Level: beginner
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. |
Passive forms are made up of the verb be with a past participle:
| be | past participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| English | is | spoken | all over the world. |
| The windows | have been | cleaned. | |
| Lunch | was being | served. | |
| The work | will be | finished | soon. |
| They | might have been | invited | to the party. |
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.
- Active and passive voice 1
- Active and passive voice 2
- Active and passive voice 3
Level: intermediate
The passive infinitive is made up of to be with a past participle:
The doors are going to be locked at ten o'clock.
You shouldn't have done that. You ought to be punished.
We sometimes use the verb get with a past participle to form the passive:
Be careful with that glass. It might get broken.
Peter got hurt in a crash.
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. |
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. |
- Active and passive voice 4
- Active and passive voice 5
Level: advanced
Some verbs which are very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:
| be supposed to | be expected to | be asked to | be told to |
| be scheduled to | be allowed to | be invited to | be ordered 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.
- Active and passive voice 6
- Active and passive voice 7
Comments
Hi,
Would you mind explaining me these examples?
I had to turn sentence using personal and impersonal construction:
1. They thought he had been brave to do so.
1a. He was thought to have been brave to do so.
1b. It was thought that he had been brave to do so.
2.They believe he was working illegally.
2a. He is believed to have been working illegally.
2b. It is believed that he was working illegally.
I do not understand why (in 1a.) the tense is changed from past perfect to present perfect and why (in 2a) the tense is changed from past continuous to present perfect continuous.
It is written that personal construction is: subject+passive verb+ to-inf, so for this reason i thought that for example in 1a. should be 'he was thought to be brave to do so'
Thank you for your answer :)
Hello NicoleID,
I think part of the problem here is that you are confusing two forms. In sentence 1a there is no present perfect. The construction 'be thought to...' is followed by an infinitive, but there are many infintive forms:
to work - infinitive
to be working - continuous infinitive
to have worked - perfect infinitive
to have been working - continuous perfect infinitive
etc.
In 1a, to have been is a perfect infinitive. The form is consistent with the pattern.
In 2a, to have been working is a continuous perfect infinitive. Again, it is consistent with the pattern.
If the normal infinitive had been used, the sentences would have been about the present; the perfect infinitive make the past time reference clear.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello team. Could you please help me? Which sentence is correct to change the following sentence from active into passive voice?
- They refused him a visa. (active)
1- He was refused a visa.
2- A visa was refused to me.
3- A visa was refused for me.
Thank you.
Hello Ahmed Imam,
I think options 1 and 3 are correct. Option 2 does not sound correct to my ear.
However, as the subject in the original sentence is 'he' you should say 'him' rather than 'me'.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
I am wondering that someone told me that time
and place phrase should write before by+ subject. is it the right way to writ in passive form. Can u explain me please? Thank you
Hello MJEnglishLearner,
With questions like this it's generally helpful to give an example so we can be sure that we understand what you mean.
If I understand you correctly, you are asking about the order of phrases in passive voice sentences. For example:
Both of these are grammatically possible. I don't think there is any preference in terms of style and clarity.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
I'm wondering in what situations and how do English speaking people say like this, 'No apologies are necessary'.
Hello Rafaela1,
This is something people say when, for example, you have apologised to them but they don't think you needed to apologise, though there are other possibilities depending on the context.
I've normally heard it in the singular ('no apology is necessary') and in speaking it's often used without the verb 'be' ('no apology necessary').
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello there,
Hope all is well.
I found a few questions in a book where they ask to change a sentence from Passive Voice to Active Voice. They are confusing me a bit as they look like they are already in active form.
1. The maid is sweeping the broken glass pieces.
2. The police have solved most of the crimes this year.
3. Only a few of us attended the spiritual talk.
4. The gardener sweeps and mops the hall once a week.
Appreciate the help :-)
Hello again AllyEnglish,
Yes, you are right -- those sentences are all written in the active voice already. Perhaps they got the instructions backwards.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
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