The Active and Passive Voice in

English Grammar
• Introduction
• Be verbs
• Rules and Formulas
Introduction-
In English grammar, verbs can be used in two primary voices:
active and passive. The distinction between the two lies in
how the subject and object of a sentence are positioned in
relation to the action expressed by the verb.
Active Voice: In the active voice, the subject performs the
action expressed by the verb, and the object receives the
action. The basic structure of a sentence in active voice is:
Subject (doer) + Verb + Object (receiver)
Example: "John (subject) kicked (verb) the ball (object)."
In this sentence, "John" is the doer (subject) who performs
the action of "kicking," and "the ball" is the receiver (object)
of the action.
Active voice is often preferred to provide clarity and
directness in sentence construction.
Passive Voice-
Passive Voice:
In the passive voice, the subject undergoes the action expressed by the verb, and the doer of the
action (if mentioned) is placed in a prepositional phrase (by, with, to) or may be omitted. The
basic structure of a sentence in passive voice is:
Object (receiver) + Verb (past participle) + (optional: Doer) + (optional: Preposition) + Subject
(receiver turned into the subject)

Example: "The ball (object) was kicked (verb) by John (doer)."

In this sentence, "The ball" is now the receiver (object) of the action and has become the subject
of the passive sentence, while "John" (doer) is introduced using the prepositional phrase "by
John."

Passive voice is used when the focus is on the object or when the doer is unknown or less
important. It is also commonly used in scientific or formal writing when the writer wants to avoid
mentioning the doer or when the doer is evident from the context.
Note-
Keep in mind that while passive voice has its
uses, active voice is generally more direct,
concise, and preferred in most writing
situations. It is essential to use the
appropriate voice depending on the context
and the emphasis you want to convey.
 Be Verbs-
Be verbs are essential when it comes to voice in English Grammar.
We need the “Be verb” + past participle form of the verb (V3) to transform active
sentences into passive sentences.
Be verbs-

be, is, am, are, was, were, being, been

+
Past Participle(V3)
=
Passive Voice
So the basic formula we must keep in mind while
transforming Active Voice into Passive Voice/ the
base formula is----
Be Verb + V3
Example
Active- Srijan writes an email.
Passive- An email is written by Srijan.

Active: He is building a website for a multinational company.

Passive: A website is being built for a multinational company.
 Note-
To make any active sentence passive, there must be a transitive verb and object.
A transitive verb is a verb that requires an object to receive the action.

However, some verbs like sleep, take, have, fit, and want are not used in
passive forms.
For example- I took a bath yesterday.
She has a beautiful doll.
This pair of pants fit me perfectly.
I want to complete the story.
By + Agent
The object of the active voice becomes the subject of the passive voice;
the subject of the active voice is changed into by + agent in the passive
voice.

Active: She writes two stories every week.

Passive: Two stories are written every week(by her).

Active Subject By + Agent

He = by him
She = by her
I = by me
You = by you
We = by us
Reema/ Ramesh = by Reema/ by Ramesh
Note: somebody, someone, nobody, they, people, we, you- do not need by+
agent.
For example: Active: Somebody will bring the letters tomorrow.
Passive: The letters will be brought tomorrow.
Active tenses and their passive
equivalents:
Active Passive
1. Simple Present (S+V1/V5) 1. is/am/are + V3

-Kiran plays the guitar every day. -The guitar is played every day.
-They give me some apples. -Some apples are given to me. / I am
given some apples.

2. Simple Past ( S + V2) 2. Was/were + V3

He brought some apples. Some apples were brought.

 Active Passive
3. Simple Future (S+ will + V1) Will be + V3
Reema will take the kids home. The kids will be taken home.

4. Present Continuous ( S+ is/am/are + V4) 4. is/am/are + being + V3

- She is writing a letter. - A letter is being written.
- He is bringing some apples. - Some apples are being brought.
- The professor is lecturing me about - I am being lectured about my
my behavior. behavior.
 Active Passive
5. Past Continuous (S+ was/were + V4) 5. Was /were + being + V3
- Simran was doing the task. - The task was being done.
- Rita was writing some letters. - Some letters were being
written.

6. Present Perfect (S+ has/have+ V3) 6. has/have +been + V3

- She has sent an email. - An email has been sent.
- Garima has painted flowers. - Flowers have been painted.
 Active Passive
7. Past Perfect (S+ had + V3) 7. Had + been + V3
- Reeta had submitted the - The assignment had been
assignment. submitted.

8. Future Perfect ( S + will have + V3) 8. Will have + been + V3

- She will have written the report. - The report will have been
written.
Note:
Future Continuous and Perfect Continuous Tenses don’t
have passive forms.
Some other forms of Future-

1. Is/am/are + going to / planning to/ intending to + V1 is/am/are + going to/ planning to/
intending to + be + V3

- She is going to write a report. A report is going to be written.

2. Modal verbs in passive:

Active: Can/Could/may/might/should/will/ would/must/ ought to + V1
Passive: Can/Could/may/might/should/will/would/must/ought to + be + V3
- They can repair the car. The car
can be repaired.
- The students ought to obey the rules. The rules
Remember!!!

For Continuous tenses, we have to put being verb in the passive

voice.

For Perfect tenses, we have to put been verb in the passive voice.
Important Forms/Changes in Passive Voice
• is/am/are/was/were/has/have/had + to Infinitive
• Wh- Questions
• Yes-no Questions
• Imperative Sentences
• Verbs with two objects
• People/they say/ believe/ suppose/ think …..
• To/with/in/at + agent
• Adverb of manners
• Preposition placement in Passive
• Like/hate/dislike/love + V4 (ing)
• I don’t like/love/dislike + V4 (ing) – (If something happens to you in relation to the object!)
• Causative form of Passive Voice
•
is/am/are/was/were/has/have/had + to
infinitive
Passive:
is/am/are/was/were/has/have/had to
+be + V3

*I’m to submit the report.= The report

is to be submitted.
*Mary has to draw a picture. = A
picture has to be drawn.
Wh- Questions:
Passive Form: Wh –word + be verb + V3……?

Example – Active: What does she bring?

Passive: What is brought (by her)?

Note: Who is changed into by whom-

Active: Who destroyed the computer?

Passive: By whom the computer was destroyed? OR
Who was the computer destroyed by?
While changing all kinds of active sentences into passive-

Remember:

*The changes to be done regarding Tense. (For perfect

tenses you have to add has/ have/had along with be verbs.)
Example: Who has brought the milk?
By whom has the milk been brought?

* Singularity/ Plurality of both the subjects and objects.

For singular- use is, am, was, has

For plural – use are, were, have
 Some more examples of Wh- passive forms
Active Passive

1. When does she bring the 1. When are the flowers

flowers? brought?
2. How did he make the sandwich? 2. How was the sandwich made?
3. Why is she chasing the dog? 3. Why is the dog being chased?
4. Who has made this pasta? 4. By whom has this pasta been
made?
5. Why haven’t you finished the 5. Why hasn’t the work been
work? finished?
Yes/No Question Passive Form-
1. Active: Do/Does/Did/ + Subject + infinitive(V1) + object?
Passive: Is /am/are/was/were + Subject + V3…?
Example: Remember: First
Active: Does he clean the room? observe the
Passive: Is the room cleaned by him? Tense of the
active sentence
Active: Did Ramila bring some apples? and then observe
Passive: Were some apples brought by Ramila? the singularity or
plurality of the
object and
transform to
passive
2. Active: Has/Have/Had + Subject + V1+ object..?
Passive: Has/Have/Had + Subject(Active Object) + Been + V3 (by…)?
Remember: First
Example: observe the Tense
Active: Have you done the work? of the active
sentence(has/have
Passive: Has the work been done?
=Present Perfect,
Had= Past Perfect)
Active: Have you written the reports? and then observe
Passive: Have the reports been written? the singularity or
plurality of the
Active: Had Rama brought some apples? object and
Passive: Had some apples been brought by Rama? transform to
passive
3. Active: Modal Verbs + Subject + V1…?
Passive: Modal Verbs + Subject (Active object) + be + V3 (by…)?

Example:
Active: Will they take Rama to the hospital tomorrow?
Passive: Will Rama be taken to the hospital tomorrow?

Active: Can you answer my questions?

Passive: Can my questions be answered?
Imperative Sentence Passive Form
Active: V1 + Object
Passive: Let + object +be+ V3
Active Passive

Close the window. Let the window be closed.

Bring some batteries. Let some batteries be brought. / Some

batteries should be brought.

Let her bring some batteries. Let some batteries be brought.

Verbs with two objects
Verbs like give, send, show, lend, pay, promise, refuse, tell, offer… can be
followed by two objects. So two structures are possible both in the active and
the passive.
Active Passive
She gave her sister the car./ Her sister was given the car./
She gave the car to her sister. The car was given to her sister.

I have shown the teacher my The teacher has already been

homework./ shown my homework./
I have already shown my My homework has already
homework to the teacher. been shown to the teacher.
People/they/ the audience/the group say that,
know that, believe that….Passive Form We can use other
Learn with example: verbs in this
structure as well-
Active: People say that he is a skillful person. Acknowledge,
assume, believe,
Passive: It is said that he is a skillful person. (Easy) claim, consider,
OR estimate, feel,
find, know,
He is said to be a skillful person. presume, report,
say, think,
Active: People know that he was jealous of her. understand etc.
Passive: It is known that he was jealous of her. (Easy)
OR
He is known to have been jealous of her.
One more example-

Active: People believe/know/say/suppose/think

that he is living abroad.

Passive: It is
believed/known/said/supposed/thought that he
is living abroad. (Easy)
Or
He is believed/known/said/supposed/thought to
be living abroad.
To/with/in/at + Agent
Some verbs take to/with/in/at + agent instead of by + agent.

Remember:
1 “To” is used after know, oblige, marry, relate, addict, accustom,
oppose
2. “With” is used after please, displease, cover, satisfy, dissatisfy,
fill, charm, disgust, decorate, associate, annoy, cram, line
3. “In” is used after interest, contain, embody, engulf
4. “At” is used after frighten, astonish, surprise, shock, disappoint,
distress, displease, laugh, alarm, startle, annoy, vex
Active Passive
All know Shakespeare. Shakespeare is known to all.

Smoke filled the room. The room was filled with smoke.

This book interests me. I am interested in this book.

His behavior surprises me. I am surprised at his behavior.

Note: You can use “by” with the verbs satisfy, surprise if your expectation does not talk about contrast
but your expectation is leveled up.
Active: His result surprised me. (Meaning above your expectation)
Passive: I was surprised by his result.
Adverbs of manners Passive form-
Adverbs of manners such as heartily, well, and neatly are placed before the main
verb.
Active: They welcomed me heartily. Active: She speaks Chinese well.
Passive: I was heartily welcomed. Passive: Chinese is well-spoken (by her).

When Verb + Preposition + object combination is put into

the passive, the preposition is placed after the verb

Active: We must write to him. Active: They threw away the book.
Passive: He must be written to. Passive: The book was thrown away.
Gerund: Active: Sub + Like/ hate/disike/love…+ V(ing)
Passive: Sub + Like/hate/ dislike/love + being + V3
Learn with examples:
Active Passive

I dislike people laughing at me. I dislike being laughed at.

I love them taking me to restaurants. I love being taken to restaurants.

We do not like them teasing us. We don’t like being teased.

I don’t like people keeping me I don’t like being kept waiting.
waiting.
I don’t like/love/dislike + V4 (ing) – (If something happens to
you in relation to the object!)
Passive Form- Like/dislike… + having + object + V3

Active Passive

I don’t like people taking my I don’t like having my

photograph. photograph taken.

I love people admiring my dress. I love having my dress admired.

Causative Form of Passive: Get + V3 &
Have +object + V3

Learn with examples:

Get + V3 Have + Object + V3

He gets paid huge salary. I have my hair washed at

hairdresser’s.

All the articles get published. Sabina has the film developed at the
color lab.
 Some complex Passive forms:
• Active • Passive
• It is time to take tea. (It is time+to+ • It is time for tea to be taken. ( it is
V1 + object) time + for+ object +to be +V1)
• It is time to stop writing. • It is time for the writing to be
stopped.
• I saw him leaving the house. • He was seen leaving the house.
• The noise of the traffic kept me • I was kept awake (by the noise of ….)
awake.
• Someone seems to have made a terrible • A terrible mistake seems to have been
mistake. made.
• He expects his friends to help him. • He expects to be helped.
• He asked me to finish the work in time. • I was asked to finish the work in time.
Active Passive
• I remember Mr. Thapa teaching us • I remember being taught Maths by
Maths. Mr Thapa.
• He has been putting it up the whole • It has been put up his whole life.
life.
• Mary used to do the cooking. • The cooking used to be done by
• He proposed postponing the trip. Mary.
• He proposed that the trip should be
postponed.
• People are saying that the • It is being said that the government
government is spending too much. is spending too much.
• I would like someone to read to me. • I would like to be read to.
• It’s expected that some rain will come • Some rain is expected to come soon.
soon.
Active Passive
• I want to buy a car. • I want a car to be bought.
• Women like men to flatter them. • Women like to be flattered by men.

• One must do one’s duty. • Duty must be done.

• Your shoes need polishing. • Your shoes need to be polished.
• Prepare yourself for the • Be prepared for the examination.
examination.
• It is your duty to do this work. • You are supposed to do this work.
• I hope to win. • It is hoped that I shall win.
 Prepared by-
Bhabika Dangol