The document discusses the active and passive voice in English grammar. It explains that the active voice is more common and uses the subject of the sentence to perform the action of the verb on a direct object. The passive voice is less common and uses the object of the active voice as the subject, with the subject receiving the action of a past participle verb. The passive voice is used when the object is more important than the subject or the subject is unknown. It also provides examples of conjugating verbs in the passive voice in different tenses.

1. Active Voice, Passive Voice Use of the Passive Voice
There are two special forms for verbs called We use the passive when:
voice:
• we want to make the active object more
1. Active voice important
• we do not know the active subject
2. Passive voice
The active voice is the "normal" voice. This is subject verb object
the voice that we use most of the time. You are give President was killed by Lee Harv
probably already familiar with the active voice. importance Kennedy ey Oswald.
In the active voice, the object receives the to active
action of the verb: object
(President
Kennedy)
active subject verb object
active My wallet has been stolen ?
>
subject .
Cats eat fish.
unknown
Note that we always use by to introduce the
The passive voice is less usual. In the passive passive object (Fish are eaten by cats).
voice, the subject receives the action of the
verb:
Look at this sentence: He was killed with a
gun. Normally we use by to introduce the
passiv subject verb object
passive object. But the gun is not the active
e <
Fish are eaten by cats. subject. The gun did not kill him. He was killed
by somebody with a gun. In the active voice, it
The object of the active verb becomes the would be: Somebody killed him with a gun. The
subject of the passive verb: gun is the instrument. Somebody is the "agent"
or "doer".
subject verb object
active Everybody drinks water. Conjugation for the Passive Voice: We can
passiv Water is drunk by everybody. form the passive in any tense. In fact,
e conjugation of verbs in the passive tense is
rather easy, as the main verb is always in past
participle form and the auxiliary verb is always
Passive Voice be. To form the required tense, we conjugate the
auxiliary verb. So, for example:
The passive voice is less usual than the active
voice. The active voice is the "normal" voice. But present simple: It is made
sometimes we need the passive voice. In this
lesson we look at how to construct the passive present continuous: It is being made
voice, when to use it and how to conjugate it.
present perfect: It has been made
Construction of the Passive Voice
Here are some examples with most of the
The structure of the passive voice is very possible tenses:
simple:
infinitive to be washed
subject + auxiliary verb (be) + main verb (past simple present It is washed.
participle) past It was washed.
future It will be washed.
The main verb is always in its past participle conditional It would be
form. washed.
continuous present It is being washed.
Look at these examples: past It was being
washed.
subject auxiliary main verb future It will be being
verb (to (past washed.
be) participle) conditional It would be being
Water is drunk by washed.
everyone. perfect simple present It has been
100 are employed by this washed.
people company. past It had been
I am paid in euro. washed.
We are not paid in dollars. future It will have been
Are they paid in yen? washed.
conditional It would have
been washed.

2. perfect present It has been being 8. They were cooking dinner when I arrived.
continuous washed.
past It had been being Dinner____________________________
washed. ________________ when I arrived.
future It will have been
9. Smithers painted 'Red Sunset' in 1986.
being washed.
conditional It would have 'Red Sunset'
been being __________________________________
washed. _____in 1986 by Smithers.
10. Did the plan interest you?
Active or Passive Quiz
________________________________
1 I ate a piece of chocolate cake. ___ in the plan?
2 The librarian read the book to the 11. They had finished the preparations by the
students. time the guests arrived.
3 The money was stolen. The preparations
________________________________by
4 They are paid on Fridays.
the time the guests arrived.
5 The movie is being made in Hollywood.
12. You should take care when working on
6 I washed my car three weeks ago. electrical equipment.
7 His hair was cut by a professional. Care
_________________________________
8 I will introduce you to my boss this week. when working on electrical equipment.
9 It would have been fixed on the weekend. 13. They are going to perform Beethoven's
Fifth Symphony next weekend.
10 The national anthem is being sung by
Jason this time. Beethoven's Fifth Symphony
__________________________________
__________ next weekend.
Active to passive Transformations 14. Someone will speak Japanese at the
meeting.
1. They make shoes in that factory.
Japanese_________________________
Shoes ____________________in that at the meeting.
factory.
15. Karen is going to prepare the
2. People must not leave bicycles in the refreshments.
driveway.
The refreshments
Bicycles __________________________________
_______________________________ in _ by Karen.
the driveway.
3. They built that skyscraper in 1934.
That skyscraper
______________________ in 1934.
4. The students will finish the course by July.
The
course____________________________
by July.
5. They are repairing the streets this month.
The streets
____________________________this
month.
6. They make these tools of plastic.
These tools
______________________________of
plastic.
7. They have finished the new product
design.
The new product
design____________________________
__ .