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USING THE AUXILIARY VERB “BE”
The passive voice is formed by using a form of the auxiliary verb “be” (be, am, is, are, was,
were, being, been) followed by the past participle of the main verb.
Active Passive
He loves me. I am loved.
We took our children to the circus. The children were taken to the circus.
A thief stole my money. My money was stolen.
Notice how the “be” auxiliaries change the meaning of the verbs from action to condition or from “doing” to “being.”
He remembers his grandmother. (“he” is doing an action: remembering)
His grandmother is remembered. (“she” is in a condition: being remembered)
In this way, the past participle functions very much like an adjective; it describes the subject.
The woman is pretty. She is a pretty woman
The woman is married. She is a married woman.
VERB TENSES USED IN ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE
The following is a summary of active and passive forms of all verb tenses. Remember that in active forms the subject of the sentence is the person or thing that does the action. In passive constructions, the verb is performed by someone or something other than the subject; often, the action is done to the subject by someone else.
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 Passive
base form or “-s/-es” form am/is/are + past participle
Professor Brown teaches at Hunter.
All humans are equal.
Sonia is taught by Professor Brown.
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 Passive
am/is/are + -ing am/is/are + being + -ed/-en
The students are learning Spanish. Classes are being conducted in Spanish.
He is being hired to work at McDonald’s.
I am working at McDonald’s until I finish school.
• 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 Passive
has/have + -ed/-en 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
• Present Perfect Progressive
Use the present perfect progressive to describe an ongoing action beginning before now and is still relevant to the present.
Active Passive
has/have + been + -ing has/have + been + being + -ed/-en
Hunter has been awarding BA and MA diplomas for over one hundred years.
Note: Because of awkward construction, the perfect progressive form is not used in the passive
voice. Instead, an adverb may be used to show continuing action: “We have been repeatedly scolded for being late.”
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 Passive
base + -ed or irregular form
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 Passive
was/were + -ing
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 Passive
had + -ed/-en
had + been + -ed/-en
Completed:
Mary's mother was shocked because she had forbidden her daughter to date.
Mary had been kissed many times before that day.
• Past Perfect Progressive
Use the past perfect progressive to indicate a continuing action that began before a past
action or time.
Active Passive
had + been + -ing had + been + being + -ed/-en
Mary had been trying to tell her mother about Paul for a long time.
Future Time
• Simple Future
Use the future to indicate an action that is expected to take place at a future time.
Active Passive
will + base
will + be + -ed/-en
Paul and Mary will marry in June. 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 fitnMary.
• Future Progressive
Use the future progressive to indicate an action in future with emphasis on continuing
action.
Active Passive
will + base + -ing will + be + being + -ed/en
Mary and Paul will be spending lots of time on the beach.
Note: Not used in the passive voice.
• Future Perfect
Use the future perfect to indicate a future action expected to be completed before another
future action or time.
Active Passive
will + have + -ed/-en will + have + been + -ed/en
By their wedding date, they will have saved enough money to buy a house.
Note: Not used in the passive voice.
• Future Perfect Progressive
Use the future perfect progressive to indicate an action projected to have been going on for a while before a time in the future.
Active Passive
will + have + been + -ing will + have + been + being + -ed/-en
When they celebrate their first anniversary, they will have been living together for a full year.
Note: Not used in the passive voice.
WHEN TO USE PASSIVE VOICE
Although active voice is generally preferred in academic writing, passive voice is acceptable under certain conditions.
Use passive voice
• to emphasize the receiver of the action instead of the doer
Quizzes are given regularly. Grades for all students are averaged. Questions are encouraged.
• to keep the focus on the same subject through several sentences or paragraphs
My sister and I grew up and went to school in Jamaica. We were educated according to the British system. In 1997 we were given the opportunity to come to the United States. We decided to finish high school before leaving our own country. We were concerned that the education in this country might not be as good as the one we had there, and we wanted to improve our English too.
• when we do not know who performed the action:
Ray's calculator was made in Germany. The answers have been filled in.
• when we do not wish to mention the doer of the action:
Many problems have been ignored for too long. I was given some bad advice.
Note: This use often reveals an unwillingness to take responsibility (or place it on someone else).
Substitute: For:
“A mistake was made.” “I made a mistake.”
“Not enough has been done to end homelessness.”
“We have not done enough to end homelessness.”
“You have been misinformed.” “You are wrong.”
• when we want to sound objective or avoid using the subject “I”
Studies have shown . . .
It is well-known . . .
Hamlet is considered . . .
It can be assumed . . .
It has been established . . .
PASSIVE VOICE EXERCISES
Turn the verbs in the following sentences into the passive, but do not change the tenses! The original subject disappears because it is not important.
E.g.: Somebody fetched a chair for Mrs Dixon. => A chair was fetched for Mrs Dixon.
1)They speak French at this shop. 2) Somebody stole my car.
3)They have sent the books to the wrong address.
4)Somebody will bring the beer.
5)Somebody has bought this fur coat.
6) Somebody has left this umbrella behind.
7)They haven't caught the robbers yet.
8)They don't drink ice-cold beer in England.
9)They eat a lot of fish.
10)They drink tea with milk at least five times a day.
11)They discuss the weather every day.
12)Some men robbed the Glasgow-London mail train in 1961.
13)They stopped the train between two stations.
14)They disconnected the engine and the first two coaches.
15)They drove them to a lonely bridge.
16)People discussed the mail robbery all over the world.
17)The police caught some of the robbers and found part of the money..
18)The court sentenced the men in January 1964.
19)Somebody will look after their children.
20)You have not paid for the car.
Answer :
1).French is spoken at this shop.
2).My car was stolen.
3).The books have been sent to the wrong address.
4).The beer will be brought.
5).This fur coat has been sold. (This fur coat has been bought.)
6).This umbrella has been left behind.
7).The robbers haven't been caught yet
8).Ice-cold beer is not drunk in England.
9).A lot of fish is eaten.
10).Tea with milk is drunk at least five times a day.
11).The weather is discussed every day. 12).The Glasgow-London mail train was robbed in 1961.
13).The train was stopped between two stations.
14).The engine and the first two coaches were disconnected.
15).They were driven to a lonely bridge. 16).The mail robbery was discussed all over the world.
17).Some of the robbers were caught and part of the money was found.
18).The men were sentenced in January 1964.
19).Their children will be looked after.
20).The car has not been paid for.
