Scribd
Upload
132 views4 pages

Active Voice, Passive Voice: Subject Verb Object

There are two verb voices: active and passive. [1] The active voice is the normal form where the subject performs the action on the object. [2] In the passive voice, the subject receives the action and the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. [3] The passive voice is used when the focus is on the action rather than who performed it, and can sometimes make a statement more polite by omitting reference to an agent.

Uploaded by

Marishka Bivol
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
132 views4 pages

Active Voice, Passive Voice: Subject Verb Object

There are two verb voices: active and passive. [1] The active voice is the normal form where the subject performs the action on the object. [2] In the passive voice, the subject receives the action and the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. [3] The passive voice is used when the focus is on the action rather than who performed it, and can sometimes make a statement more polite by omitting reference to an agent.

Uploaded by

Marishka Bivol
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

Active Voice, Passive Voice

There are two special forms for verbs called voice: 1. Active voice 2. Passive voice The active voice is the "normal" voice. This is the voice that we use most of the time. You are probably already familiar with the active voice. In the active voice, the object receives the action of the verb: subject active Cats eat verb object > fish.

The passive voice is less usual. In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the verb: subject verb passive Fish < are eaten by cats. object

The object of the active verb becomes the subject of the passive verb: subject active verb object water.

Everybody drinks

passive Water

is drunk by everybody.

Use of Passive
Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action. Example: My bike was stolen. In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it.

Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows: Example: A mistake was made. In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.).

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

Examples of Passive
Tense Present Progressive Active: Rita Passive: A letter Subject is writing is being written Verb Object a letter. by Rita.

Active: Rita Past Progressive Passive: A letter Active: Rita Past Perfect Passive: A letter Active: Rita Future II Passive: A letter Active: Rita Conditional I Passive: A letter Active: Rita Conditional II Passive: A letter

was writing was being written had written had been written will have written will have been written would write would be written would have written would have been written

a letter. by Rita. a letter. by Rita. a letter. by Rita. a letter. by Rita. a letter. by Rita.

Passive 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.
Subject Active: Passive: Passive: . Rita A letter I wrote was written was written Verb Object 1 a letter to me a letter Object 2 to me. by Rita. by Rita.

As you can see in the examples, adding by Rita does not sound very elegant. Thats why it is usually dropped.

Personal and Impersonal Passive


Personal Passive simply means that the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. So every verb that needs an object (transitive verb) can form a personal passive. Example: They build houses. Houses are built. Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence). If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal construction therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.

Example: he says it is said Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g. German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say, think, know). Example: They say that women live longer than men. It is said that women live longer than men. Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common. Example: They say that women live longer than men. Women are said to live longer than men. The subject of the subordinate clause (women) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped). Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.

You might also like