When we talk about active and passive verbs, we usually talk about voice.In the active voice, the subject performs the action of the verb, while in passive voice, the subject receives the action. Look at the difference in the following two sentences:
The cat scratched Joanna.
Joanna was scratched by the cat.
Passive voice always includes forms of the verb to be (is, was, is being, etc.). Generally speaking, you should try to use the active voice wherever possible:
Karate lessons are being taken by Roberta. (passive)
Roberta takes karate lessons. (active)
Answers to the survey are being sought by Dr. Eggleston . (passive)Dr. Eggleston seeks answers to the survey.(active)
Revise the following sentences by changing all passive verbs to active verbs:
1. Sheila was the winner of the race.
2. The computer was destroyed by a lightning bolt.
3. The entire book was read by only two students in the class.
4. The boy was scratched by the cat.
5. My essay was graded by Dr. Black.
6. Action on the proposal is being considered by Dr. Dennis.
7. The door was slammed by my roommate.
8. Announcements of Brown Bag Lunch topics will be published in the McKendree Review each week.
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FAQs
Active & Passive Verbs
- The cat scratched Joanna. Joanna was scratched by the cat.
- Karate lessons are being taken by Roberta. ( passive) Roberta takes karate lessons. ( active)
- Answers to the survey are being sought by Dr. Eggleston . ( passive)Dr. Eggleston seeks answers to the survey. ( active)
Active voice occurs when a clear subject performs a clear action. Passive voice occurs when one uses a “to-be” verb (am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been) with a past tense verb.
How to identify active and passive voice examples with answers? ›
Active voice: She bought a new car. (She is the subject and a new car is an object.) Passive voice: A new car was bought by her. (A new car is a subject and her is the object.)
What is the active and passive of the verb? ›
VERB TENSES USED IN ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE
Remember that in active forms the subject of the sentence is the person or thing that does the action. In passive constructions, the verb is performed by someone or something other than the subject; often, the action is done to the subject by someone else.
What are 5 examples of passive sentences? ›
Examples
- I noticed that a window had been left open.
- Every year thousands of people are killed on our roads.
- All the cookies have been eaten.
- My car has been stolen!
How to change passive voice to active voice
| Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|
| Present Simple Tense | I write a novel. | A novel is written by me. |
| Present Continuous Tense | I'm making a cake. | Cake is being made. |
| Present Perfect | I have played the game. | A game has been played by me. |
| Past Tense | She delivered the letters. | The letters were delivered. |
6 more rowsSentences in passive voice are:
Cricket was being played by Shyam. A letter was being written by him. A car is given to me by him. A bar of chocolate is given to me by her.
How to easily tell the difference between active and passive voice? ›
When the actor (and the actor can be a person or object) comes before the action in a sentence, you have active voice. When the actor comes after the action or when the actor is completely absent from the sentence, you have passive voice. What are some examples of active and passive voice?
What is the passive voice answer? ›
The passive voice of a verb always consists of a form of the helping verb be plus the past tense of the main verb: was told, are examined, has been broken. Although sometimes appropriate, passive verbs are generally considered weak and wordy. Active voice is much more effective and clear and is usually preferred.
How do you solve active passive? ›
Active: Subject + Is/Are/Am/Was/Were/Has/Have/Had + To + Verb (Ist form) + Object.. Passive: Object + Is/Are/Am/Was/Were/Has/Have/Had + To + Be + Verb (III form) + By + Subject.
Active and Passive Voice Rules for Present Simple Tense
| Active Voice | Passive Voice (Auxiliary Verb – is/am/are) |
|---|
| Subject + V1+s/es+ object | Object+ is/am/are+ V3+ by + subject |
| Subject + Do/does+ not + V1 + Object | Object + is/am/are+ not + V3+ by Subject |
| Does+ Subject+ V1+Object+? | Is/am/are + Object+ V3+ by subject +? |
Aug 18, 2022
Passive voice verbs will always have "be" as a helping verb, and the main verb will never end in "ing." Most often, the main verb will end in "en" or "ed." The Washington Monument was designed ["be" helping verb but main verb ending in "ed"] to honor George Washington.
Are passive sentences good or bad? ›
Use of the passive voice is not a grammatical error. It's a stylistic issue that pertains to clarity—that is, there are times when using the passive voice can prevent a reader from understanding what you mean.
What does passive mean in grammar? ›
The passive form of a verb is being used when the grammatical subject is the person or thing that experiences the effect of an action, rather than the person or thing that causes the effect: 'He was released from prison' is a passive sentence. In the sentence "He was hit by the ball", "was hit" is in the passive voice.
What is a passive verb and examples? ›
A verb is in the passive voice when the subject of the sentence is acted on by the verb. For example, in “The ball was thrown by the pitcher,” the ball (the subject) receives the action of the verb, and was thrown is in the passive voice.
What are the examples of active verbs? ›
Run, walk, jump, talk, sing, speak, eat, drink, cry, skip, pull, push, fetch, give, make, bake, try, bring, teach, study, etc.
What are some examples of an active verb? ›
Active Verbs for Discussing Ideas
| Action Verbs A-C | Action Verbs D-H | Action Verbs R-Z |
|---|
| argues | discusses | reminds |
| assaults | disputes | repudiates |
| assembles | disregards | resolves |
| asserts | distinguishes | responds |
35 more rows