UCI Extension

Paper-Based TOEFL Workshop

Passive Voice
Structure and Written Expression Skills 37-38
Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL Test
Tutorial prepared by Marla Yoshida

Active voice and passive voice

Sentences in English can be in either the active or passive voice.
In active voice, the subject does the action.
I am reading a book.
S

Vincent Van Gogh painted this portrait.

S

In passive voice, the subject receives the action. The person or thing
that does the action may be the object of a prepositional phrase
beginning with by, or it may be omitted.
This portrait was painted by Vincent Van Gogh.
S

by + NOUN

Oranges are produced in Central California.

S

(no by phrase)

Changing an active sentence to passive

Before you try to change an active sentence to passive,
check to make sure it has a direct object. If it doesnt, you
cant change it.
The choir sang several songs.
(This sentence has an object. We can make it passive.)
The choir sang.
(This sentence has no object. We cant make it passive.)
Hamlet is Shakespeares most famous play.
(This sentence has a linking verb, is. It has no object, so
we cant make the sentence passive. Play is a predicate
noun, not an object.)

To change an active sentence to passive

1. Change the position of the subject and the object.
Farmers in Central California grow a lot of oranges.
A lot of oranges

farmers

2. Add a helping verb be, and change the verb to a past participle.
A lot of oranges are grown

farmers

3. Add by before the former subject, or take out the former subject
completely. The by phrase is optional.
A lot of oranges are grown by farmers in Central California.
OR A lot of oranges are grown in Central California.

Changing an active sentence to passive

Passive sentences can be used in all tenses, just like active
sentences. Just change the be verb to the tense you need. We
can also put a modal before the be verb. For example:
Some explorers are eaten by lions. (Simple present)
The explorers were eaten by lions. (Simple past)
The explorers are being eaten by lions. (Present progressive)
The explorers have been eaten by lions. (Present perfect)
The explorers are going to be eaten by lions. (Future)
The explorers will be eaten by lions. (Future)
The explorers will have been eaten by lions. (Future perfect)
The explorers might be eaten by lions. (Modal + be)
I hope the explorers wont be eaten by lions. (Future)

When do we usually use the passive voice?

Its appropriate to use the passive voice when the focus is on the
action, not on who did it. We might not even know or care who did it.
This room needs to be cleaned before the visitors come.
(The important thing is the cleaning, not who is going to do it.)
Gunpowder was invented in China.
(We dont know who invented it. It was a long time ago.)
People often use the passive when they want to avoid saying who
did something. (This is very common in politics and business.)
Mistakes were made on this project.
(We dont want to say who made the mistakes. Maybe were trying
to avoid being blamed, or maybe we want to hide the guilty person.)

Common mistakes with active and passive

Some verbs need to have an active form, even if the meaning
seems weak or inactive. This includes words like happen,
occur, take place, exist, die, seem, and be. These are never
used in passive forms.
An accident was happened on the freeway.
Two people were died in the accident.
Many kinds of trees are existed on the island.
These sentences are correct:
An accident happened on the freeway.
Two people died in the accident.
Many kinds of trees exist on the island.

Common mistakes with active and passive

Make sure the passive voice sentences are logical.
The book wrote in 1982.
(Its not logical. Books cant write. They can only be written.)
The driver was driven the car.
(Its not logical. The driver drove. The car was driven.)
These sentences are correct:
The book was written in 1982.
The author wrote the book in 1982.
The car was driven by the driver.
The driver drove the car.

Common mistakes with active and passive

Dont confuse the passive voice with the progressive
tenses. Both have be as a helping verb, but they have
different verb forms after be, and different meanings.
The children were entertained by the magician.
(Be + past participle = passive voice)
The children were entertaining their parents by
performing a play.
(Be + present participle = past progressive tense, active
voice)

Summary
In this section, you have learned about these things:
Only active sentences with direct objects can become
passive
To make an active sentence into a passive sentence
Change the position of the subject and object
Make the verb be + past participle
Put the preposition by before the former subject.
We use the passive voice when the action is more
important than who did it, or when we dont want to
tell who did it.