Active and Passive voice
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Introduction
Active and Passive Voice is a fundamental aspect of English Grammar that helps structure sentences to suit different contexts. Mastering this topic is essential for effective communication, especially in academic and professional writing.
Key Concepts
Example:
Active Voice: The boy kicks the ball.
Passive voice: The ball is kicked by the boy.
Tenses
Auxiliary Verbs of ‘to be’
Present Tense - is, are, am
Past Tense - was, were
Future Tense - will, shall (be)
Present/Past/Future Continuous - ‘ing’ – (being)
Present Perfect Tense - has/have (been)
Past Perfect Tense - had (been)
Future Perfect Tense - will have (been)
Note: I have explained below how to utilize the verb/s from this table.
The auxiliary verbs that are given in the brackets have to be used when you convert the given sentence from Active voice to Passive voice. When you have to transform the Present/Past or Future Continuous tense ‘kicking’ from the Active Voice to the Passive voice, then, ‘being’ has to be used
Steps to Transform into Passive Voice:
1.) First of all, identify the Subject, Verb, and Object in the given sentence. To make it easier, you may break up the sentence into the following parts - where 'The boy' is a Subject, 'kicks' is the verb, and 'the ball' is the object.
The boy/kicks / the ball
The subject is the doer of the action, the verb conveys a certain action, and the object is something to whom the action is passed.
It's important that you should know to identify the Subject, verb, and object from the given sentence to derive the correct answer. To make it easier, you may even ask a question like this to make it easy to identify the subject: Who kicks the ball? The answer will be 'The boy'. To identify the verb: you may ask a question: What does the boy do? Your answer will be 'kicks'. To identify the object - You may ask a question: What did the boy kick? The answer will be 'the ball'.
It's interesting to note that whether you convert or transform the sentence from Active voice to Passive voice and vice versa the answer moves in the same tense with the usage of appropriate auxiliary verbs.
To transform a sentence from Active voice to Passive voice, it's important that the sentence must have the object.
2.) The object of the active sentence must be moved to the position of the subject in the passive voice. In the above sentence the object ‘the ball’ becomes the subject in the passive voice.
Example:- The ball is kicked by the boy.
3.) The verb ‘to be’ has to be used in the same tense as the main verb in the active sentence. The main verb should be changed to its past participle form. And so the verb ‘kicks’ in the Present Simple tense becomes ‘is kicked’
Example:- The ball is kicked by the boy.
4. When you transform the sentence in the Passive voice, then add ‘by’ followed by the subject.
Example:- The ball is kicked by the boy.
Example:
Active Voice: The boy kicks the ball.
Passive voice: The ball is kicked by the boy.
I have repeated the above sentence again to explain the usage of the above table of 'to be.'
After identifying the verb from the given sentence, get to know the tense of that verb. Once you know the tense then use only the auxiliary verb given beside that tense. If you know that the verb in the above sentence is ‘kicks’ then get to know its tense which is the Present tense. Once you know it is the Present tense then use the auxiliary verb that stands beside in the same line but beforehand check whether it is singular or plural form. If it is in singular, then use ‘is’ or ‘am’ but if its plural then use ‘are’.
How to use the auxiliary verbs
Singular Plural
I am We are
You are You are
He/She/It is They are
Singular Plural
I was We were
You were You were
He/She/ It was They were
Singular Plural
I have We have
You have You have
He/She/It has They have
Explanation
In the Passive voice, the action is received by the subject
Passive Voice: The ball is kicked by the boy.
Active voice: The boy kicks the ball.
Tips to Identify and Transform from Active voice to Passive voice
Identify the object of the active sentence and make it the subject of the passive sentence.
Use appropriate auxiliary verbs and past participles.
In the passive voice, the focus shifts from the doer of the action (the boy) to the receiver of the action (the ball). This structure is useful when the object of the action is more important than the subject.
Learn to transform a sentence from Active voice to Passive voice
The boy kicks the ball The ball is kicked by the boy
The boy kicked the ball The ball was kicked by the boy
The boy will kick the ball The ball will be kicked by the boy.
The boy is kicking the ball The ball is being kicked by the boy
The boy was kicking the ball The ball was being kicked by the boy
The boy has kicked the ball The ball has been kicked by the boy
The boy had kicked the ball The ball had been kicked by the boy
The boy will have kicked the ball The ball will have been kicked by the boy
Here are 10 sentences converted from Active to Passive Voice, along with their answers:
Active: The teacher explains the rules.
Passive: The rules are explained by the teacher.
Active: The baker prepared a delicious cake.
Passive: A delicious cake was prepared by the baker.
Active: She will complete the project tomorrow.
Passive: The project will be completed by her tomorrow.
Active: The students are organizing the event.
Passive: The event is being organized by the students.
Active: He had written an inspiring book last year.
Passive: An inspiring book had been written by him last year.
Active: They have repaired the road recently.
Passive: The road has been repaired recently by them.
Active: The company is launching a new car.
Passive: A new car is being launched by the company.
Active: The artist painted the mural beautifully.
Passive: The mural was painted beautifully by the artist.
Active: We will announce the results soon.
Passive: The results will be announced soon by us.
Active: The mechanic fixed the car yesterday.
Passive: The car was fixed by the mechanic yesterday.
Here are 10 sentences converted from Passive to Active Voice, along with their answers:
Passive: The letter was written by Maria.
Active: Maria wrote the letter.
Passive: The cake is being baked by the chef.
Active: The chef is baking the cake.
Passive: The decision will be made by the committee.
Active: The committee will make the decision.
Passive: The house was cleaned by the staff yesterday.
Active: The staff cleaned the house yesterday.
Passive: The book has been read by many students.
Active: Many students have read the book.
Passive: The match was won by the home team.
Active: The home team won the match.
Passive: The road is repaired by the workers every month.
Active: The workers repair the road every month.
Passive: A message was sent by her in the morning.
Active: She sent a message in the morning.
Passive: The flowers were arranged beautifully by the florist.
Active: The florist arranged the flowers beautifully.
Passive: The meeting will be conducted by the manager tomorrow.
Active: The manager will conduct the meeting tomorrow.
Exercise to work on from Passive to Active voice:-
1. The homework was completed by the students.
The song is being sung by the choir.
The movie will be directed by a famous filmmaker.
The dishes were washed by John after dinner.
The keys have been found by her in the drawer.
The problem was solved by the engineer quickly.
The invitations are being sent by the team today.
The cake was eaten by the children before lunch.
The city was rebuilt by the residents after the earthquake.
The prize will be given to the winner by the principal.
Exercise to transform from Active to Passive voice:
The students submitted their assignments on time.
She is writing a letter to her friend.
They will finish the project by next week.
The dog chased the cat around the garden.
The manager reviewed the report carefully.
The children are decorating the room for the party.
He solved the puzzle in record time.
The team has won the championship trophy.
The artist sketched a beautiful portrait.
We will announce the winners tomorrow.
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