A verb is said to be in the active voice when the subject does the action.

A verb is said to be in the passive voice when the sentence shows what is done to the subject. The passive is used: 1. when the agent (the person who does the action) is unknown, unimportant or obvious from the context. The president was shot. The criminal was arrested. (by police) 2. when the action is more important than the agent as in instructions, processes or headlines. Thirty people were injured in the explosion. 3. to make more polite or formal statements. The car hasnt been cleaned. 4. to put emphasis on the agent. The new library will be opened by the president. We form the passive with the verb to be and the past participle of the main verb: to be + past participle (PP) The passive forms are: Present simple: am/is/are + PP Jims car is serviced twice a year. Present continuous: am/is/are being + PP Dinner is being prepared now. Past simple: was/were + PP Jims car was serviced last week. Past continuous: was/were being + PP Dinner was being prepared at 7 last night. Present perfect: has/have been + PP Lunch has already been eaten. Past perfect: had been + PP Trees had been cut. Future simple: will be + PP or am/is/are going to be + PP Dinner will be prepared soon. Dinner is going to be prepared at seven. Future perfect: will have been + PP Checks will have been paid by Tuesday. Infinitives: (to) be + PP The dishes need to be cleaned now. Modals: modal + be + PP The dishes should be cleaned.

Forms of verb Be: (present) = am, is , are (past) = was, were (present participle) = being (past participle) = been The past participle of a verb is: verb + ed (regular verbs): paint painted 3rd column in the list of irregular verbs: break broken
A. Write the past participle of the following verbs: 1. want 2. buy 4. marry 6. drop 7. make 8. draw 3. decide 5. choose

B. Change the underlined active verbs into the passive form: 1. Adam hit the ball. The ball was hit by Adams. 2. Someone is ringing the bell. The bell . 3. Mom washes the carpet. The carpet by Mom. 4. Children should drink milk. Milk by children. 5. I have paid my checks. Checks by me. 6. Tim will write a story. A story by Tim. 7. Tom needs to do this work. This work needs . 8. Dina may invite some friends. Some friends by Dina.

Changing from active into passive:

Take this sentence as an example: subject Alan verb has drawn object Mary compliment several times.

1. Make the object of the active verb the subject in the new sentence. Mary Note: If the verb is a pronoun, make sure to change it to a subject pronoun. me I him he her she them they us we Alan has drawn her several times. She 2. Change the active verb into the passive form. Use (be + past participle of the main verb): Mary has been drawn Alan singular has drawn singular verb

REMEMBER: DO NOT CHANGE TENSE.

Mary and Tina. plural Mary and Tina plural have been drawn. plural verb

3. Make sure the new passive verb agrees in number with the new subject.

Note: Never use (do, does, or did) with the passive voice. See the examples: Active They dont call the office. They dont ring the officers. They didnt call the officer. They didnt call the officers. Did they call me? Do they know me? 4. Add the rest f the sentence. Mary has been drawn several times. 5. Make the subject of the active sentence the agent of the passive sentence. The agent is introduced with by. Mary has been drawn several times by Alan. Note: Dont write the agent if it is not specific (people, someone, somebody, etc...). It is preferable not to mention the subject if it is a pronoun (I, you, we, he, she, it, they). C. Change the following sentences from active into passive: 1. The lawyer will give you some advice. 2. Sue asked the policeman for directions. 3. The pirates had found the treasure. 4. Peter is going to take the package later. 5. Someone has already stopped the machine. 6. The coach always encourages the trainees. 7. Meg needs to wipe the floor right now. 8. The employees might suggest new rules. Passive The office isnt called. The officers arent called. The officer wasnt called. The officers werent called. Was I called? Am I known? Note: If there is a preposition with the verb, do not forget it. Sue looks after the children. The children are after by Sue. looked

D. Change the following negative sentences from active into passive:

1. We didnt notice the new changes. 2. The store wont deliver the furniture. 3. They havent collected the taxes yet. 4. The students didnt study the poem well. 5. We dont accept credit cards here. 6. Tim wasnt planting trees at seven. 7. You shouldnt water this plant daily. 8. They are not interviewing the applicants.

E. Change the following questions from active into passive:

1. Did the driver hit the boy yesterday? 2. Will the police question all the suspects? 3. Have you signed the house contract? 4. Do people speak English in Spain? 5. Who broke the vase in the sitting room? 6. Are you roasting chestnuts now? 7. Can you reach the top of this mountain? 8. Was Jim playing the piano very loudly?

Active and passive in sentences that take two objects; a direct and indirect object:
Marie subject sent verb me indirect object a funny email. direct object Either an indirect object or a direct object may become the subject of a passive sentence.

Passive (1): I was sent a funny email. Passive (2): A funny email was sent to me.

If the direct object becomes the subject, use to before the indirect object.

F. Change the following sentences with two objects from active into passive:

1. The secretary gave Martin some letters. 2. My friend has sent me an invitation. 3. Mike is showing Laura some pictures. 4. Kevin will buy Jane a new car next week. 5. Joe always lends Tom some money. 6. The company will pay him a lot of money. 7. Will the college award Dan a scholarship? 8. The court denies the criminal some rights.

Note:
Use by when it is important to mention the agent or the person who performed the action. The little boy was rescued by a stranger. Use with for objects which perform actions. Backgammon is played with dice.

G. Fill in by or with. 1. The fox was hunted a gun. 2. Mat will be trained a good teacher. 3. The book is written a famous author. 4. He was hit on his head a stone. 5. Passports are checked the police.

6. The island is surrounded water. H. Change the following mixed sentences from active into passive: 1. People eat a lot of fast food these days. 2. The company will advertise the new product on TV next month. 3. The teacher shouted at Jill at school today. 4. People make salads from different kinds of vegetables. 5. They wont have completed building the bridge by the end of the month. 6. Had Mira checked the mail before she went to school? 7. Hundreds of dissidents are seeking refuge in the US embassy. 8. Millions of tourists visit Rome every year. 9. Do you usually feed your chickens corn? 10. Wind and rain have eroded the statues into shapeless stones. 11. When did they show the news of the earthquake on TV? 12. Adam hadnt expected Kate to come on time by the time he got home. 13. Can you tell me the way to the park? 14. You need to polish the shoes regularly to protect the leather. 15. Sally was taking care of the children during the interview with the press. 16. Dianne is choosing a new dress right now.

A Chart for changing verbs from active to passive with all tenses. Note that all the passive verbs are formed with BE + Past Participle (main verb) Tense
Present Simple Present Continuous Past Simple Past Continuous Present Perfect Past Perfect

Active
The crime shocks me. The crime shocks Jake. The crime shocks us. The crime is shocking me. The crime is shocking us. The crime shocked me. The crime shocked The crime was shocking me. The crime was shocking us. Jake has mailed the letter. Jake has mailed the letters. Jake had mailed the letter. Jake had mailed the letters. Jake will mail the letter.

Passive
I am shocked by the crime. Jake is shocked by the crime. We are shocked by the crime. I am being shocked by the crime. We are being shocked by the crime. I was shocked by the crime. We were shocked by the crime. I was being shocked by the murder. We are being shocked by the murder. The letter has been mailed by Jake. The letters have been mailed by Jake. The letter had been mailed by Jake. The letters had been mailed by Jake. The letter will be mailed by Jake. The letter is going to be mailed by Jake. The letters are going to be mailed by Jake The letter will have been mailed by Jake. The letters will have been mailed by Jake. The letter needs to be mailed. The letters need to be mailed. The letter can be mailed by Jake. The letters could be mailed by Jake. The letter may be mailed by Jake. The letters might be mailed by Jake. The letter should be mailed by Jake. The letters must be mailed by Jake. The letter would be mailed by Jake. The letter has to be mailed by Jake. The letters have to be mailed by Jake. The letter ought to be mailed by Jake.

Future Simple Future Perfect Infinitives

Jake is going to mail the letter. Jake is going to mail the letters. Jake will have mailed the letter. Jake will have mailed the letters Jack needs to mail the letter. Jack needs to mail the letters. Jake can mail the letter. Jake could mail the letters. Jake may mail the letter. Jake might mail the letters. Jake should mail the letter.

Modals

Jake must mail the letters. Jake would mail the letter. Jake has to mail the letter. Jake has to mail the letters. Jake ought to mail the letter.