Active and passive voice

Learn how to form the passive voice and do the exercises to practise using it.

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:

Subject	be	Past participle	Adverbial
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.

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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.*

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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.

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Dear Sir Tpoic: avtive or pasive There are many countries in the world which are devoloped and some are developing. Please tell me ' are developed' is passive or not. Thank you.

Hello Andrew international,

In this case, 'are' is a verb and 'developed' is an adjective formed from the past participle -- this is not a passive construction. Here 'developed' means something that has already been developed whereas 'developing' means it is still in the process of being developed.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Dear Sir Please let me know the following senttence is pasive or not because it doesn't have an agent so it can't be passive but it has the passive structure. eg. Those countries are developed. Thank you.

Hello Andrew international,

Passive construction do not have to have an agent; in fact, many times the point of a passive construction is to not discuss the agent or to draw attention away from them. Therefore I'm afraid I can't say whether it is a passive construction or the verb 'be' + an adjective (an adjective that is formed from the past participle of the verb 'develop') without seeing the context. If you can supply the context then we can help you see how this works.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

What time would it be convenient to come round? Do dwe consider this sentence in future or future in the past. Can we use would for future tense als?

Hello aseel aftab,

We use 'would' here as a polite form. 'Will' is also possible, but is rather less formal/polite:

What time will it be convenient to come round?

What time would it be convenient to come round?

Best wishes,

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello there, 'Fast and Furious is (showing or showed) in every theater. Should it be showing or showed? Thank you.

Hello naaka,

In most contexts it would be 'showing'. It is something of an idiomatic use which we do not see in other contexts, so a play is 'being performed' and an art exhibition is 'being shown', but a film is 'showing'.

Best wishes,

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team