In the active voice, the subject is performing an action:

The dog chases the ball.

Notice how the subject, dog, is performing the action, chase, on the target of the action, ball. This is a simple, direct example of the active voice.

In the passive voice, the action’s target, ball, is positioned first as the focus of the sentence. The sentence gets flipped, and the subject is now being acted upon by the verb. In other words, the subject is passive:

The ball is being chased by the dog.

Active and passive are the two grammatical voices in English. Neither is inherently better than the other, but each is suited to certain types of writing. There’s a reason why news anchors sound detached from the stories they’re reporting: They often speak using the passive voice. There’s also a reason why the authors of opinion pieces sound so sure of their positions: They usually write in the active voice.

Active voice

As we’ve learned, in the active voice, the sentence’s subject performs the action. Here are two examples of sentences in the active voice:

Shira likes birdwatching.

She loves twilight.

No matter what verb you use, structuring your sentence so the subject performs the verb is writing in the active voice.

The active voice has a direct, clear tone. Use it when you want the reader to focus on the subject of your sentence and the action it is doing rather than on the action’s target.

Passive voice

In the passive voice, the action’s target is the focus, and the verb acts upon the subject. Or, to put it in the passive voice, the subject is acted upon by the verb. Every sentence in the passive voice contains two verbs:

    A conjugated form of “to be”
    The main verb’s past participle

Take a look at the previous examples, now written in passive voice:

Birdwatching is liked by Shira.

Twilight is loved by her.

Active and passive voice usage

Although you may have been told that writing in the passive voice is “bad writing,” it’s actually more nuanced than that. For most of the writing you do, like emails, blog posts, and many kinds of essays, the active voice is a more effective way to communicate the ideas, themes, and facts you’re expressing.

In certain kinds of writing, though, the passive voice is necessary. Think about how news reports about crime and incidents are usually written and delivered:

A car was broken into on Elm Street last night.

Cash was stolen from the register.

Structure of Active and Passive Voice 

Active voice describes a sentence where the subject is the doer of an   action. Its structure goes like this-                     Subject + Verb+ Object 

Passive voice expresses an action that is carried out on the subject of the sentence. Its structure is-                     Object + verb +subject

Active and passive voice examples

Take a look at these examples of both the active and passive voices in action:

Active: Is Ajani visiting us today?

Passive: Will we be visited by Ajani today?

As you see, questions can be written in either voice. Other kinds of sentences, like exclamatory and imperative sentences, are often best written in the active voice:

Active: Please remove your shoes before entering my house.

Passive: Shoes should be removed before entering my house.

Active: Lock the door!

Passive: Let the door be locked!

Here are Certain Rules for Active and Passive Voice 

• The subject of the verb in the active voice(they) becomes the object in the Passive voice sentences. 
•  It is a thumb rule that passive voice phrases, as a rule, always use the third form of the verb, also known as the past participle form of the verb (example- eat, ate, eaten- eaten is the third form of a verb).   
• Auxiliary verb ‘be’ (am, is are, was, were) is added before the past participle according to the tense of the verb. 
• Generally ‘by’ is used before the object of the passive voice sentences. 
• If the notion you’re attempting to express is obvious, you may sometimes drop the subject entirely from the passive voice. You just have to make a judgement call for that. For example:  

         Active– weight is measured in kilograms. 
         Passive voice: Kilograms is a measurement unit for weight.  

• The certain verb takes fixed prepositions after them that replaces ‘by’. Some of these verbs are- known to, surprised by/at, vexed by, amazed by, contained in, annoyed with/at, tired of, filled with, decorated with, engulfed in. For example  Active- The fire engulfed the building.  Passive- The building was engulfed in the fire.

  Voice and Tenses

  Present Tense– Use the simple present tense to make a generalisation, present a state of being, or indicate a habitual or repeated action.

  Active- I write a novel.

  Passive-  A novel is written by me.

  Structure- Subject + auxiliary verb + past participle of the main verb+ by + object.

  Present Continuous– Use the present progressive to describe an ongoing activity or a temporary action.

  Active- I am eating breakfast.

  Passive- The breakfast is being eaten by me.

  Structure-  Subject + auxiliary verb + being + by + object

  Present Perfect– Use the present perfect to describe an action occurring in the past but relevant to the present or extending to the present.   

  Active- I have played the game.

  Passive- A game has been played by me.

  Structure- Subject + has/have been + past participle + by + object

  Past Tense– Use the simple past to indicate a general or habitual action occurring in the past or at a specific time in the past.

  Active- I invited you to the party.

  Passive- You were invited by me to the party.

  Structure- Subject+be+ past participle+by+ object

  Questions  

  Active- Did you show me the dress?

  Passive- Was I shown the dress by you?

  Past Continuous– Use the past progressive to indicate an ongoing action in the past or an action continuing through a specific past time.   

  Active- I was playing video games.

  Passive- The video games were being played by me.

  Structure-  Subject+auxiliary verb + being+ past participle + by +object

  Past Perfect– Use the past perfect to indicate an action completed before a particular time or before another action in the past.

  Active- You had done the work.

  Passive- The work had been done by you.

  Structure- Subject+had+been+past participle + by + object

  Future Tense– Use the future to indicate an action that is expected to take place at a future time.

  Active- He will play the match.

  Passive- The match will be played  

  Structure- Subject+will+be+past participle +by+object

  Future perfect tense  

  Active- you will have started the job.  

  Passive- The job will have been started by you.  

  Structure- subject shall/will have been past participle by subject.  

  Note that Future continuous and perfect continuous tenses do not form passive voice.

  Change the sentences to passive voice.

1. The Browns have built the large house.
2. A jellyfish stung her while she was swimming.
3. They gave her a nice present.
4. Jane is singing the new song.
5. The storm destroyed the house.
6. People spent a lot of Monday on the first shopping Saturday.
7. How do you write that word?
8. She watered the flowers every day.
9. The headmaster called his parents to the office.
10. Ben will direct the show.
11. The dog has broken the window pane.
12. You must pay the bill first.
13. They were interviewing her for the job.
14. The professor told him not to talk in class.
15. You shouldn’t speak to your neighbor.
16. Do not leave your bicycle in the hall.
17. Can you learn French easily?
18. Your impolite tone surprises me.
19. James will repair the car.
20. An unknown author wrote the book.
21. They forced him to steal the money out of his dad’s room.
22. Our neighbors have invited us to dinner.
23. Why are they tearing down the old theatre?
24. I will present my ideas at the conference tonight.
25. She would have told you

Rewrite the sentences in the passive voice.

1. They will read out the names of the winners in tomorrow’s show.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
2. The shop assistant offered a refund to the customer.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Look! someone has broken the vase.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
4. The police are investigating the murder.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
5. Candidates must write their answers in ink.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
6. The judge shouldn’t have postponed the hearing.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
7. They said that he was innocent.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
8. They make all of the components in foreign factories.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
9. I don’t like people lying to me.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
10. Picasso painted Guernica in 1937.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
11. People have fought wars throughout history.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
12. They have often described New York as the busiest city in the world.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
13. Nobody has done the washing up.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
14. They are demolishing the stadium so the team can’t play any games there.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
15. The city authorities sold the land three years ago.
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Fill in the correct passive form of the verb.

1.Romeo and Juliet ___________________ by Shakespeare. (WRITE)
2. The books _________________________ yet. (NOT PUBLISH)
3. As soon as I got home, I realized that my wallet _________________________. (STEAL)
4. Dinner _________________________ between 5 and 10 p.m. every day. (SERVE)
5. No letters _________________________ since the start of the strike. (DELIVER)
6. The building _________________________ torn down when we got there (BE).
7. Progress in many fields of science _________________________ in the last decade. (MAKE)
8. Since last week 5 of the 7 terrorists _________________________. (CATCH)
9. Taxes _________________________ by the new government next month. (INCREASE)
10. The classroom _________________________ next week. (REDECORATE)
11. The church _________________________ by a famous architect in the 18th century.
(DESIGN)
12. The tunnel _________________________ at the moment, so it’s closed for all traffic.
(REPAIR)
13. My phone _________________________. I can’t find it anywhere. (TAKE)
14. The application _________________________ by Friday. (MUST SEND)
15. When we first met, I had _________________________ a job at the bank. (ALREADY OFFER)
16. Olives _________________________ in Mediterranean countries. (GROW)
17. He _________________________ French when he spent his childhood there. (TEACH)
18. “
A Hard Days Night” _________________________ by the Beatles. (WRITE)
19. We _________________________ about the hurricane for the last few days. (WARN)
20. Before the meeting was over all the food _________________________. (EAT)
21. I _____________________________ extra pay this month. (ALREADY GIVE)
22. I _________________________ by the music so I couldn’t concentrate. (DISTURB)
23. Aluminium _________________________ out of bauxite. (MAKE)
24. _________________________________________ yet? (THE PACKAGES , DELIVER)
25. A UFO _________________________ by several witnesses yesterday evening. (SEE)