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Active Voice/ Passive Voice Conversion

Note 1: Only those sentences can be converted from active to passive and vice versa which
include all three of the following elements.

SUBJECT: The performer of an action

VERB: The action itself

OBJECT: The receiver of the action

Examples:

(i) The old man died. (No object. This sentence cannot be changed into passive voice)
(ii) Bread is eaten. (No subject. This sentence cannot be changed into active voice)

Note 2: The sentences which show a sense of “being” cannot be converted into Passive voice.

Examples:

(i) He is a doctor.

(ii) They are my friends.

(iii) Slavery was a serious problem before the advent of Islam.

(iv) I will become a helpful leader.

In the above examples, the subjects are not performing any action on the objects, rather the
sentences show a state of “being” and hence cannot be converted into passive voice.

Note 3: We always use the past participle (3rd form of the verbs) in passive voice sentences.

Examples:

(i) Milk was drunk by the baby.


(ii) The late grandfather was soon forgotten by his family.
(iii) Tea is taken by them.
Note 4: The prepositions stay in their respective places.

Examples:

(i) He goes to school.


School is gone to by him.
(ii) The swimmer jumped into the river.
The river was jumped into by the swimmer.
(iii) He bears away the first prize in the speech competition.
The first prize is borne away by him in the speech competition.

Present Indefinite Tense

Active Voice:
The basic rules of Present Indefinite Tense Active Voice sentences are as follows:

Affirmative sentences
I, We, You, They, Plural Nouns  1st form of the verb without any change
He, She, It, Singular Nouns  verb+s/es
Examples:
I play tennis.
We play tennis.
You play tennis.
They play tennis.
Boys play tennis.
He plays tennis.
She plays tennis.
That boy plays tennis.

Negative Sentences
I, We, They, You, Plural Nouns  do not
He, She, It, Singular Nouns  does not
Examples:
I do not play tennis.
We do not play tennis.
You do not play tennis.
They do not play tennis.
Boys do not play tennis.
He does not play tennis.
She does not play tennis.
That boy does not play tennis.

Passive Voice:
The basic rules of Present Indefinite Tense Passive Voice sentences are as follows:
I  am
He, She, It, Singular Nouns  is
We, You, They, Plural Nouns  are
We always use the past participles (3rd form of the verbs) in passive voice sentences.

Affirmative Sentences
Examples:
I am taken to the hospital.
He is taken to the hospital.
She is taken to the hospital.
It is taken to the hospital.
The patient is taken to the hospital.
We are taken to the hospital.
You are taken to the hospital.
They are taken to the hospital.
Patients are taken to the hospital.

Negative Sentences
The helping verbs is, am and are are followed by “not”.
Examples:
I am not taken to the hospital.
He is not taken to the hospital.
She is not taken to the hospital.
It is not taken to the hospital.
The patient is not taken to the hospital.
We are not taken to the hospital.
You are not taken to the hospital.
They are not taken to the hospital.
Patients are not taken to the hospital.
Conversion from active to passive:
Affirmative Sentences
i. I play tennis.
Tennis is played by me.

ii. Aleena decorates the house.


The house is decorated by Aleena.

iii. John drives a taxi.


A taxi is driven by John.

iv. Those boys fly kites.


Kites are flown by those boys.

v. Her mother makes her bed.


Her bed is made by her mother.

vi. The maid washes dishes.


Dishes are washed by the maid.

vii. Robin Hood robs the rich.


The rich are robbed by Robin Hood.

viii. You pay the electricity bills.


The electricity bills are paid by you.

ix. A cat chases a mouse.


A mouse is chased by a cat.

x. The wrestler strikes the opponent.


The opponent is struck by the wrestler.

Negative Sentences
i. Vegetarians do not eat meat.
Meat is not eaten by vegetarians.
ii. Most people do not like it.
It is not liked by most people.

iii. He does not play soccer.


Soccer is not played by him.

iv. Police does not release the prisoner.


The prisoner is not released by police.

v. Our dog does not harm anybody.


Nobody is harmed by our dog.

vi. That child does not wear shoes properly.


Shoes are not worn by that child properly.
(OR)
Shoes are not properly worn by that child.
Interrogative Sentences
i. Do you eat mangoes?
Are mangoes eaten by you?

ii. Does Nicole play with dolls?


Are dolls played with by Nicole?

iii. Do the bees suck flower-nectar?


Is flower-nectar sucked by the bees?

iv. Does he worship Allah?


Is Allah worshipped by him?

Present Continuous Tense

Active Voice:

I  am

He, She, It, Singular Nouns  is


We, You, They, Plural Nouns  are

In active voice continuous tenses present participles (verb + ‘ing’) are used. Examples working,
eating, speaking etc.

Passive Voice:

I  am being

He, She, It, Singular Nouns  is being

We, You, They, Plural Nouns  are being

Conversion from Active voice to Passive Voice:

i. Moazzam is riding a bicycle to school.

A bicycle is being ridden by Moazzam to school.

ii. The firemen are extinguishing the fire.

The fire is being extinguished by the firemen.

iii. The hikers are climbing the mountain.

The mountain is being climbed by the hikers.

iv. The train is passing through a tunnel.

A tunnel is being passed through by the train.

v. The poor man is seeking financial aid.

Financial aid is being sought by the poor man.

vi. He is not stealing your money.


Your money is not being stolen by him.

vii. I am not eating junk-food.

Junk-food is not being eaten by me.

viii. We are not troubling the zoo-animals.

The zoo-animals are not being troubled by us.

ix. Are you writing a letter?

Is a letter being written by you?

x. Is she cleaning her room?

Is her room being cleaned by her?

xi. Are you whispering into my ear?

Is my ear being whispered into by you?

Present Perfect Tense

Active Voice:

I, We, You, They, Plural Nouns  have

He, She, It, Singular Nouns  has

3rd form of the verb is used.

Passive Voice:

I, We, You, They, Plural Nouns  have been


He, She, It, Singular Nouns  has been

Conversion from Active to Passive:

i. I have completed my work.

My work has been completed by me.

ii. You have sung a song.

A song has been sung by you.

iii. The postman has delivered the letter.

The letter has been delivered by the postman.

iv. The birds have left the nests.

The nests have been left by the birds.

v. We have not taken our share.

Our share has not been taken by us.

vi. Shakespeare has not written this book


This book has not been written by Shakespeare.
vii. Pollution has not affected our area.

Our area has not been affected by pollution.

viii. Has the mill contaminated the water?

Has the water been contaminated by the mill?

ix. Has your family left for Paris?

Has Paris been left for by your family?

x. Have you taken your meal?


Has your meal been taken by you?

xi. Why have the visitors spent the night in that hotel?

Why has the night been spent in that hotel by the visitors?

Exercises of Present Tense:

Convert the following sentences.

1. Do the cows eat grass?

_____________________________________________

2. I enjoy reading.

_____________________________________________

3. We do not follow their orders.

_____________________________________________

4. Is he travelling to Quetta?

___________________________________________

5. My friends are building this school.

__________________________________________

6. Lions have brutally killed the deer.

__________________________________________

7. Leonardo Da Vinci has painted Mona Lisa.

_________________________________________
8. Are they waiting for us?

_________________________________________

9. Has the naughty boy realized his mistake?

_________________________________________

10. Do I depend upon others?

_________________________________________

Past Indefinite Tense

Active Voice:

2nd form of verb is used with all nouns and pronouns.

Passive Voice:

I, He, She, It, Singular Nouns  was

We, You, They, Plural Nouns  were

i. I ate an apple.
An apple was eaten by me.
ii. The bird spread its wings.

Its wings were spread by the bird.

iii. The mechanic oiled the engine of the car.

The engine of the car was oiled by the mechanic.

iv. Architects built a skyscraper.


A skyscraper was built by architects.

v. She bought new clothes.

New clothes were bought by her.

Negative Sentences:

In negative active voice sentences, we use ‘did not’ followed by the first form of the verb.

i. She did not buy new clothes.

New clothes were not bought by her.

ii. They did not lend me money.

Money was not lent to me by them.

iii. The judge did not adjourn the court.

The court was not adjourned by the judge.

iv. The jury did not announce the verdict today.

The verdict was not announced by the jury today.

v. The carpenter did not use hand-made tools to make this table.

Hand-made tools were not used by the carpenter to make this table.

Interrogative Sentences:

i. Did you attend the meeting yesterday?

Was the meeting attended by you yesterday?

ii. Did the beasts devour the poor rabbit?

Was the poor rabbit devoured by the beasts?

iii. Did the monkey eat a banana?


Was a banana eaten by the monkey?
iv. Why did the crow sit on the electric wire?
Why was the electric wire sat on by the crow?
v. When did your brother return your books?
When were your books returned by your brother?

Past Continuous Tense:

Active Voice:

I, He, She, It, Singular Nouns  was

You, We, They, Plural Nouns  were

Present Participle (Verb + ing) is used.

Passive Voice:

I, He, She, It, Singular Nouns  was being

You, We, They, Plural Nouns  were being

Past Participle (3rd form of the verb) is used.

Examples:

i. He was playing hockey with his friends.


Hockey was being played by him with his friends.
ii. The fisherman was catching fish in the morning.
Fish was being caught by the fisherman in the morning.
iii. Were you parking your car properly?
Was your car being parked by you properly?
iv. They were not arresting the thieves.
The thieves were not being arrested by them.
v. Was she attending her cousin’s marriage?
Was her cousin’s marriage being attended by her?
vi. The robbers were committing a lot of crimes.
A lot of crimes were being committed by the robbers.
vii. Were we calculating our losses last year?
Were our losses being calculated by us last year?
viii. Where was she planting the seeds?
Where were the seeds being planted by her?
ix. How was the mischievous child teasing the pigeons?
How were the pigeons being teased by the mischievous child?
x. We were witnessing a road-accident an hour ago.
A road-accident was being witnessed by us an hour ago.

Past Perfect Tense

In active voice, the helping verb ‘had’ is used with all kinds of nouns and pronouns, followed by
past participles.

In passive voice, the helping verb ‘had been’ is used with all kinds of nouns and pronouns,
followed by past participles.

Examples:

i. I had baked the bread before noon.


The bread had been baked by me before noon.
ii. The burglars had stolen my goods.
My goods had been stolen by the burglars.
iii. Christiano Ronaldo had scored a goal before half-time.
A goal had been scored by Christiano Ronaldo before half-time.
iv. We had reached Karachi by 3 o’clock.
Karachi had been reached by us by 3 o’clock.

v. You had not paid heed to my advice.


My advice had not been paid heed to by you.
vi. The photographer had taken pictures of the beautiful sights before sunset.
Pictures of beautiful sights had been taken by the photographer before sunset.
vii. Gunfire had broken the windows of that building during World War II.
The windows of that building had been broken by gunfire during World War II.
viii. His father had never beaten him before.
He had never been beaten by his father before.
ix. Had the pilot flown an airplane before?
Had an airplane been flown by the pilot before?
x. Plague had infected a large population before the government took action.
A large population had been infected by plague before the government took action.

Exercise of Past Tense


i. The landlord had evicted the tenants two days ago.
__________________________________________
ii. She was taking a bath when the phone rang.
_________________________________________
iii. We were consulting our legal advisor last night.
_________________________________________
iv. The fast-moving bus had crushed the pedestrian’s skull before the driver could apply
the brakes.
___________________________________________________________________
v. A snake bit the traveler.
___________________________________
vi. We did not foresee this mishap.
___________________________________
vii. The mechanic had not repaired the air conditioner by 6th of this month.
viii.
______________________________________________________________

ix. The policeman was questioning the suspect.


____________________________________
x. Did the shopkeeper help the customer in finalizing his selection?
____________________________________________________
xi. Your negative criticism had demoralized her deeply.
__________________________________________________

Future Indefinite Tense

Active Voice:

I, We  will / shall

He, She, It, You, They, Singular Nouns, Plural Nouns  will

Base Form is used.

Passive Voice:

I, We  will be / shall be

He, She, It, You, They, Singular Nouns, Plural Nouns  will be

Past participle is used.


Examples:

i. I will perform my duties with diligence.


My duties will be performed by me with diligence.
ii. We shall help the poor and needy.
The poor and needy will be helped by us.
iii. They will raise their children with love.
Their children will be raised by them with love..
iv. These dangerous predators will find an easy prey.
An easy prey will be found by these dangerous predators.
v. You will not disobey your teachers again.
Your teachers will not be disobeyed by you again.
vi. Will they solve the sums?
Will the sums be solved by them?
vii. Will Kashmiris earn Freedom?
Will freedom be earned by Kashmiris?
viii. Will this storm damage the crops?
Will the crops be damaged by this storm?
ix. The owners will sell the old cars soon.
The old cars will be sold by the owners soon.
x. The musicians will play a beautiful symphony on the orchestra.
A beautiful symphony will be played by the musicians on the orchestra.

Future Continuous Tense

The passive voice for future continuous tense is very rarely used.

i. We will be watching television tonight.


Television will be being watched by us tonight.
ii. The patient will be battling cholera throughout his life.
Cholera will be being battled by the patient throughout his life.
iii. They will be having chicken for dinner tonight.
Chicken will be being had by them for dinner tonight.
iv. She will be selling her dog next week.
Her dog will be being sold by her next week.
v. You will not be creating a mess in your room from now on.
A mess will not be being created by you in your room from now on.
vi. The goat will not be giving milk until it recovers.
Milk will not be being given by the goat until it recovers.
vii. Will this train be reaching Lahore in three hours?
Will Lahore be being reached by this train in three hours?
Future Perfect tense

Active Voice:

Will have + past participle.

Passive Voice:

Will have been + past participle.

i. I will have reached home by noon.


Home will have been reached by me by noon.
ii. The maid will have removed the curtains by the time you reach home.
The curtains will have been removed by the maid by the time you reach home.
iii. The murderer will have fled the crime-scene before the police reaches.
The crime-scene will have been fled by the murderer before the police reaches.
iv. We will have decorated this house completely by this tome tomorrow.
This house will have been decorated by us completely by this time tomorrow.
v. The bank manager will not have cashed your cheque before then.
Your cheque will not have been cashed by the bank manager before then.
vi. The clown will have entertained the audience before the play starts.
The audience will have been entertained by the clown before the play starts.
vii. Will the zookeeper have locked the gate when we arrive?
Will the gate have been locked by the zookeeper when we arrive?
viii. The janitor will have cleaned the school-building before the students enter.
The school-building will have been cleaned by the janitor before the students enter.
ix. The players will have overcome their flaws before the match begins.
Their flaws will have been overcome by the players before the match begins.
x. Our army will not have defeated the enemy before 1998.
The enemy will not have been defeated by our army before 1998.

Exercise of Future Tense:

i. I will have read this book by midnight.


___________________________________
ii. Delegates of the two countries will be speaking French with each other.
______________________________________________________
iii. Refugees will have migrated to Peshawar by tomorrow.
______________________________________________
iv. I shall meet the agent after four days.
_______________________________
v. This medicine will cure your ailment in a few weeks.
________________________________________
vi. The Allied forces will have won the war in a couple of years.
____________________________________________________
vii. The reporter will be telling the actual story of the incident.
_____________________________________________
viii. Will these machines revolutionize the world?
________________________________________
ix. Will the camel have rested its head fully by the time you mount it?
_____________________________________________________
x. This new actress will be earning massive fame is some years.
__________________________________________________
xi. Will he not have accumulated a lot of wealth till 2015?
____________________________________________
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