Active and passive voice

What is a voice?

"Voice" falls under the grammatical category known as verbs. In English, the voice conveys how
the subject links to the action. The two values of voice are:

active voice: the subject performs the action

passive: The action is received by the subject.

The voice we employ most frequently is the active voice, or the "normal"
voice. In the active voice, the object receives the action of the verb:

active subject verb object

Cats eat mice.

Generally speaking, using the active voice strengthens, clarifies, and—you

guessed it—makes your writing more active. “The subject is something, or it
does the action of the verb in the sentence."
The passive voice is used less frequently. In the passive voice, the subject
receives the action of the verb:

passive subject verb object

Mice are eaten by cats.

When using the passive voice, “the subject is acted upon by some other
performer of the verb.”

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

●
Rules for Active and Passive Voice

● In passive voice sentences, the verb's active voice subject (they)

changes to the verb's passive voice object.
● As a general rule, passive voice expressions always use the third form
of the verb, also referred to as the past participle form of the verb (for
instance, eat, ate, eaten, which is the third form of a verb).
● Depending on the verb's tense, the auxiliary verb "be" (am, is, are, was,
were) is added before the past participle.
● In most cases, the preposition "by" is placed before the passive voice
sentence's object.
● When using the passive voice, you can occasionally omit the subject
entirely if the idea you're trying to convey is obvious. For that, you
simply need to use your judgment. For instance:

Active- weight is measured in kilograms.

Passive voice: Kilograms is a measurement unit for weight.

● Some specific verbs add fixed prepositions that take the place of "by"
after them. These verbs include: known to, surprised by/at, vexed by,
amazed by, contained in, annoyed with/at, tired of, filled with, decorated
with, and engulfed in. As an example,
Active- The fire engulfed the building.
Passive- The building was engulfed in the fire.
How do we differentiate between active and passive voice?

Simply ask the three questions below to distinguish between active and passive
voice:

1. What or who is the statement's subject?

2. What is the sentence's action/verb?
3. Is the subject of the sentence carrying out the action/verb?
If the last question yields a "yes," the sentence is written in the active voice; if it
yields a "no," the sentence is written in the passive voice.

Every time the verb form of the main verb is changed, the auxiliary word's tense
also changes. In order to comprehend them better, let's look at a few examples:

Voice and Tenses

Present Tense: Use the present simple tense to generalize, to describe a state
of being, or to denote a recurring or habitual 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

Auxiliary Verbs : am/is/are

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 denote an action that is anticipated to occur
in the future.
Active: He will take part in the game.
Passive- The match will be played by him.
Structure- Subject + will + be + past participle + by + object

Future perfect tense

Active: You will have started the task.
Passive- The task will have been started by you.

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

It is important to note that the future continuous and perfect continuous tenses do
not form passive voice.

The basic structure of a passive clause is very simple:

 subject + auxiliary + main verb + by + agent
verb
past
be participle

optional

Use of active
The active voice is almost universally used when speaking English. It is the
obvious option and is typically shorter and more precise.

The active voice is:

● explicit and precise

● reduces word usage, which is always a good thing.
● dynamic

The active voice is preferred unless there is a specific situation in which the
passive voice is appropriate.
Use of the passive

When and why do we use passive voice?

The passive voice is useful in a variety of situations, and the choice usually
refers to the "doer" (agent) or "receiver" of the action. Use the passive voice,
for instance, when:

1. we want to emphasize the receiver of the action:

● President John F. Kennedy was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald.

cf: Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy.

2. We have no idea who performed the action (the agent):

● My wallet was stolen.

cf: Somebody has stolen my wallet.

3. We think the agent is not important or interesting:

● Our house is being painted.

cf: XYZ Company is painting our house.

4. The agent is obvious:

 ● I am paid weekly.
cf: My company pays me weekly.

5. We are announcing or making generalizations:

● Passengers are reminded to fasten their seatbelts.

cf: The captain reminds passengers to fasten their seatbelts.

6. The agent is everyone:

● The emergency services can be called by dialing 999.

cf: The public can call the emergency services by dialling 999.

7. We are writing formal or scientific texts:

● Potassium was added and mixed in. The solution was heated to 80 °C and
then allowed to cool.
cf: The technician added potassium and mixed it in. The technician heated
the solution to 80°C and then allowed it to cool.

8. We want to avoid responsibility for our own actions (typically found in

government reports):
● Mistakes were made and, unfortunately never rectified.
cf: The Prime Minister made mistakes and unfortunately never rectified
them.