(A) Active and passive voice are two different ways of constructing sentences, and they can have a significant impact on how the information is presented. Here’s an explanation of both active and passive voice:
(1) Active Voice:
In active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action directly. It highlights the “doer” of the action. The structure of an active voice sentence typically follows this pattern:
[Subject + helping verb (be form)+ 3rd form of verb + by + object]
Example:
Active Voice: “John ate the apple.”
In this sentence, “John” is the subject, “ate” is the verb, and “the apple” is the object. The subject (John) performs the action (ate) directly on the object (the apple).
Here are a few more examples of active voice sentences:
- She wrote an interesting article.
- They are building a new house.
- The dog chased the cat.
Active voice is usually preferred because it tends to be more direct, clear, and concise.
(2) Passive Voice:
In passive voice, the subject of the sentence receives the action rather than performing it. The focus is on the object or the recipient of the action. The structure of a passive voice sentence typically follows this pattern:
[Object + helping verb (be form) + 3rd form of verb + by + Subject]
Example:
Passive Voice: “The apple was eaten by John.”
In this sentence, “the apple” is the object, “was eaten” is the verb phrase (with “was” being the helping verb and “eaten” being the past participle), and “John” is the subject (although less emphasized).
Here are a few more examples of passive voice sentences:
- An interesting article was written by her.
- A new house is being built by them.
- The cat was chased by the dog.
Here are more examples of active voice and passive voice:
| Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|
| The teacher explains the lesson to the students. | The lesson is explained to the students by the teacher. |
| The chef prepared a delicious meal. | A delicious meal was prepared by the chef. |
| They will deliver the package tomorrow. | The package will be delivered tomorrow. |
| The mechanic fixed my car’s engine. | My car’s engine was fixed by the mechanic. |
| The artist is painting a beautiful landscape. | A beautiful landscape is being painted by the artist. |
Passive voice is used when the focus is on the recipient of the action, when the doer is unknown or unimportant, or when the speaker wants to soften the impact of the statement. However, active voice is generally preferred because it provides more clarity and directness in communication.
(B) Here are some important rules to keep in mind when changing active voice to passive voice:
- The object of the active voice sentence becomes the subject in the passive voice sentence.
- The verb is formed using a form of “to be” (such as “is,” “am,” “are,” “was,” “were,” etc.) and the past participle of the main verb.
- Add the past participle (the third form of the main verb) after the “be” verb.
- The preposition “by” is used to indicate the agent (the doer of the action) in the passive sentence. It is necessary to include “by” when the agent needs to be specified.
- The subject may be omitted in passive voice sentences if it is unknown or unimportant.
(1) Converting sentences from active to passive voice requires selecting the appropriate helping verb (be form).
| Tenses | Helping verb (be form) in passive |
|---|---|
| Present Simple Tense | am, is, are |
| Present Continuous Tense | am/is/are being |
| Present Present Tense | have/has been |
| Past Simple Tense | was, were |
| Past Continuous Tense | was/were being |
| Past Perfect Tense | had been |
| Future Simple Tense | will be |
| Future Perfect Tense | will have been |
(2) Changes of Pronouns
| Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|
| I | Me |
| We | Us |
| You | You |
| He | Him |
| She | Her |
| It | It |
| They | Them |
Note: The following tenses can’t be changed in passive voice:
- Future Continuous Tense
- Present Perfect Continuous Tense
- Past Perfect Continuous Tense
- Future Perfect Continuous Tense