• Describe the form and structure of the passive voice.
• Know when and how to use the passive voice in terms of
oral and written usage.

is less common. The subject is the receiver of the
action; he or she receives the action expressed by the
verb. The sentence begins with the object or person
the subject is performed on.

Subject + Auxillary
verb
be
+ Main verb
past
participle
+ by + agent
OPTIONAL

Subject To be
Main verb
past participle
by
I am employed by Apple.
You will be woken at 6.
It will have been Finished by then.
We have been notified by Head office.
You are being transferred next week.
They will be paid.

 The subject of an active sentence "does" the action. In a passive
sentence, we express the doer (or agent) through a by phrase (the long
passive) or, veryoften, we remove it completely (the short passive). In the
followingexample, the agent is "the Allies":
active
The Allies firebombed Dresden.
passive
long
Dresden was firebombed by the
Allies.
short Dresden was firebombed.

The table below shows examples of the passive with negative sentences,
question sentences and negative-question sentences:
SUBJE
CT
TO
BE
main verb
(past
participle)
-
The
OBTEC
students’
classes
were not suspended
Love can never be controlled by us.

?
Are they cleaned regularly?
Has
your
wallet
been stolen?
-?
Is he not notified immediately?
Will they not be
dismissed
?
Haven't they been forgotten?

There are several times when the passive voice is useful, and usually the
decision has to do with the "doer" (agent) or the "receiver" of the action. For
example, we use the passive when:
1. We want to emphasize the receiver of the action:
• President Kennedy was killed by Lee Harvey Oswald.
cf: Lee Harvey Oswald killed President Kennedy.

2. We don't know who didthe action (the doer):
•My wallet has been stolen.
cf: Somebody has stolen my wallet.
3. We think the doer is not importantor interesting:
• Our house is being painted.
cf: XYZ Company is painting our house.

4. When the agent or doer is obvious.
• I am paid weekly.
cf: My company pays me weekly.
5. We are making general statements or announcements:
•Passengers are reminded to fasten their seatbelts.
cf: The Captain reminds passengers to fasten their
seatbelts.

6. The doer is everyone:
• The emergency services can be called by dialling 999.
cf: The public can call the emergency services by dialling 999.
7. We are writing formal or scientific texts:
• Potassium was added and mixed in. The solution was heated to
80°C and then allowed to cool.
cf: The technician added potassium and mixed it in. The technician
heated the solution to 80°C and then allowed it to cool.

8. We want to avoidresponsibility for
our own actions:
• Mistakes were made and
unfortunately never rectified.
cf: The man made mistakes and
unfortunately never rectified them.

The passive voice is not a tense itself. But for transitive verbs
each tense, as well as other verb forms such as infinitives and
participles, can be produced in the passive voice. Some of the more
complicated tenses (mostly perfect continuous) are rarely used in
the passive, but they are possible.

infinitive to be loved
perfect infinitive to have been loved
participle Loved
perfect participle having been loved
gerund being loved

Here are some examples of the passive voice with many of the possible
forms using the verb sing:
Simple Continuous Perfect
Present
am, are, is
loved
am, are, is
being loved
have, has
been loved
Past
was, were
loved
was, were
being loved
had been
loved
Future will be loved
will be being
loved
will have
been loved

perfect infinitive It seems to have been taken.
participle I saw it being eaten by the cat.
perfect participle
My work having been finished,
I went home.
gerund I insisted on being paid.

PRESENT SIMPLE
is/are + Past Participle
Ex: Julia designs the bulletin board.
The bulletin board is designed by Julia.
The students wear black shoes.
Black shoes are worn by the students.

was/were + Past Participle
Ex: Allysa took the OBTEC Examination
yesterday.
The OBTEC Examination was taken
by Allysa yesterday.

Ex: Louise paid me coins last
week.
Coins were paid to me by
Louise last week.
will + be + Past Participle

is/are + being +Past Participle
Ex: Love Joy is keeping a diary
A diary is being kept by Love
Joy

EX: Louie will buy a ring as a
birthday gift to her friend.
A ring will be bought by Louie
as birthday gift to her friend
Ex: The reporter will ask them.
They will be asked by the
reporter

Ex: They are discussing the reporters’
questions.
The reporters’ questions are being
discussed by them.
Was/ were + being + Past Participle

Ex: They were watching good films
in class.
Good films were being watched in
class.
Ex: Christian was eating junk food
when she arrived.
Junk food was being eaten by
Christian

has/ have + been + Past Participle
Ex; Abrielle has submitted the
occasional papers.
The occasional paper has been
submitted by Abrielle.
The essays have not been read by
the students.
EX: The students have not read the
essays.

had+ been + Past Participle
Ex: PNU had introduced the new
curriculum.
The new curriculum had been
introduced by PNU.

1. You can recognize passive voice because the verb phrase will include a
form of be (was, am, are, been, is).
2. Not all verbs in English take an object. Therefore some sentences are
complete without an object. Example: Ana lived far away.
Ana slept soundly.
3. The get-passive Although we normally
construct the passive with be + past participle, it is also possible (in
informal language) to use get + past participle.

1. Changing the tense to similar tense.
Example: Active:
She has submitted the homeworks
Wrong passive: The homeworks were submitted.
Correct passive: The homeworks have been submitted.
2. Plural/ singular confusion.
Example: Active: She has submitted
the homeworks
Wrong passive: The homeworks has been submitted.
Correct passive: The homeworks have been submitted.

Sources:
Toadvine, A., Brizee, A., & Angeli, E. (2012, August 12). Active versus
Passive Voice. Retrieved from:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/539/2/
English Club (n.a.). Passive Voice. Retrieved from:
https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verbs-voice-passive.htm
Joki, K. (July 2015). How to Use the Passive Voice Correctly.
Retrieved from : http://www.grammarly.com/blog/2015/how-to-use-the-
passive-voice-correctly-2/?source=trending&position=1