Passive Voice

ESFLG
2009/2010

Sources: Oxford Practice Grammar/Link Up 10.º ano

Compare these examples
Active Passive
 Bell invented the  The telephone was
telephone. invented by Bell.
The two sentences have the same meaning, but they are about different
things. The subject of one sentence is Bell, and the subject of the other
is the telephone.

When the subject is the person or thing doing the action (the agent), then
we use an active verb (invented). When the subject is not the agent, then
the verb is passive (was invented).

The subject of the passive sentence is the same as the object of the
active sentence (the telephone). It is not the agent. It is the thing that
the action is directed at.
One object
The volunteers are building a new shelter.
Subject verb object

A new shelter is being built by the volunteers.

Subject Be + main verb agent

Form:
subject + auxiliary verb “to be” + main verb in the past participle + agent
Two objects
The organization gives volunteers every support.
Subject verb object object

Volunteers are given every support by the organization.

Subject Be + main verb object agent

Every support is given to volunteers by the organization.

Subject Be + main verb object agent

Form:
Subject + auxiliary verb “to be” + main verb in the past participle + object + agent
Active verb forms and their passive
equivalents
Active Passive
 gives  is/are given
 is/are giving  is/are being given
 gave  was/were given
 was/were giving  was/were being
 have given given
 will give  have been given
 can give  will be given
 can be given
 Passive sentences with and without
“by”
→In a passive sentence, when we want to say who or what did the
action, we use by:
We were stopped by the police.

→We can give other details about the action. For example, when we want to
say when or where something happens, we can use in, to or at:
The telephone was invented in 1876.

→In a passive sentence we mention the agent, the person or thing doing the
action, only if it is important. We do not mention the agent when:
1. The agent does not add any new information:
The money was stolen.
2. The agent is not important:
The streets are cleaned every day.
3. It is diffilcult to say who the agent is:
This kind of jacket is considered very smart.
Use

→We use the passive both in speech and

writing, but it is more common in
writing. We see it especially in
textbooks and reports. We use it to
describe activities in industry, science
and technology, and also for official
rules. The passive is also often used in
news reports.