Active Voice and Passive Voice

✅ Active Voice and Passive Voice

🔹 What is Active Voice?

In the active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action of the verb.

Structure: Subject + Verb + Object

Examples:
— The teacher explained the lesson.
— The dog chased the cat.

👉 In both cases, the subject is doing the action.

🔹 What is Passive Voice?

In the passive voice, the subject of the sentence receives the action of the verb.

Structure: Object + Form of "be" + Past Participle (+ by + Agent)

Examples:
— The lesson was explained by the teacher.
— The cat was chased by the dog.

👉 Here, the object of the active sentence becomes the subject in the passive sentence.

🔄 Comparing Active vs Passive Voice:

Aspect	Active Voice	Passive Voice
Focus	On the doer of the action	On the receiver of the action
Sentence Pattern	Subject + Verb + Object	Object + Be + Past Participle (+ by + agent)
Example	The chef cooked the meal.	The meal was cooked by the chef.
Use in Writing	More direct and energetic	More formal or impersonal

✅ 2. Importance of Passive Voice and When/Where to Use It

🔹 Why Use the Passive Voice?

The passive voice isn’t just an alternative—it has important functions in real communication. Here are the main reasons:

Focus on the action or result, not the doer.
The new bridge was opened yesterday.
The agent is unknown, unimportant, or obvious.
The documents were stolen. (We don’t know who did it.)
English is spoken worldwide. (Everyone knows by whom.)
To sound more formal or objective.
Mistakes were made. (Avoids direct blame.)
Common in academic and scientific writing.
To avoid mentioning the agent (politeness or diplomacy).
Your request has been declined.

🔹 Where Is Passive Voice Commonly Used?

Context	Example (Passive)
✅ Scientific writing	The experiment was conducted at night.
✅ News reporting	The thief was arrested last night.
✅ Official notices	The office will be closed on Monday.
✅ Instructions / Manuals	The device should be turned off at night.
✅ Polite/formal expression	Your application has been accepted.

✅ 3. Verb Form Changes: Active to Passive

The verb changes in the passive voice follow a clear rule:

Passive = be (in the correct tense) + past participle (V3)

🔸 Tense Conversion Table

Tense	Active Voice Example	Passive Voice Form	Passive Example
Present Simple	She writes emails.	`am/is/are + V3`	Emails are written by her.
Present Continuous	She is writing emails.	`am/is/are + being + V3`	Emails are being written by her.
Present Perfect	She has written emails.	`has/have + been + V3`	Emails have been written by her.
Past Simple	She wrote emails.	`was/were + V3`	Emails were written by her.
Past Continuous	She was writing emails.	`was/were + being + V3`	Emails were being written by her.
Past Perfect	She had written emails.	`had been + V3`	Emails had been written by her.
Future Simple	She will write emails.	`will be + V3`	Emails will be written by her.
Future Perfect	She will have written emails.	`will have been + V3`	Emails will have been written by her.
Modal Verbs (can, must…)	She must write emails.	`modal + be + V3`	Emails must be written by her.

📝 Passive Voice: Fill in the blanks

Active Sentence	Passive Sentence (Fill in the blank)
The chef prepares delicious meals every day.	Delicious meals every day by the chef.
The engineer designed a new machine.	A new machine by the engineer.
The team will complete the project next week.	The project next week by the team.
The workers are installing the new software.	The new software by the workers.
The manager was reviewing the documents.	The documents by the manager.
The researchers have discovered a new method.	A new method by the researchers.
The students had completed the assignments.	The assignments by the students.
The director will have approved the proposal.	The proposal by the director.
The editor can publish the article tomorrow.	The article tomorrow by the editor.
The staff must follow the safety rules.	The safety rules by the staff.

✅ 4. General Rules in Passive Sentences

🔸 (i) The Agent Phrase: `by + Someone`

When we want to mention who did the action, we use “by + agent”.

✅ Use “by + someone” only when the agent is important, interesting, or necessary for clarity.

Examples:
— The painting was created by Picasso.
— The book was written by a famous author.

❌ Avoid mentioning obvious or unimportant agents:
— English is spoken in many countries. ✅
(No need to say “by people.”)

🔸 (ii) If the Subject Is “No One” or “Nobody”

When the active sentence has “no one” or “nobody”, they are usually omitted in passive voice.

Active:
— Nobody cleaned the room.
Passive:
— The room was not cleaned. ✅

Active:
— No one answered the phone.
Passive:
— The phone wasn’t answered. ✅

🔸 (iii) Time and Reason Phrases in Passive Sentences

Time and reason phrases usually come at the end of passive sentences—same as in active voice.

Examples:
— The report was submitted yesterday.
— The party was cancelled because of the storm.

Note: These phrases do not go between be and the past participle.

❌ The report was yesterday submitted. ✖️
✅ The report was submitted yesterday. ✅

🔸 (iv) Position of Manner Adverbs (e.g., quickly, slowly)

Manner adverbs can be placed:

After be
After the past participle

Examples:
✅ She was quickly taken to the hospital.
✅ She was taken to the hospital quickly.

❌ She quickly was taken to the hospital. ✖️

🔸 (v) Direct Object and Indirect Object in Passive Voice

Some verbs take two objects: a direct and an indirect object. You can make two passive sentences.

Active:
— The teacher gave the students (indirect) a quiz (direct).

Passive 1:
✅ The students were given a quiz.

Passive 2:
✅ A quiz was given to the students.

✅ Tips:

If using the indirect object as the passive subject → no need for “to”.
If using the direct object → add “to” before the person.

✅ 5. Changing Negative Sentences into Passive Voice

To make a passive sentence negative, simply add “not” after the correct form of “be.”

🔹 Formula:

Passive = be + not + past participle

🔸 Examples:

Active Voice	Passive Voice
She did not clean the room.	The room was not cleaned by her.
They don’t invite him to parties.	He is not invited to parties by them.
The students haven’t finished it.	It has not been finished by the students.
He will not complete the project.	The project will not be completed by him.

✅ Tips:

Keep the tense and auxiliary verbs consistent with the active sentence.
Place “not” directly after the correct form of “be.”

📝 Passive Voice Quiz (40 Sentences)

Change the following sentences into passive voice. Type your answer in the text boxes below:

1. Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.

✅ Answer: Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.
2. They built the bridge in 1960.

✅ Answer: The bridge was built in 1960.
3. People speak Spanish in many parts of the world.

✅ Answer: Spanish is spoken in many parts of the world.
4. A famous chef prepared the meal.

✅ Answer: The meal was prepared by a famous chef.
5. Nobody closed the window.

✅ Answer: The window was not closed.
6. They announced the results yesterday.

✅ Answer: The results were announced yesterday.
7. The company will launch a new product next month.

✅ Answer: A new product will be launched by the company next month.
8. We are cleaning the classroom right now.

✅ Answer: The classroom is being cleaned right now.
9. Someone has taken the keys.

✅ Answer: The keys have been taken.
10. He gave her a beautiful necklace.

✅ Answer: She was given a beautiful necklace.
11. The teacher showed the students a video.

✅ Answer: The students were shown a video.
12. They offered him a job.

✅ Answer: He was offered a job.
13. She sent a message to her friend.

✅ Answer: A message was sent to her friend.
14. They awarded him a prize for bravery.

✅ Answer: He was awarded a prize for bravery.
15. Someone is repairing the road.

✅ Answer: The road is being repaired.
16. They postponed the meeting because of the storm.

✅ Answer: The meeting was postponed because of the storm.
17. No one helped the injured man.

✅ Answer: The injured man was not helped.
18. They play football in this stadium every weekend.

✅ Answer: Football is played in this stadium every weekend.
19. Somebody painted the walls last week.

✅ Answer: The walls were painted last week.
20. The cleaner swept the floor quickly.

✅ Answer: The floor was quickly swept.
21. The professor is explaining the lesson to the class.

✅ Answer: The lesson is being explained to the class by the professor.
22. The government had already approved the policy.

✅ Answer: The policy had already been approved.
23. The manager will give us the report tomorrow.

✅ Answer: We will be given the report tomorrow.
24. They are organizing the event at the moment.

✅ Answer: The event is being organized at the moment.
25. Somebody has stolen my wallet.

✅ Answer: My wallet has been stolen.
26. People admire her courage.

✅ Answer: Her courage is admired.
27. The guard didn’t lock the gate.

✅ Answer: The gate wasn’t locked.
28. No one invited us to the party.

✅ Answer: We were not invited to the party.
29. They conducted the interview very carefully.

✅ Answer: The interview was conducted very carefully.
30. The musician composed a song for the festival.

✅ Answer: A song was composed for the festival by the musician.
31. He is writing a novel.

✅ Answer: A novel is being written.
32. They had delivered the package before I arrived.

✅ Answer: The package had been delivered before I arrived.
33. A stranger offered me a ride.

✅ Answer: I was offered a ride by a stranger.
34. Someone told her the news.

✅ Answer: She was told the news.
35. The kids broke the window while playing.

✅ Answer: The window was broken while playing.
36. People use this app all over the world.

✅ Answer: This app is used all over the world.
37. They didn’t return the books on time.

✅ Answer: The books weren’t returned on time.
38. The boss will send the documents by email.

✅ Answer: The documents will be sent by email by the boss.
39. She teaches English to young learners.

✅ Answer: English is taught to young learners by her.
40. Someone quickly carried the patient into the ambulance.

✅ Answer: The patient was quickly carried into the ambulance.

✅ 6. Changing Questions into Passive Voice

Changing questions into the passive voice depends on the type of question:

Yes/No Questions
Wh- Questions (What, Where, When, Why, Who, How)

🔹 A. Yes/No Questions

Formula:

Be/Do/Did/Has/Have/Modal + Subject + V1 + Object? → Be/Has/Have/etc. + Object (new subject) + V3 + by...?

Active	Passive
Did she write the letter?	Was the letter written by her?
Is he watching the film?	Is the film being watched by him?
Have they completed the report?	Has the report been completed by them?

✅ Keep the question word order in the passive!

🔹 B. Wh- Questions

You need to pay attention to the object in the active sentence. In the passive, the object becomes the subject.

📌 When the question word is the object:

Active	Passive
What did she write?	What was written by her?
Where did they hold the meeting?	Where was the meeting held by them?
When will he deliver the parcel?	When will the parcel be delivered by him?

📌 When the question word is the subject (“Who/What”):

Use “by whom” in the passive version.

Active	Passive
Who wrote this book?	By whom was this book written?
Who sent the email?	By whom was the email sent?

✅ “Who” becomes “by whom” in the passive voice.

❓ Passive Voice Quiz – Questions (20 Sentences)

Change the following interrogative sentences into passive voice. Type your answer in the text boxes below:

1. Did he complete the report?

✅ Answer: Was the report completed?
2. Is she writing the letter?

✅ Answer: Is the letter being written?
3. Have they repaired the car?

✅ Answer: Has the car been repaired?
4. Will they deliver the parcel tomorrow?

✅ Answer: Will the parcel be delivered tomorrow?
5. Are they cleaning the house?

✅ Answer: Is the house being cleaned?
6. Has someone taken my pen?

✅ Answer: Has my pen been taken?
7. Did anyone invite you to the meeting?

✅ Answer: Were you invited to the meeting?
8. Is he watching the movie?

✅ Answer: Is the movie being watched?
9. Had they finished the work before the deadline?

✅ Answer: Had the work been finished before the deadline?
10. Do they sell these books in that shop?

✅ Answer: Are these books sold in that shop?
11. Did the teacher give you any homework?

✅ Answer: Were you given any homework?
12. Is someone preparing the documents?

✅ Answer: Are the documents being prepared?
13. Did he send the email?

✅ Answer: Was the email sent?
14. Will they announce the results next week?

✅ Answer: Will the results be announced next week?
15. Have they checked the machines?

✅ Answer: Have the machines been checked?
16. Did anyone ask you a question?

✅ Answer: Were you asked a question?
17. Is she making the arrangements?

✅ Answer: Are the arrangements being made?
18. Has the manager approved the proposal?

✅ Answer: Has the proposal been approved?
19. Will someone pick us up at the airport?

✅ Answer: Will we be picked up at the airport?
20. Are they showing the film in the cinema?

✅ Answer: Is the film being shown in the cinema?

Active Voice and Passive Voice