Present simple passive voice examples. Present simple passive, past simple passive, future simple passive: (passive voice present, past and future simple)
If the subject denotes a person or thing performing an action, then the predicate verb is used in the form active voice. In other words, we know who is performing the action:
- He (who?) helped (what did?) me.
- Workers (who?) are repairing the bridge.
If the subject denotes a person or thing being acted upon by another person or thing, then the predicate verb is used in the form passive voice. That is, for some reason the person performing the action is omitted:
- They helped me (who? - not known).
- The bridge is being repaired.
The passive voice is used:
- When it is obvious or vice versa, it does not matter who performs the action: The food was cooked. (We don't know who prepared the food.) The skirt is being washed. (It doesn't matter who washes the skirt.)
- When the action itself is more important than its performer: The criminal will be arrested. - The criminal will be arrested.
- When the speaker wants to avoid responsibility for what was done or when the event being discussed is unpleasant and we do not want to mention the culprit: Hundreds of people were injured in the bus crash. – Hundreds of people were injured in the bus accident.
- When the emphasis is on the performers of the action: The flowers were sent by the Queen herself. – The flowers were sent by the queen herself.
- To make a statement more polite or formal: My umbrella was ruined. - My umbrella was broken (a more polite phrase for someone who broke it.)
Formation of the passive voice
The passive voice is formed using a verb to be (in the right tense) + 3rd form of the semantic verb(if the semantic verb is correct, the ending -ed is added to it).
Active Present Simple (Present simple tense)
Ann cooks supper. Ann cooks dinner (usually, always)
Supper is cooked by Ann.
Dinner is being prepared by Ann.
Present Continuous
(Present continuous tense)
Ann is cooking supper. Ann is preparing dinner (right now).
Supper is being cooked by Ann.
Dinner is being prepared by Ann (right now).
Present Perfect Simple
(Present perfect tense)
Ann has cooked supper. Ann cooked dinner (the action is related to the present)
Supper has been cooked by Ann.
Dinner was prepared by Ann.
Present Perfect Continuous
(Present perfect continuous tense)
Recently, Ann has been cooking supper. Ann has been cooking dinner lately (she still cooks it)
Does not exist
Past Simple
(Past simple tense)
Ann cooked supper. Ann prepared dinner.
Supper was cooked by Ann. Dinner was prepared by Ann.
Past Continuous (Past continuous tense)
Ann was cooking supper. Ann was preparing dinner (a process that took some time in the past).
Supper was being cooked by Ann.
Dinner was prepared by Ann.
Past Perfect Simple
(Past perfect tense)
Ann had cooked supper. Ann cooked dinner (she did this before another action took place in the past, for example, the guests came after Ann cooked dinner).
Supper had been cooked by Ann.
Dinner was prepared by Ann.
Past Perfect Continuous
(Past perfect continuous tense)
Ann had been cooking supper for two years before she moved to London. Anne cooked dinner for two years until she moved to London.
Not used. Instead of this form, the passive voice uses the form Past Perfect.
Future Simple
(Future simple tense)
Ann will cook supper. Ann will cook dinner.
Supper will be cooked by Ann.
Dinner will be prepared by Ann.
Future Perfect Simple
(Future perfect tense)
Ann will have cooked supper. Anne will cook dinner (dinner will be ready until a certain point in the future).
Supper will have been cooked by Ann.
Dinner will be prepared by Ann.
Future Perfect Continuous
(Future perfect continuous tense)
Ann will have been cooking supper for three hours by the time it is finished. Ann will cook dinner for three hours until dinner is ready.
Does not exist
Future-in-the-Past
(Future tense in past)
I knew David would finish the work at 7:00 pm. I knew David would finish work by 7 pm.
I knew the work would be finished at 7:00 pm.
I knew that the work would be finished by 7 pm.
Future-in-the-Past Perfect
(Future perfect tense in past)
Ann mentioned that they should have taken me to the party. Ann remembered that they were supposed to take me to the party.
Ann mentioned that I should have been taken to the party. Ann remembered that I was supposed to be taken to a party.
Infinitive (Infinitive)
Ann has to cook supper. Ann must cook dinner.
Supper has to be cooked by Ann.
Dinner must be prepared by Ann.
Modal verbs
(Modal verbs)
Ann can cook supper. Ann can cook dinner.
Supper can be cooked by Ann. Dinner can be prepared by Ann.
Design John used to pay the bills. The bills used to be paid by John.
Design
would always
My grandmother would always make the cakes. The cakes would always be made by my grandmother. to be going to
Phoebe is going to make a beautiful supper tonight. Phoebe is going to cook a wonderful dinner tonight.
A beautiful supper is going to be made by Phoebe tonight.
A wonderful dinner will be prepared by Phoebe this evening.
Turnover to be going to+ perfect infinitive
(have + 3rd form of the verb)
Our team is going to have completed the project before the deadline. Our team is going to complete the project before the end of the appointed time.
The project is going to have been completed before the deadline. The project is scheduled to be completed before the end of the designated period.
- In order to form negation, put a negative particle not after an auxiliary verb: Supper was not cooked by Ann. – Dinner was not prepared by Ann. Formation of negative and interrogative forms in the passive voice
- In order to form question in the passive voice, put the auxiliary verb first: Was supper cooked by Ann? – Was dinner prepared by Anne?
Notes:
- Only transitive verbs(verbs that have a direct object) can be in the passive voice. Active: Sarah swims every day. – Sarah swims every day (not a transitive verb, you cannot form the passive voice.)
- Some transitive verbs – ( have, fit, seem, resemble, suit, lack) do not have a passive voice form: This color suits you. - This color suits you. (This color is suited by you.)
- The performer of an action cannot be omitted if he is important: The novel was written by Agatha Christie. – The novel was written by Agatha Christie.
- In colloquial speech, when discussing unexpected events or incidents, instead of the verb to be, the verb to get is used: He got hit by a car. - He was hit by a car.
- By + action performer used to denote the one who performed the action. With + tool/material/ingredient used to indicate what was used to perform an action: These photographs were taken by my friend. They were taken with a digital camera. – These photographs were taken by my friend. They were taken using a digital camera.
- If the subject in the active voice is expressed in words they, he, someone/somebody, people, one etc., then the noun denoting the performer can be omitted: People have discovered the truth. = The truth has been discovered. – The truth was revealed by people. = The truth has been revealed.
- For verbs that have two objects - bring, tell, send, show, teach, promise, sell, read, offer, give, lend, You can form two versions of the passive voice: Mark will send Mary a gift (Active). Mark will send Mary a gift. Mary will be sent a gift. - Mary will be sent a gift. (more typical form). A gift will be sent to Mary by Mark. – The gift will be sent by Mark for Mary. (less typical form)
- In questions with question words with who, whom, which by not omitted: Who gave you this letter? — Who were you given this letter by? -Who gave you this letter?
- After verbs hear, see, help and make followed by an infinitive with a particle to. He made me laugh (He made me laugh (made me laugh)). – I was made to laugh (They made me laugh).
In order to master verb forms in the passive voice, you first need to master them in the active voice. We wish you success!
The passive voice, or as it is also called, the passive voice, always strikes awe in English language learners. But in reality, it's not all that scary. Let's find out!
What is passive voice?
We use the passive voice when we talk about an object on which some action is performed, and also when the sentence does not indicate who performs the action. For example,
Those pancakes were baked by my granny.
Those pancakes were baked by grandma.
In this sentence, the performer of the action is the grandmother, but the emphasis is on the subject.
Her book is stolen.
Her book has been stolen.
And in the second example, the object that performed the action is unknown.
How the passive voice is constructed depending on tenses
In this section we will show you how the passive voice will be constructed in different tenses of the English language.
Let's start with the fact that the construction is based on the to be + 3 form of the verb, and depending on the tense it is used in different variations.
Present Simple- to be + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice(active voice): They usually visit their granny.
They usually visit their granny.
Passive Voice: Their granny is usually visit ed.
Their grandmother is often visited.
Present Continuous- to be + being + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They are visiting their granny now.
Now they are visiting their grandmother.
Passive Voice: Their granny is being visit ed now.
Their grandmother is now being visited.
Present Perfect- have/has + been + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They have just visited their granny
They just visited their grandmother.
Passive Voice: Their granny has just been visit ed.
Their granny just got a visit.
to be going to- to be going to +be + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They are going to visit their granny.
They are going to visit their grandmother.
Passive Voice: Their granny is going to be visit ed.
They are going to visit their grandmother.
Past Simple- was/were + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They visited their granny yesterday.
They visited their grandmother yesterday.
Passive Voice: Their granny was visit ed yesterday.
Their grandmother was visited yesterday.
Past Continuous- was/were + being + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They were visiting their granny from 5 to 8 yesterday.
They visited their grandmother yesterday from 5 to 8.
Passive Voice: Their granny was be ing visit ed from 5 to 8 yesterday.
Yesterday they visited grandma from 5 to 8.
Past Pefect- had + been + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They had visited their granny before I came.
They visited their granny before I arrived.
Passive Voice: Their granny had been visit ed before I came.
Their grandmother was visited before I arrived.
Used to- used to + be + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They used to visit their granny every week.
They used to visit grandma every week.
Passive Voice: Their granny used to be visit ed every week.
Their grandmother used to be visited every week.
Future Simple- will/shall + be + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They will probably visit their granny next week.
They'll probably visit their granny next week.
Passive Voice: Their granny will be visit ed next week.
Their granny will probably be visited next week.
Modal verbs- can/should/may/must/might/ have to/ ought to + be + 3rd form of the verb
Active Voice: They should visit their granny more often.
They should visit their granny more often.
Passive Voice: Their granny should be visit ed more often.
Their grandmother should be visited more often.
Prepositions in the passive voice
If you still need to indicate who performed the action, or how it was performed, then do not forget to use the necessary prepositions: by and with, where by indicates the performer, and with indicates the subject of the action.
Their granny was visited by my parents.
My parents visited their grandmother.
This cut was done with scissors.
This cut was made with scissors.
The Passive Voice shows that the person or thing designated by the subject are the objects of the action expressed by the predicate:
She was woken from her sleep by his singing. - She was awakened by his singing.
Education
The Passive Voice formed using an auxiliary verb to be in the appropriate tense, person and number and past participle of the semantic verb Participle II:
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The table of English verb tenses in the passive voice is printed in the appendix on pp. 265-267.
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For example:
Negative and interrogative forms are formed according to the same rules as active voice forms:
In the negative form, the particle is substituted after the auxiliary verb:
John isn't helped by Mary. - Mary doesn't help John.
In the complex form of the auxiliary verb, the particle not is placed after the first auxiliary verb:
John hasn't been helped by Mary. - Mary didn't help John.
Is John helped by Mary? - Does Mary help John?
Has John been helped by Mary? - Did Mary help John?
The predicate in the active voice, expressed by a combination of one of the modal verbs can (could), may (might), should, ought etc. with the infinitive of the active voice, in the passive voice the combination of the same modal verb with the infinitive of the passive voice corresponds:
We must finish our work as soon as possible. - We must finish the job as soon as possible.
Our work must be finished as soon as possible. - Our work must be completed as soon as possible.
You ought to translate this article at once. - You should translate this article right away.
This article ought to be translated at once. - This article should be translated immediately.
If a passive construction indicates the performer of an action, expressed by an animate noun or pronoun, it is preceded by a preposition by:
If the construction indicates the object or material with which the action is performed, the preposition is used with:
The room was filled with smoke. - The room was full of smoke.
The finger was cut with a knife. - My finger was cut with a knife.
There are verbs in the English language, the use of which in the passive is most often impossible without by-phrase, i.e. phrases indicating the actor of the action being performed: to follow, to overtake, to seize, to visit, to govern, to characterize, to attract, to control, to rule, to influence, to confront, to attend, to accompany, to join, to cause, to bring about, to mark etc.:
Not followed by the police. - The police are pursuing him.
“Passivity is a hidden form of despair,” says Exupery. And for many English learners, the passive voice is even an overt form of despair.
Before we talk in detail about the passive voice in English, let's test your language sense (or how well you remember the topic). Do a little exercise:
If your answer is 2, congratulations! You did everything right. If it's 1, 3 or 4, then there's an error somewhere. But I congratulate you too - the article is just for you!
Passive Voice - passive voice. In Russian it is called passive (but the English term, in my opinion, better reflects the meaning). In the active, or active, voice, someone or something that is the subject of the sentence itself performs the action, in the passive voice - the object is passive, does nothing, waits for an action to be performed on it.
Compare:
I knitted a scarf. (I did this myself). - The scarf is knitted. (The scarf didn't do anything; someone else tied it).
He translated the article. (He did it himself). - The article was translated (It is important that the action was performed on the article, the article did not do anything, it experienced the action).
Why is Passive Voice needed?
It is needed when the performer of the action (agent) is unknown, unimportant or obvious, and the focus of attention is on the action. If we mention the performer, it is through the preposition by.
Look at the examples in the passive voice:
These cameras are made in China. - the performer is unimportant.
I was born in 1986. - the performer is obvious (all mothers give birth).
His wallet was stolen. - performer unknown.
Structure of the passive voice
S + BE + Ved/V3
S- this is the subject. The main thing to remember is that the passive voice ALWAYS has (which changes depending on the tense) and the semantic verb always ends in -ed if it is correct or in the 3rd form (past participle) if it is .
Let's compare the sentences of the active (active) voice with the corresponding sentences of the passive (passive) voice in different tenses.
| Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|
| PRESENT SIMPLE（occurs regularly, “in general”）S + am/is/are +Ved/V3 | |
| I wash my car every week. I wash my car every week. She often buys clothes here. | My car is washed every week. My car is washed every week. Clothes are often bought here (by her). |
| PAST SIMPLE (completed action in the past, fact) S + was/were + Ved/V3 | |
| I washed my car 3 days ago. I washed my car 3 days ago. She ate Italian pizza yesterday. | My car was washed 3 days ago. My car was washed (my car was washed) 3 days ago. Italian pizza was eaten yesterday. |
| PRESENT CONTINUOUS (lasts now) S + am/is/are+ BEING + Ved/V3 | |
| I am washing my car now. I'm washing my car now. A thief is stealing your money! | My car is being washed now. My car is currently being washed (it is being “washed”). Your money is being stolen(by a thief)! |
| PAST CONTINUOUS (lasted in the past) S + was/were + BEING + Ved/V3 | |
| I was washed my car yesterday at 5. Yesterday at 5 I was washing the car. Someone was reading the article. | My car was being washed yesterday at 5. Yesterday at 5 my car was washed. The article was being read. |
| FUTURE SIMPLE (spontaneous decision in the future, order, request, promise) S+will+BE+ Ved/V3 | |
| I will wash my car tomorrow. I'll wash my car tomorrow! I will do my homework! | My car will be washed tomorrow. Tomorrow my car will be washed! My homework will be done. |
| FUTURE CONTINUOUS (will last in the future) DOESN'T EXIST - HURRAY ^_^ | |
| PRESENT PERFECT (something Done to date, result) S + have/has +BEEN + Ved/V3 | |
| I have already washed my car. I've already washed the car. I' ve just made an announcement. | My car has been washed. My car has already been washed. An announcement has just been made. |
| PAST PERFECT (result to the past, happened BEFORE another past action) S + had + BEEN + Ved/V3 |
|
| By the time you called me, I had already washed my car. By the time you called me, I had already washed the car. I had sold my car before you called me. | My car had already been washed. The car has already been washed. My car had been sold before you called me. |
| FUTURE PERFECT (will happen at some point in the future) S + will + have + BEEN + Ved/V3 | |
| I will have washed my car by the end of the week. I'll wash the car by the end of the week. I will have completed this task by tomorrow. | My car will have been washed. My car will be washed by the end of the week. This task will have been completed. |
| MODAL VERBS S + can/must/should/may…+ BE + Ved/V3 | |
| I should wash my car. I should wash my car. She can understand it. | My car should be washed. My car needs to be washed. It can be understood. |
| BE GOING TO (get together, intend) S + am/is/are/was/were + going to + BE + Ved/V3 | |
| I' m going to wash my car. I'm going to wash the car. They are going to tell the truth. | My car is going to be washed. My car is about to be washed (my car is "about to be washed") The truth is going to be told. |
What prepositions are used in the passive voice?
If the performer of the action is indicated, then the preposition is used BY:
It was done by Mike. This was done by Mike.
If the material or tool with which the action is performed is indicated, then the preposition is with.
It has been cut with a knife. It's cut with a knife.
If the performer turns out to be someone unspecified (people, somebody, someone, they), then he is not indicated in the passive voice.
People believe that it brings bad luck. - it is believed that it brings bad luck.
Phrasal verbs in passive voice
Please note that prepositions are retained.
She looked after him when he was sick. - No was looked after when he was sick.
QuestionsVpassivepledge
The rule of construction is the same in the English language - reverse word order.
Where was it done?
When should it be sent?
What is it made of?
What are you congratulated on?
Passive designs
When we get some services done (hair cutting, TV repair, nails painted, etc.) the HAVE SMTH DONE design is used. In such a construction, the verb HAVE will change in accordance with time, and the semantic verb, as elsewhere in the passive voice, will always be in the third form.
For example,
I always have my car washed here.
I' m having my TV fixed now.
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