Passive Voice in English
Passive voice is used to talk about the object of a sentence.
In this lesson, you’ll learn how to change the structures and practise using them.
How to use the passive voice?
Usage
- To talk about the object of a sentence.
- We use passive voice when we don’t know the subject or the subject is not important.
Active Voice
- Focus on the subject of the sentence.
- E.g. The dog chases the ball.
Passive Voice
- Focuses on the object. The object becomes the subject in the passive sentence.
- E.g. The ball is chased by the dog.
Use ‘by’ for the prepositional phrase if you want to add who does/did the action.
Structure
Each tense is changed when using the passive voice. Below are the changes you need to make.
- Present simple – I make a cake → A cake is made.
- Present continuous – I am making a cake → A cake is being made.
- Present perfect – I have made a cake → A cake has been made.
- Past simple – I made a cake→ A cake was made.
- Past continuous – I was making a cake → A cake was being made.
- Past perfect – I had made a cake → A cake had been made.
- Future simple – I will make a cake → A cake will be made.
- Future ‘be going to’ – I am going to make a cake → A cake is going to be made.
- Modal verb – I must make a cake → A cake must be made.
Always use the past participle verb in the passive sentence.
Examples
A picture is being painted.
Lunch will be prepared soon.
Breakfast is served on the balcony.
Practise
Rewrite the sentences using passive voice. Keep the same tense as the original. Don’t use ‘by’.
Common mistakes learners make
- Forgetting the ‘be’ verb in the passive structure
- Keeping the active word order
Common mistakes learners make
- Forgetting the ‘be’ verb in the passive structure
- Keeping the active word order