Passive Voice
Cluster 1
1. Explain the process of converting active voice to passive voice. Use
examples to illustrate (Textbook & Book (4) - page 794).
2. When is it impossible to make such conversions? (Coursebook)
3. How do you form the passive voice in different tenses (simple
present, present continuous, simple past, past continuous, present
perfect, and with modal verbs)? (Textbook) Are there any tenses
where the passive voice should not be used? (Book (2) - page 408;
Book (3), page 94; Book (5), page 70)
4. How do you make questions in the passive? (Textbook)
Cluster 2
1. What are the reasons for using the passive voice instead of the active voice?
(Textbook, Book (1) - page 253; Book (2) - page 410; Book (5) - pages 70, 71)
2. How can the passive voice be used to strategically shift focus or avoid criticism?
Use examples to illustrate your point (Book 1 - page 253; Book (5) - pages 70,
71)
3. In what contexts is the passive voice commonly used? (Book (1) - page 253,
Book (5) - page 71). Examine the following texts and use them as examples to
clarify your points:
- The article on page 236 of your textbook
- Abstract
4. When is it important to include the agent (the doer of the action) in a passive
sentence? When is it not? (Textbook)
Cluster 3
1. What is the passive form of a gerund? Give examples (textbook - page
256)
2. What is the passive form of an infinitive? Give examples (textbook -
page 256; Book (2) - pages 411, 412)
3. What is the form of get-passives? Give examples (textbook - page
257)
4. When should we use get-passives? Give examples (textbook - page
257; Book (4) - page 80?
5. What is the difference between get-passives and be-passives? (Book
(4) - page 800)
Forms
Big fish eat small fish
Active
Subject Verb Object
S be + PP agent phrase
Passive
Small fish are eaten by big fish
*Note:
- Intransitive verbs and copular verbs (be, seem, appear, look,
taste, sound, smell, feel, become, get, etc.) cannot be made
passive.
E.g. Those birds are disappeared. (“disappear” is an
intransitive verb)
Clear is seemed by the sky today.
The sky seems clear today.
*Note:
- When converting sentences with ditransitive verbs (verbs that
require both a direct object and an indirect object) into the passive
voice, either the direct object (DO) or the indirect object (IO) can
become the subject of the sentence. This shift changes the focus of
the sentence.
E.g. Active: The gardener gave the trees some water.
Passive 1: The trees were given some water by the gardener.
Passive 2: Some water was given to the trees by the gardener.
*Note:
The agent phrase (by + noun) is unnecessary:
● When the entity responsible for an action is not known, is too general or
obvious.
E.g. + Their car was broken into. (unknown agent)
+ The law was passed last week. (only the government can do so, so it’s
obvious)
+ Efforts were made to reduce pollution. (adding a general agent such as
“by people” makes it sound unnatural and redundant)
● When the focus is on what is or is not done, or what happens.
E.g. + Swimming in the lake is prohibited. (the important information is the act
of swimming and the prohibition of such an action, not the one who
enforces it)
Passive Voice in different tenses
Active Passive
Simple present V1 am/is/are + V3
Simple past V2 was/were + V3
Present progressive am/is/are + V-ing am/is/are + being + V3
Past progressive was/were + V-ing was/were + being + V3
Present perfect have/has + V3 have/has + been + V3
Modal verbs modal + V0 modal + be + V3
Making questions in passive voice
Question Type Formula Example
Yes/No Modal/Auxiliary Verb + 1. Is the cake being baked by the
Question Subject + be + Past chef?
Participle + (by Agent)? 2. Have they completed the task?
3. Will the meeting be
rescheduled by the organizer?
Wh- Question Wh- word + 1. Where is the cake being baked
Modal/Auxiliary Verb + by the chef?
Subject + be + Past 2. When would the package be
Participle + (by Agent)? delivered by the courier?
Tenses where the passive voice is inappropriate
Don’t say Say instead
● The garden had been being ● The garden had been under the
Perfect tended by the gardener for years. gardener’s care for years.
progressive: ● The monument has been being ● The monument has been in the
restored by experts process of restoration by experts.
● Past ● The project will have been being ● The project will have been in
● Present worked on by the team for two progress under the team’s efforts
● Future years by next summer. for two years by next summer.
Future ● The event will be being planned ● The event will be planned by the
by the team tomorrow. team tomorrow.
progressive
Reasons for using the passive
- When the receiver of the action is more important than the performer (agent)
of the action or when the agent is obvious or not specific → avoid vague
subjects like “someone” or “something”
E.g. The flight has been delayed.
- To avoid placing responsibility on any specific person or organization.
E.g. Instead of saying “The company/manager will reduce the lunch break
from one hour to forty-five minutes”, it seems better for the company or
manager to say “The lunch break will be reduced from one hour to forty-five
minutes”.
Reasons for using the passive
- To avoid criticizing someone or to keep their identity hidden
E.g. I see the washing-up hasn’t been done again!
- To avoid a change of subject in the same sentence
E.g. I went by the train and was met at the station by my aunt.
- To talk about general feelings and beliefs (the impersonal passive)
E.g. It is thought to be the most beautiful cave in the world.
- To be more formal or polite in certain situations
E.g. Have the reported been typed yet?
Contexts where the passive is commonly used
- The new policy was announced by the government
News report yesterday.
- A major earthquake was reported in the region this morning.
Academic and - The experiment was conducted under controlled conditions.
Scientific Writing - The results were analyzed using statistical software.
Instructions and - All visitors are required to wear masks inside the museum.
Rules - The equipment must be handled with care at all times.
- The samples were collected from various locations around
Describing Methods,
the site.
Ways of Working
- The data was processed using advanced algorithms.
Passive gerunds and passive infinitives
Form Example
as the subject Being famous is important for him.
after certain verbs such as like, I hate being treated like a child.
Passive (not) being avoid, mind, risk, etc. Do you mind being asked to stay
gerunds + PP late for the project?
after a preposition The little girl insisted on being cared
for by her mother.
after certain verbs such as ask, She wanted to be acknowledged as
want, expect, hope, prefer, etc. the best player in the tournament.
Passive (not) to be
infinitives + PP after certain adjectives such as She is ready to be put to test.
lucky, determined, afraid, ready,
etc.
Get-passives
Form Use Example
describe something I got bitten by an ugly dog.
unwanted or
unexpected
talk about something If you keep being late for school,
different forms of
that will have a negative you’re going to get punished.
get + PP
effect
with certain verbs such She got accepted to one of the Ivy
as accept, deliver, fire, League universities.
hire, pay, promote, etc.
Get-passives vs. Be-passives
get-passives be-passives
More common in informal More common in formal contexts
contexts and spoken English. and written language.
The get-passive places a little
more emphasis on the
grammatical subject or the entities
involved.
Emphasis: dynamic events Emphasis: states
Practice
- Exercises: 5 - p. 239, 6 - p. 240, 9B - p. 242, 11 - p. 245, 4 - p. 248, 5
- p. 249, 6 - p. 250, 7 - p. 251, 8 - p. 252, 9 - p. 253, 10B - p. 254, 5 -
p. 257, 6 - p. 258, 7, 9 - p. 259, 10A - p. 260,
- Writing: Writing: Choose one of the following topics and write a short
paragraph (5-7 sentences) using the passive voice:
+ a piece of news reporting the damage caused by Typhoon Yagi
+ a set of regulations for a dormitory
+ the process of producing sugar from sugar cane (see the image in
the next slide)
