Passive Voice

Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)
Tense
Active
Passive
Simple Present
Once a week, Tom cleans the house.
Once a week, the house is cleaned by Tom.
Present Continuous
Right now, Sarah is writing the letter.
Right now, the letter is being written by Sarah.
Simple Past
Sam repaired the car.
The car was repaired by Sam.
Past Continuous
The salesman was helping the customer

when the thief came into the store.
The customer was being helped by the salesman

when the thief came into the store.
Present Perfect
Many tourists have visited that castle.
That castle has been visited by many tourists.
Present Perfect Continuous
Recently, John has been doing the work.
Recently, the work has been being done by John.
Past Perfect
George had repaired many cars before he

received his mechanic's license.
Many cars had been repaired by George before

he received his mechanic's license.
Past Perfect Continuous
Chef Jones had been preparing the

restaurant's fantastic dinners for two years
before he moved to Paris.
The restaurant's fantastic dinners had been being

prepared by Chef Jones for two years before he
moved to Paris.
Someone will finish the work by 5:00 PM.
The work will be finished by 5:00 PM.
Sally is going to make a beautiful dinner

tonight.
A beautiful dinner is going to be made by Sally

tonight.
Future Continuous
(will)
At 8:00 PM tonight, John will be washing the

dishes.
At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes will be being

washed by John.
Future Continuous
(be going to)
At 8:00 PM tonight, John is going to be

washing the dishes.
At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes are going to be

being washed by John.
Future Perfect
(will)
They will have completed the project before

the deadline.
The project will have been completed before the

deadline.
Simple Future
(will)
Simple Future
(be going to)
Future Perfect
(be going to)
They are going to have completed the

project before the deadline.
The project is going to have been

completed before the deadline.
Future Perfect Continuous

(will)
The famous artist will have been painting the

mural for over six months by the time it is
finished.
The mural will have been being painted by the

famous artist for over six months by the time it is
finished.
Future Perfect Continuous

(be going to)
The famous artist is going to have been

painting the mural for over six months by the
time it is finished.
The mural is going to have been being

painted by the famous artist for over six months by
the time it is finished.
(Used to)
Jerry used to pay the bills.
The bills used to be paid by Jerry.
(Would Always)
My mother would always make the pies.
The pies would always be made by my mother.
Future in the Past

(Would)
I knew John would finish the work by 5:00

PM.
I knew the work would be finished by 5:00 PM.
Future in the Past

(Was Going to)
I thought Sally was going to make a beautiful

dinner tonight.
I thought a beautiful dinner was going to be

made by Sally tonight.

Subject
+ to be (conjugated)
+ past participle
+ rest of sentence
is
cleaned
every day.
is being
cleaned
at the moment.
was
cleaned
yesterday.
was being
cleaned
last week.
has been
cleaned
since you left.
Simple present
The house
Present continuous
The house
Simple past
The house
Past continuous
The house
Present perfect
The house
Past perfect

Subject
+ to be (conjugated)
+ past participle
+ rest of sentence
The house
had been
cleaned
before they arrived.
will be
cleaned
next week.
will be being
cleaned
tomorrow.
would be
cleaned
if they had visitors.
would have been
cleaned
if it had been dirty.
must be
cleaned
before we arrive.
Future
The house
Future continuous
The house
Present conditional
The house
Past conditional
The house
Inifinitive
The house

Tense
Active
Passive
present simple
I make a cake.
A cake is made (by me).
present continuous
I am making a cake.
A cake is being made (by me).
past simple
I made a cake.
A cake was made (by me).
past continuous
I was making a cake.
A cake was being made(by me).
present perfect
I have made a cake.
A cake has been made (by me).
pres. perf. continuous
I have been making a cake.
A cake has been being made (by me).
past perfect
I had made a cake.
A cake had been made(by me).
future simple
I will make a cake.
A cake will be made (by me).

future perfect
I will have madea cake.
A cake will have been made (by me).
Passive verb forms

The passive is formed with tenses of the auxiliary verb to be and the past participle of the main verb. Here is a table showing the passive forms for
most English verbs:
Tense
Passive
Example
present simple
am/are/is + past participle
He is taken to school by his mum.
present continuous
am/are/is being + past participle
They are being bullied.
present perfect
have/has been + past participle
Have you been interviewed for many jobs?
past simple
was/were + past participle
We were told not to touch anything.
past continuous
was/were being + past participle
Our computers were being attacked by hackers.
past perfect
had been + past participle
His mother had been brought up in India.
future
will be + past participle
Arrangements will be made to move them to other locations.
future perfect
will have been + past participle
All the merchandise will have been shipped by tomorrow.

Transitive verbs have both active and passive forms:
active
passive
The hunter killed the lion.
>>
The lion was killed by the hunter.
Someone has cleaned the windows
>>
The windows have been cleaned
The passive forms are made up of the verb be with a past participle:
be
past participle
English
is
spoken
The windows
have been
cleaned
Lunch
was being
served
The work
will be
finished
all over the world
soon

be
They
might have been
past participle
invited
to the party
We sometimes use the verb get to form the passive:

Be careful with the glass. It might get broken.
Peter got hurt in a crash.
If we want to show the person or thing doing the action we use by:
She was attacked by a dangerous dog.
The money was stolen by her husband.
We can use the indirect object as the subject of a passive verb:
active
passive
I gave him a book for his birthday
>>
He was given a book for his birthday.
Someone sent her a cheque for a thousand euros
>>
She was sent a cheque for a thousand euros.

active
passive
We can use phrasal verbs in the passive:
active
passive
They called off the meeting.
>>
The meeting was called off.
His grandmother looked after him.
>>
He was looked after by his grandmother.
They will send him away to school.
>>
He will be sent away to school.
Some verbs very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:
be supposed to
be expected to
be asked to
be scheduled to
be allowed to
John has been asked to make a speech at the meeting.

You are supposed to wear a uniform.
The meeting is scheduled to start at seven.
be told to

ACTIVE / PASSIVE VOICE
Active voice
In most English sentences with an action verb, the subject performs the action denoted by the verb.
These examples show that the subject is doing the verb's action.

Passive voice
One can change the normal word order of many active sentences (those with a direct object) so that the subject is no longer active, but is, instead,
being acted upon by the verb - or passive.
Note in these examples how the subject-verb relationship has changed.

To change a sentence from active to passive voice, do the following:
1. Move the active sentence's direct object into the sentence's subject slot
2. Place the active sentence's subject into a phrase beginning with the preposition by
3. Add a form of the auxiliary verb be to the main verb and change the main verb's form

As the examples below illustrate, a sentence in active voice flows more smoothly and is easier to understand than the same sentence in passive
voice.

1. How to Recognize Active and Passive Sentences ^
1. Find the subject (the main character of the sentence).
2. Find the main verb (the action that the sentence identifies).
3. Examine the relationshipbetween the subject and main verb.
Does the subject perform the action of the main verb? (If so, the sentence is active.)
Does the subject sit there while something else named or unnamed performs an action on it? (If so, the sentence
is passive.)
Cant tell? If the main verb is a linking verb (is, was, are, seems (to be), becomes etc.), then the verb functions like an
equals sign; there is no action involved it merely describes a state of being.
2. Basic Examples ^
I love you.
1. subject: I
2. action: loving
3. relationship: The subject (I) is the one performing the action (loving).
The sentence is active.

You are loved by me.
1. subject: you
2. action: loving
3. relationship: The subject (You) sits passively while the action (loving) is performed by somebody else (me).
This sentence is passive.

3. Difference between Passive Voice and Past Tense ^
Many people confuse the passive voice with the past tense. The most common passive constructions also happen to be past tense (e.g. Ive
been framed), but voice has to do with who, while tense has to do with when.

Active Voice
Passive Voice
Past Tense
I taught; I learned.
I was (have been) taught [by someone];

It was (has been) learned [by someone].
Present Tense
I teach; I learn.
I am [being] taught [by someone];

It is [being] learned [by someone].
I will teach; I will learn.
I will be taught [by someone];

It will be learned [by someone].
Future Tense

TO KEEP, ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICES
Tense
Active
voice
Passive voice
Active sentence
Passive equivalent
Simple present
keep
is kept
I keep the butter in the fridge.
The butter is kept in the fridge.
Present continuous
is keeping
is being kept
John is keeping my house tidy.
My house is being kept tidy.
Simple past
kept
was kept
Mary kept her schedule meticulously.
Mary's schedule was kept meticulously.
Past continuous
was
keeping
was being
kept
The theater was keeping a seat for you.
A seat was being kept for you.
Present perfect
have kept
have been
kept
I have kept all your old letters.
All your old letters have been kept.
Past perfect
had kept
had been kept
He had kept up his training regimen for a month.
His training regimen had been kept up for a

month.
Simple Future
will keep
will be kept
Mark will keep the ficus.
The ficus will be kept.
Conditional
Present
would keep
would be kept
If you told me, I would keep your secret.
If you told me, your secret would be kept.
Conditional Past
would have
would have
I would have kept your bicycle here if you had
Your bicycle would have been kept here if

Tense
Active
voice
Passive voice
Active sentence
Passive equivalent
kept
been kept
left it with me.
you had left it with me.
Present Infinitive
to keep
to be kept
She wants to keep the book.
The book wants to be kept.
Perfect Infinitive
to have
kept
to have been
kept
Judy was happy to have kept the puppy.
The puppy was happy to have been kept.
Present Participle
& Gerund
keeping
being kept
I have a feeling that you may be keeping a

secret.
I have a feeling that a secret may be being

kept.
Perfect Participle
having kept
having been
kept
Having kept the bird in a cage for so long, Jade

wasn't sure it could survive in the wild.
The bird, having been kept in a cage for so

long, might not survive in the wild.

Active Voice
In active voice, the subject performs the action expressed by the verb:
The student wrote a song.
Passive Voice
In passive voice, the subject receives the action expressed by the verb:
A song was written by the student.
Forming Tenses of Passive Verbs

The passive voice always consists of two parts: a form of the verb "to be" + past participle:
Tense
Passive voice form
Present
it is cleaned
Past
it was cleaned
Future
it will be cleaned
Present perfect
it has been cleaned
Past perfect
it had been cleaned
Future perfect
it will have been cleaned
Uses of Passive Voice

Use the passive voice to:
Call attention to receiver of the action rather than the performer:
The professor was hit by three snowballs.
Point out the receiver of the action when performer is unknown or unimportant:
A love letter was slipped under the door.
The signs will be posted.
Avoid calling attention to the performer of the action (known as the "institutional passive"):
The fines will be collected on Monday.

A sentence is written in active voice when the subject of the sentence is performing the action.
A sentence is written in passive voice when the subject of the sentence has something done to it by someone or something.
For example:
Active voice: The cat was chasing the mouse.

In this sentence, 'the cat' is the subject, 'was chasing' is the verb and 'the mouse' is the object.
Passive voice: The mouse was being chased by the cat.
In this sentence 'the mouse' has become the subject which is having something done to it by the cat.
Active Voice
One way to determine whether a sentence is active or passive is to ask the question, Who did it? If the subject of the sentence has
performed the action, then it is probably active voice. In the example below, the subject of the sentence (Julie) performed an action
(tripped) on the object (the professor).
Julie tripped the professor. (ACTIVE VOICE)
Here are more examples of active voice. Notice that the action of the sentence progresses to the right:
My teacher always gives difficult assignments.
I inserted the glass tubing into the rubber stopper.
In each of these sentences, you should ask yourself, Who tripped? Who gives? and Who inserted? Since the sentences are in active
voice, the answer to these questions will be the subject of the sentence (Julie, my teacher and I).
Passive Voice
In passive voice, the subject is acted upon by someone or something else; therefore, the subject of the sentence does not provide the
answer to the question: Who did it? Instead, the person or thing that performs the action is either absent from the sentence or
sandwiched into a prepositional phrase that begins with the word by. In the following example, the subject (the professor) is acted upon
(tripped) by an outside force (Julie).
The professor was tripped by Julie. (PASSIVE VOICE)
Look at these examples of passive voice and notice how the action of the sentences moves toward the left:
Difficult assignments are always given by my teacher.
The glass tubing was inserted into the rubber stopper.

Active Voice and Passive Voice
Verbs are either active or passive in voice. In the active voice, the subject and verb relationship is straightforward: the subject is a do-er. In the
passive voice, the subject of the sentence is not a do-er. It is shown with by + do-er or is not shown in the sentence.
Passive voice is used when the action is the focus, not the subject. It is not important (or not known) who does the action.
The window is broken. (It is not known who broke the window, or it is not important to know who broke the window.)
The class has been canceled. (The focus is on the class being canceled. It is not important to know who canceled it.)
The passive voice is often used. (The focus is on the passive voice. It is not important to explain who the writer is.)
Passive voice should be avoided when you want more clarity in writing. However, in some cases, you need to use passive voice to stress the
action, not the actor. Also, passive voice can be considered more polite, as it sounds less aggressive or dramatic.
That building was built in 1990.
The car was invented about a hundred years ago.
I was told that Mary moved to a different country.
Your business is appreciated.
She was elected to city council.
It was rumored that the company would lay off a few people soon.
It is recommended that the billing process be shortened.
You can easily rewrite an active sentence to a passive sentence. The object in the active sentence becomes a subject in the passive sentence.
The verb is changed to a be verb + past participle. The subject of the active sentence follows by or is omitted.
Sam wrote a letter to Jamie.
A letter was written to Jamie by Sam.
The government built a new bridge.
A new bridge was built by the government.
I recommend that you apply for this position.
It is recommended that you apply for this position.

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

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

Passive Voice

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Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)

Once a week, Tom cleans the house.

Once a week, the house is cleaned by Tom.

Right now, Sarah is writing the letter.

Right now, the letter is being written by Sarah.

Sam repaired the car.

The car was repaired by Sam.

The salesman was helping the customer

The customer was being helped by the salesman

Many tourists have visited that castle.

That castle has been visited by many tourists.

Present Perfect Continuous

Recently, John has been doing the work.

Recently, the work has been being done by John.

George had repaired many cars before he

Many cars had been repaired by George before

Past Perfect Continuous

Chef Jones had been preparing the

The restaurant's fantastic dinners had been being

Someone will finish the work by 5:00 PM.

The work will be finished by 5:00 PM.

Sally is going to make a beautiful dinner

A beautiful dinner is going to be made by Sally

At 8:00 PM tonight, John will be washing the

At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes will be being

At 8:00 PM tonight, John is going to be

At 8:00 PM tonight, the dishes are going to be

They will have completed the project before

The project will have been completed before the

Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)

They are going to have completed the

The project is going to have been

Future Perfect Continuous

The famous artist will have been painting the

The mural will have been being painted by the

Future Perfect Continuous

The famous artist is going to have been

The mural is going to have been being

Jerry used to pay the bills.

The bills used to be paid by Jerry.

My mother would always make the pies.

The pies would always be made by my mother.

Future in the Past

I knew John would finish the work by 5:00

I knew the work would be finished by 5:00 PM.

Future in the Past

I thought Sally was going to make a beautiful

I thought a beautiful dinner was going to be

Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)

since you left.

Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)

before they arrived.

if they had visitors.

would have been

if it had been dirty.

Tenses ( Active voice and Passive voice)

A cake is made (by me).

A cake is being made (by me).

A cake was made (by me).

I was making a cake.

A cake was being made(by me).

I have made a cake.

A cake has been made (by me).