PASSIVE VOICE
A. Definition of passive voice
The passive voice is a form of sentence where the subject of the sentence
receives the action, not the action. Unlike the active voice which is the focus
of the parties doing the action (doer of action), this form is more focusedon
the parties or the object that receives the result of an action (receives of
action).
Example :
|
Active
|
My parents plants some flowers ( doer of action )
|
|
Passive
|
Some flowers are planted bay my parents ( receives or
action )
|
Ø To make an active sentence into passive sentence, follow
this steps.
|
1.
Place the
complement of the active sentence at the beginning of the passive sentence.
2.
If there are any
auxiliaries in the active sentence, place them immediately after the new
subject agreeing in number with the subject.
3.
Insert the verb be
after the auxialry or auxiliaries in the same form as the main verb in the
actice sentence.
4.
Place the main
verb form the active sentence after the auxiliaries and be in the past
participle.
5.
Place the main
subject form the active sentence after the verb in the passive sentence
preceded by the preposition by. ( this can be eliminated complitely if
it is not important or is understood ).
|
B. The functions of passive
voice
The passive
voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an
action rather than the person or object that performs the action. In other
words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject of the sentence.
Example :
·
The passive
voice is used frequently. (= we are interested in the passive voice, not
in who uses it.)
·
The house was
built in 1654. (= we are interested in the house, not in who built it.)
·
The road is
being repaired. (= we are interested in the road, not in the people who are
doing the repairs.)
Sometimes we use the passive voice because we don't
know or do not want to express who performed the action.
Example :
·
I noticed that
a window had been left open.
·
Every year
thousands of people are killed on our roads.
·
All the cookies
have been eaten.
·
My car has
been stolen!
The passive voice is often used in formal texts.
Switching to the active voice will make your writting clearer easier to read.
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Passive
|
Active
|
|
A greal deal of
meaning is coveyed by a few well-chosen words.
|
A few
well-chosen words convey a great deal of meaning.
|
|
Our planet is
wrapped in a mass of gases.
|
A mass of gases wrap
around our planet.
|
|
Waste materials are
disposed of in a variety of ways.
|
The city disposes
of waste material in a variety of ways.
|
If we want to say who or what performs the action
while using the passive voice, we use the preposition by. When we know
who performed the action and are interested in him, it is always better to
switch to the active voice instead.
|
Passive
|
Active
|
|
"A Hard
Day's Night" was written by the Beatles
|
The Beatles wrote
"A Hard Day's Night".
|
|
The movie ET was
directed by Spielberg.
|
Spielberg directed
the movie ET.
|
|
This house
was built by my father.
|
My father
built this house.
|
Passive voice with infinitives
The infinitive passive voice is used after modal verbs
and other most verbs normally followed by an infinitive.
Examples
·
You have to
be tested on your English grammar.
·
John might
be promoted next year.
·
She wants to
be invited to the party.
·
I expect to
be surprised on my birthday.
·
You may be
disappointed.
Passive voice with gerunds
Gerunds
are used after prepositions and verbs normally followed by a gerund.
Examples
- I remember being taught
to drive.
- The children are excited about
being taken to the zoo.
- The children are excited to
be taken to the zoo.
- Most film stars hate being
interviewed.
- Most film stars hate to be
interviewed.
- Poodles like to be pampered.
- Poodles like being pampered.
Using "to be born"
"To be born" is an passive form and is most
commonly used in the past tense. However, in some cases, the present or future
tense is appropriate.
Examples
- I was born in 1976.
- Where were you born?
- Around 100 babies are born
in this hospital every week.
- We don't know on exactly which
day the baby will be born.
The passive vs the active voice:
|
The Active Voice
|
The Passive Voice
|
|
Most countries in Latin
America speak Spanish.
|
Spanish is spoken in most
countries in latin America.
|
Use of
the passive voice:
1.
Passive
voice is used when the focus in on the action. It is not important or not know,
however, who or what is perfoming the action.
Example : a letter was written. The focus, here, in on the fact
that a letter was written, we don’t know, however, who wrote it.
2.
Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than
active voice, as the following.
Example : a vase was
broken. Focus, here, in on the fact that a vase was brokes, but we don’t blame
anyone. Compare this to : “you broke the vase”.
C.
The structure of passive voice
As previously stated, the passive voice
in English is formed by combining a form of the verb to be with the past
participle of a transitive verb. Its overall structure and its contrast with
the active voice is probably easier to see if they are displayed in a paradigm
of traditional English verb tenses.
Form the passive
voice.
|
Subject + the appropiate form of to be + pas participle
|
NOTE: The
appropriate form of to be =
To be is put in the the tense of the active voice main verb.
When
rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:
·
The
object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
·
The
form of the verb is the appropriate form of to be (the tense of the active
voice main verb) + the past participle.
·
The
subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or
is dropped.)
Example :
|
Active
|
Nancy
|
makes
|
tea
|
|
Subject
|
verb
|
object
|
|
|
Passive
|
Tea
|
is made
|
(by Nancy)
|
|
object becoming subject
|
verb
|
subject becoming object or is
dropped
|
·
Present Time
Simple Present
Use the simple present tense to make a
generalization, to present a state of being, or to
indicate a habitual or repeated action.
|
Active
base form or
“-s/-es” form
|
Passive
am/is/are
+ past participle
|
|
Professor Brown teaches at Hunter.
|
Sonia is taught by Professor Brown.
|
|
All humans are equal.
|
All humans are created equal.
|
|
Maria eats in the cafeteria.
|
The cafeteria is cleaned
|
Present Progressive
Use the present progressive to describe
an ongoing activity or a temporary action.
|
Active
am/is/are + -ing
|
Passive
am/is/are + being + -ed/-en
|
|
The students are
learning Spanish.
|
Classes are
being conducted in Spanish.
|
|
I am working at
McDonald’s until I finish school.
|
He is being
hired to work at McDonald’s.
|
Present Perfect
Use the present
perfect to describe an action occurring in the past but relevant to the present,
or extending to the present.
|
Active
has/have +
-ed/-en
|
Passive
has/have + been + -ed/-en
|
|
Hunter has
opened a language institute in East Harlem.
|
The language
institute has been opened to relocate students off the main campus.
|
|
Hunter has offered E.S.L courses for twenty years.
|
E.S.L. courses have been offered since the beginning of Open
Admissions
|
·
Past Time
Simple Past
Use the simple past to indicate a
general or habitual action occurring in the past or at a
specific time in the past.
|
Active
base + -ed or irregular form
|
Passive
was/were + -ed/-en
|
|
Our family bought
all our clothes at Sears when I was young.
|
The clothes were bought by my mother
|
|
On my fifteenth
birthday, my uncle gave me one hundred dollars
|
The money was
given to me to buy new clothes.
|
|
When I was in
high school, my friends and I drove to the mall on weekends.
|
We were always
driven to the mall by my friend's older brother.
|
In informal conversation, speakers of
English often express habitual behavior in the past using the modal “would.”
|
Active
would + base
|
Passive
would + be + -ed/-en
|
|
We would usually eat burgers in the food court.
|
Most of the french fries would be eaten before we got to the table.
|
Past Progressive
Use the past progressive to indicate an
ongoing action in the past or an action continuing through a specific past
time.
|
Active
was/were + -ing
|
Passive
was/were + being + -ed/-en
|
|
Mary and Paul were dating in those days.
|
One afternoon,
Mary was being kissed by Paul when her mother passed by.
|
Past Perfect
Use the past perfect to indicate an
action completed prior to a particular time or before
another action in the past.
|
Active
had + -ed/-en
|
Passive
had + been + -ed/-en
|
|
Mary's mother
was shocked because she had forbidden her daughter to date.
|
Mary had been
kissed many times before that day.
|
·
Future Time
Simple Future
Use the future to indicate an action
that is expected to take place at a future time.
|
Active
will + base
|
Passive
will + be + -ed/-en
|
|
Paul and Mary will marry in June.
Or
|
They will be
married by a priest and a rabbi.
Or
|
|
am/is/are going to + base
|
am/is/are + going to be + -ed/-en
|
|
Mary is going
to wear her grandmother's gown.
|
The gown is
going to be adjusted to fit Mary.
|
Future Progressive
Use the future progressive to indicate an action in
future with emphasis on continuing
Examples
of the passive voice:
|
Tense
|
Subject
|
Verb
|
Object
|
|
|
Simple Present
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
makes
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
is made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Present Progressive
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
is making
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
is being made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Simple Past
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
made
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
was made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Past Progressive
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
was making
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
was being made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Present Perfect
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
has made
|
Tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
has been made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Past Perfect
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
had made
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
had been
made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Future simple
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
will make
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
will be
made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Future perfect
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
will have made
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
will have been
made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Conditional
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
would make
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
would be
made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
|
Modals
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
can make
|
tea.
|
|
Passive:
|
Tea
|
can be
made
|
by Nancy.
|
|
Passive
voice 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.
|
Active/Passive
|
Subject
|
Verb
|
Object 1
|
Object
2
|
|
Active:
|
Nancy
|
offered
|
a flower
|
to me.
|
|
Passive:
|
A flower
|
was offered
|
to me
|
by Nancy.
|
|
Passive:
|
I
|
was offered
|
a flower
|
by Nancy.
|
Impersonal
Passive:
Study these
examples:
·
They
say that the planet is in danger.
·
It
is said that the planet is in danger.
This type
of passive is called impersonal because we use the impersonal form "it
is..." This is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say,
think, know ...)
Examples:
·
It
is said that...
·
It
is thought that...
·
It
is believed that...
·
It
is known that...
It is
also common that we start the passive form of these sentences with the subject
of the that-clause:
Examples:
·
They
say that the planet is in danger.= The planet is said to be in danger.
·
They
think that women live longer than men. = Women are thought to live longer.
References
A . Pyle. Michael,
and Ellen. Mary. M. P. 1991. TOEFL preaparation guide. USA
Mas’ud, fuad.
2005. Essentials of English Grammar “a practice guide”. Yogyakarta : BPFE
YOGYAKARTA
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