Active / Passive Verb Forms

Sentences can be active or passive. Therefore, tenses also have "active forms" and
"passive forms." You must learn to recognize the difference to successfully speak
English.
Active Form
In active sentences, the thing doing the action is the subect of the sentence and the
thing receiving the action is the obect. !ost sentences are active.
"Thing doing action# $ "verb# $ "thing receiving action#
E%amples&
Passive Form
In passive sentences, the thing receiving the action is the subect of the sentence and
the thing doing the action is optionally included near the end of the sentence. You can
use the passive form if you think that the thing receiving the action is more important or
should be emphasized. You can also use the passive form if you do not kno' 'ho is
doing the action or if you do not 'ant to mention 'ho is doing the action.
"Thing receiving action# $ "be# $ "past participle of verb# $ "by# $ "thing doing action#
E%amples&
Active / Passive Overview
(ctive )assive
Simple
)resent
*nce a 'eek, Tom cleans the
house.
*nce a 'eek, the house is
cleaned by Tom.
)resent
+ontinuous
,ight no', Sarah is writing the
letter.
,ight no', the letter is being
written by Sarah.
Simple )ast Sam repaired the car. The car was repaired by Sam.
)ast
+ontinuous
The salesman was helping the
customer 'hen the thief came
into the store.
The customer was being
helped by the salesman 'hen the
thief came into the store.
)resent
)erfect
!any tourists have visited that
castle.
That castle has been visited by
many tourists.
)resent
)erfect
+ontinuous
,ecently, -ohn has been
doing the 'ork.
,ecently, the 'ork has been
being done by -ohn.
)ast )erfect .eorge had repaired many cars
before he received his
mechanic/s license.
!any cars had been repaired by
.eorge before he received his
mechanic/s license.
)ast )erfect
+ontinuous
+hef -ones had been
preparing the restaurant/s
fantastic dinners for t'o years
before he moved to )aris.
The restaurant/s fantastic
dinners had been being
prepared by +hef -ones for t'o
years before he moved to )aris.
Simple 0uture
WILL
Someone will finish the 'ork by
1&22 )!.
The 'ork will be finished by 1&22
)!.
Simple 0uture
BE GOING TO
Sally is going to make a
beautiful dinner tonight.
( beautiful dinner is going to be
made by Sally tonight.
0uture
+ontinuous
WILL
(t 3&22 )! tonight, -ohn will be
washing the dishes.
(t 3&22 )! tonight, the dishes will
be being washed by -ohn.
0uture
+ontinuous
BE GOING TO
(t 3&22 )! tonight, -ohn is
going to be washing the
dishes.
(t 3&22 )! tonight, the dishes are
going to be being washed by
-ohn.
0uture
)erfect
WILL
They will have completed the
proect before the deadline.
The proect will have been
completed before the deadline.
0uture
)erfect
BE GOING TO
They are going to have
completed the proect before
the deadline.
The proect is going to have been
completed before the deadline.
0uture
)erfect
+ontinuous
WILL
The famous artist will have
been painting the mural for over
si% months by the time it is
finished.
The mural will have been being
painted by the famous artist for
over si% months by the time it is
finished.
0uture
)erfect
+ontinuous
BE GOING TO
The famous artist is going to
have been painting the mural
for over si% months by the time it
is finished.
The mural is going to have been
being painted by the famous artist
for over si% months by the time it is
finished.
4sed to -erry used to pay the bills. The bills used to be paid by -erry.
5ould (l'ays !y mother would always
make the pies.
The pies would always be
made by my mother.
0uture in the
)ast
WOULD
I kne' -ohn would finish the
'ork by 1&22 )!.
I kne' the 'ork would be
finished by 1&22 )!.
0uture in the
)ast
WAS GOING TO
I thought Sally was going to
make a beautiful dinner tonight.
I thought a beautiful dinner was
going to be made by Sally
tonight.
Active and Passive Voice
Summary:
This handout will explain the difference between active and passive voice in writing. It gives examples of
both, and shows how to turn a passive sentence into an active one. Also, it explains how to decide when to
choose passive voice instead of active.
Contributors:April Toadvine, Allen Brizee, Elizabeth Angeli
Last Edited: 2!!"#"!$ !!%!&%&2
Using Active Versus Passive Voice
In a sentence using active voice, the sub'ect of the sentence performs the action expressed in the
verb.
The arrow points from the subject performing the action (the dog) to the individual being acted upon (the
boy) This is an e!ample of a sentence using the active voice
Sample active voice sentence with the subject performing the action described by the verb
The active voice sentence subject (watching a framed" mobile world) performs the action of reminding the
spea#er of something
Each example above includes a sentence sub'ect performing the action expressed b( the verb.
)iew examples of verb tenses active voice

+hoosing bet'een (ctive and )assive 6oice 6erbs 'hen
5riting

4sually, effective 'riting uses the active voice and shuns the passive.
7evertheless, some situations are a'k'ard or inappropriate 'hen e%pressed
in the active voice. +ertainly, these situations call for the passive voice.

Reasons to use the passive voice:
The agent 8doer9 of the action is unimportant.
The pyramids were built thousands of years ago.
The agent is unkno'n.
Several robberies were committed during the night.
The agent is common kno'ledge, and mentioning it 'ould be
redundant.
.eorge :ush was elected in ;222.
The 'riter desires to control focus of sentence.
<9 to de=emphasize the agent>s role in the action
o The alarm 'as triggered by my son. ")assive construction
shifts focus a'ay from the son>s responsibility.#
;9 to emphasize the party receiving the action
ack 'as kicked by -ill.

Reasons to use the active voice:
The active voice is shorter and more direct.
+ompare.
Active: The 'aiter dropped the tray of food.
Passive: The tray of food 'as dropped by the 'aiter.
The active voice is less a'k'ard and clearly states relationship
bet'een subect and action.
+ompare.
Passive: Your re?uest for funding has been denied by the revie'
committee.
Active: The revie' committee denied your re?uest for funding.
The active voice sentence pattern propels the reader for'ard
through your 'riting thus avoiding 'eak prose.

4sed 'ith permission from *regon State 4niversity :usiness 5riting 'eb
page by @onna Sha' '''.orst.edu

!dentifying Passive Voice Verbs (, <A;<A2;
6erbs have t'o voices& active and passive.
In active voice sentences" the verb e%presses the action in the sentence, the
subect performs the action, and the obect is the recipient of the action. (ctive
sentences follo' the pattern& subect=verb=obect.
-ill kicked -ack.
In a passive voice sentence" the subect and obect flip=flop. The subect
becomes the passive recipient of the action.
-ack 'as kicked by -ill.
Form of Passive Voice Verbs
The passive voice re?uires a "double verb" and 'ill al'ays consist of a form of
the verb "to be" and the past participle 8usually the "enAedAt" form9 of another
verb. E%ample& is kicked
5riters should be familiar 'ith the forms of "to be" so that they can easily
identify the passive voice in their 'ork.
,evie' the forms of "to be"& am, is, are, 'as, 'ere, be, being, been
7ote the forms of "to be" in the e%amples of the verb "to kick" in various forms
of the passive voice&
is kicked================had been kicked
was kicked=============is going to be kicked
is being kicked========='ill be kicked
has been kicked=======can be kicked
'as being kicked======should be kicked
*ften passive voice sentences 'ill contain a #by# phrase indicting 'ho or
'hat performed the action. )assive sentences can be easily transformed into
active sentences 'hen the obect of the preposition "by" is moved to the
subect position in the sentence.
)assive& The cookies 'ere eaten by the children.
(ctive& The children ate the cookies.
)assive& The tunnels are dug by the gophers.
(ctive& The gophers dug the tunnels.

$evel %: &irections: 'hange the sentences below to the passive voice(
<. +hildren cannot open these bottles easily.
;. The government built a road right outside her front door.
B. !r. ,oss broke the anti?ue vase as he 'alked through the store.
C. 5hen she arrived, the changes amazed her.
1. The construction 'orkers are making street repairs all month long.
D. The party 'ill celebrate his retirement.
E. Fis professors 'ere discussing his oral e%am right in front of him.
3. !y son ate all the homemade cookies.
G. +orrosion had damaged the hull of the ship.
<2. Some children 'ere visiting the old homestead 'hile I 'as
there.

&irections: 'hange the sentences below to the active voice.
<. The statue is being visited by hundreds of tourists every year.
;. !y books 'ere stolen by someone yesterday.
B. These books had been left in the classroom by a careless
student.
C. +offee is raised in many parts of Fa'aii by plantation 'orkers.
1. The house had been broken into by someone 'hile the o'ners
'ere on vacation.
D. ( 'oman 'as being carried do'nstairs by a very strong
firefighter.
E. The streets around the fire had been blocked off by the police.
3. Fave you seen the ne' movie that 'as directed by ,on Fo'ardH
G. !y car is in the garage being fi%ed by a dubious mechanic.
<2. ( great deal of our oil 'ill have been e%ported to other
countries by our government.

4sed 'ith permission from *regon State 4niversity :usiness 5riting 'eb
page by @onna Sha' '''.orst.edu

$evel ) Revision Practice: Avoiding Passive Voice Verbs
,ead this essay carefully paying special attention to passive voice verbs.
,evise the essay by changing the passive verbs into active verbs 'here
appropriate.
!istakes
1. Technological civilization has reached its
2. present "advanced" state by the trial=and=error behavior of
3. those 'ho lived before us. !any of the most useful
4. discoveries and inventions 'ere the result of mistakes 'hen
5. people 'ere looking for something else. The 7e' 5orld 'as
6. found by +olumbus, 'ho 'as really looking for India. The
7. discovery of penicillin 'as speeded by somebody 'ho left a
8. loaf of bread out to get moldy. Think ho' far behind
9. ourselves 'e>d be no' if mistakes 'ere impossible for us to
10. make.
11. *ur kno'ledge is also increased by our mistakes, if
12. only because once a mistake has been made, a 'ay of
13. correcting it must be found. If the mistake had not been
14. made by us in the first place, 'e might have had no reason
15. to learn ho' things are done. (s I 'rote the first version
16. of this essay, I made a fe' minor errors. (s a result of my
17. mistakes, since I did discover them, I learned the
18. difference bet'een continuous and continualI I learned that
19. useful has only one l 8and that the rule goes for hundreds
20. of other 'ords, like 'asteful, harmful, spoonful9I and I
21. learned ho' to use a semicolon 'hen a comma 'on>t do.
22. Fad I made no mistakes in the first place, I might
23. have had a pretty good essay, but I 'ould still not have
24. kno'n 'hy.
25. *f course, mistakes have to be recognized for 'hat they
26. are. If +olumbus had thought San Salvador 'as India and let
27. things go at that, the 'orld 'ould be smaller today. Fad
28. the moldy bread been tossed to the birds, the birds might
29. have become healthy 'hile human life 'ent on suffering from
30. raging diseases. 8I realize these statements are some'hat
31. doubtful, but no' I>m so curious about +olumbus and
32. penicillin that I>m going to learn the real facts
33. tomorro'.9
34. !istakes are made by computers, but only rarely by
35. comparison 'ith the human brain>s continual bumbling. Fuman
36. beings, one might say, have emotions and desires and
37. preudices that mistakes are the result of. Those ?uirks,
38. are not things that computers have. @istractions,
39. and fatigue are suffered by human beings but not by
40. computers. So it is possible to say that 'e are in a bit of
41. danger. If the time should ever come 'hen most of the
42. 'orld>s 'ork is done by computers rather than by people,
43. fe'er mistakes 'ill be made. (nd fe'er mistakes 'ill mean
44. fe'er of those useful discoveries and inventions brought
45. about by the stumblings of the human species.

(dapted from Readable Writing: Revising for Style by F. 5endell Smith p <<;=
<<C

Answers for $evel ) Revision Practice: Avoiding Passive Voice Verbs
You should have used the active voice to replace passive in lines 1=D, E=3, <<,
<;, <, ;1, BC, BE, BG, and C;=CB. ,emember an occasional passive=voice
sentence, if not a'k'ard, may be appropriate.

*ote Style: Ten Lessons in !larity " Gra#e by -oseph !. 5illiams contains a
really nice discussion of passive voice and e%ercises 8pp. E;=3B9. The book is
located in the style section of the 5riting +enter library.


$evel +: ,orking with Passive Voice 'onstructions

@irections& Identify and eliminate the passive constructions in the sentences
belo'.
1. The particular topic chosen by the instructor for study in his
section of English ; must be approved by the Steering
+ommittee. "Fint& Start 'ith "The Steering +ommittee."#
2. ,ecommendations concerning the type of study needed to assure
ade?uate definition of the larger problem and develop feasible
options in programs designed to eliminate or greatly reduce both
the direct and indirect effects 'ithin a reasonable time and at
acceptable cost 'ere presented in the report. ":egin 'ith "The
report."#
3. (voidance of such blunders should not be considered a virtue for
'hich the student is to be commended, any more than he 'ould
be praised for not 'iping his hands on the tablecloth or polishing
his shoes 'ith guest to'els. "Fint& :egin 'ith "5e should not."#
4. +ollaborative analytical determinations 'ere utilized to assess the
probable conse?uences of mechanical failure. "Start 'ith
"(nalysts."#
5. The difference bet'een restrictives and nonrestrictives can also
be better approached through a study of the different contours
that mark the utterance of the t'o kinds of element than through
confusing attempts to differentiate the t'o by meaning. ""*ne
can."#
6. Individuals 'hose income is insufficient to lift them above poverty
must be provided 'ith assistance from public sources. "Start
active, and try "Supplement."#
7. In the ne%t thirty=five years it is e%pected that there 'ill be more
engineering 'ork to be done than has been done in all of
recorded history."!ake "The ne%t thirty=five years" the subect.#
8. If e%pansion is not accomplished, then t'o less=efficient
alternatives must be acted upon& either the book sales 'ill have to
be in separate ?uarters or else the 'hole enterprise 'ill have to
be moved to a ne' location. "Try "'e."#
9. Trees on average sites are e%pected to be about t'enty inches in
diameter 'hen they are eighty years old if they are managed
properly since youth. "Start "!anaged properly."#
10. (ny amended declaration should be filed 'ith the Internal
,evenue *ffice 'ith 'hom the original declaration 'as filed even
if you move to another district.