🎓 Prepared by students from Boğaziçi University

What is Passive Voice?

Passive voice is a grammatical construction where the object of an action becomes the sentence's subject, and the doer moves to the background or is omitted entirely. Instead of saying 'John wrote the report,' we say 'The report was written by John.' Understanding when and how to use passive voice is essential for achieving variety, emphasis, and professional tone in writing.

Short answer

Passive voice shifts focus from the doer (agent) to the receiver (object). The structure is: auxiliary verb (be) + past participle of the main verb; used when the receiver is important, the doer is unknown, or emphasis is needed.

Active to Passive Transformation

1
Active Structure
Subject + Verb + Object (doer is the focus)
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2
Identify Parts
Find subject, verb, object and auxiliary tense
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3
Reorder
Object becomes subject, subject becomes agent
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4
Change Verb
Use 'be' + past participle; match tense
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5
Passive Structure
New subject + be + past participle + (by + agent)

Step-by-step worked examples

Active: Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. Write the passive.

Identify: Shakespeare (subject) + wrote (verb) + Hamlet (object)
Change structure: Hamlet (new subject) + was written (be + past participle) + by Shakespeare
Passive: Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.

Active present: The chef prepares dinner. Convert to passive present.

Structure: The chef (subject) + prepares (present simple) + dinner (object)
Passive: dinner (subject) + is prepared (is + past participle) + by the chef
Passive: Dinner is prepared by the chef.

Active perfect: They have delivered the package. Write passive present perfect.

Structure: They (subject) + have delivered (present perfect) + the package (object)
Passive: The package (subject) + has been delivered (has been + past participle)
Passive: The package has been delivered by them.

Flashcards

Quick quiz

Q1.Which sentence is in passive voice?

Correct answer: B. Option 2 uses 'was approved' (past simple passive: be + past participle), shifting focus from the manager to the budget.

Q2.Convert to passive: 'The students completed the assignment.'

Correct answer: B. Active past simple → Passive: 'was' (past of be) + 'completed' (past participle). Option 2 is correct.

Q3.Which active verb CANNOT be made passive?

Correct answer: B. 'Happen' is intransitive (no direct object), so it cannot become passive.

Q4.Present perfect passive: 'The mayor __ the new monument.'

Correct answer: B. Present perfect passive: 'has been' + past participle. The monument (subject) has been inaugurated.

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Common mistakes

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Using present participle (-ing) instead of past participle in passive. — Correct: Always use past participle: 'is written' NOT 'is writing'.

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Forgetting the auxiliary verb 'be' in the passive structure. — Correct: Passive always needs 'be': 'was completed', 'is built', 'will be sent'.

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Trying to make intransitive verbs passive (e.g., 'The report happened'). — Correct: Only transitive verbs (with objects) can be passive; 'happen' has no object.

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Changing the tense without adjusting the 'be' auxiliary. — Correct: Match the tense: past → was/were; present → is/are; future → will be.

FAQ

What is passive voice and why use it?

Passive voice shifts focus from the doer to the receiver. Use it when the receiver is important, the doer is unknown, or for formal/academic tone.

How do you form passive voice in all tenses?

Structure: auxiliary 'be' (in the required tense) + past participle. E.g., present simple: 'is written'; past: 'was written'; future: 'will be written'.

Can passive voice be used with all verbs?

No — only transitive verbs (verbs that take a direct object) can be made passive. Intransitive verbs like 'happen' or 'come' cannot.

What is the agent in passive voice?

The agent is the original doer, placed after 'by' in the passive sentence. It can be omitted if unknown or unimportant.