive: A song is being sung by her.
Active: The carpenter is making furniture.
Passive: Furniture is being made by the carpenter.

When the verb is followed by a preposition

Read the sentence given below:

My mother is talking to a stranger.
Here the noun a stranger is the object of the preposition to, and not the verb talking. But this sentence can be changed into the passive:

Passive: A stranger is being talked to by my mother.
Active: The children are laughing at the old beggar.
Passive: The old beggar is being laughed at by the children.
Active: I am waiting for him.
Passive: He is being waited for by me.

Changing a negative sentence into the passive

When a negative sentence is changed into the passive, not will come between is/am/areand being.

Active: She is not writing a story.
Passive: A story is not being written by her.

Changing an interrogative sentence into the passive

The passive forms of these sentences will begin with be (is/am/are). When the active sentence begins with a question word such as when, whose, why, which and how, the passive sentence will also begin with a question word. When the active sentence begins withwho or whose, the passive sentence will begin with by whom or by whose. When the active sentence begins with whom, the passive sentence will begin with who.

Active: Are the masons building a house?
Passive: Is a house being built by the masons?
Active: Who is waiting for you?
Passive: By whom are you being waited for?
Active: Whom are you waiting for?
Passive: Who is being waited for by you?
Active: Why is he not learning his lessons?
Passive: Why are his lessons not being learnt by him?
Active: Whose father is helping you?
Passive: By whose father are you being helped?