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Passive Notes

The document discusses the passive voice and its uses. The passive voice is used when the subject of the sentence is not the doer of the action. It is commonly used in formal writing and news reports to take an impersonal tone. The passive voice is formed using some form of 'to be' plus the past participle of the main verb. It is generally avoided in informal conversation.

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Emeraude Lusala
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17 views

Passive Notes

The document discusses the passive voice and its uses. The passive voice is used when the subject of the sentence is not the doer of the action. It is commonly used in formal writing and news reports to take an impersonal tone. The passive voice is formed using some form of 'to be' plus the past participle of the main verb. It is generally avoided in informal conversation.

Uploaded by

Emeraude Lusala
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Passive forms with be

In passive sentences the subject of the sentence is not the “doer” of the verb (the agent) – unlike in
active sentences.
Active: Someone stole my phone!
Passive: My phone was stolen!
Normally the agent is not included in a passive sentence because it is not important or it is obvious
who the agent is. A third option is that we want to avoid saying who is responsible.
A man is being interviewed in connection with the attack – the relevant documents have been
lost
But if the agent is important, we use by.
Paper money was invented by the Chinese
Please note the passive of the continuous forms:
Don’t you worry about being attacked? – he was upset about having been omitted from the
final list
The passive infinitive (without to) is often used after modals:
There is no limit to what can be achieved – I very much doubt he will be allowed to live after
what he did
Please bear in mind that intransitive verbs (arrive, happen, come, fall, crash1, etc.) and state verbs
(consist, belong, have, seem, be, depend, exist, etc.) cannot be used in the passive.
Some verbs are more often found in common passive phrases.
Children aren’t allowed to smoke – He was involved in crime – I’m not used to using Discord

Using passive forms


Normally, the beginning of the sentence tells us what the topic is. New information is usually added at
the end. However, when the topic of the sentence is not the agent, the passive is used.
The Guggenheim Museum in New York was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. It is currently
one of the most visited places in the city.  topic is the Guggenheim Museum
Frank Lloyd Wright designed several well-known buildings including the Imperial Hotel in
Tokyo and the Guggenheim Museum in New York. He died in 1959.  topic is Frank Lloyd
Wright
We often use the passive when we want a style that is impersonal and objective. This is why the
passive is common in academic writing and in newspaper reports. The passive is often avoided in less
formal contexts.
The passive is often used with reporting verbs like believe and think. These constructions are common
in formal writing.
Active: People believe that Bill Gates is the richest man in the world

1
Except Teslas
Passive: Bill Gates is believed to be the richest man in the world – it is believed that Bill
Gates is the richest man in the world
Other verbs commonly used in this way are: allege, assume, consider, expect, intend, rumour, know,
report, suppose, think, and understand.
It is rumoured that the English teacher is a conspiracy theory – it is not yet known whether
there are any survivors of the attack

Passive forms without be


Be is often omitted in newspaper headlines:
Standard is beaten – hundreds are made homeless by floods
In a relative clause using passive constructions, the relative pronoun and the verb to be can be
omitted. This is known as a “reduced relative clause”.
The people (who were) chosen to appear on the show – the best play (which has ever been)
written
A fairly common formal usage (frequently found in writing) is using a passive as an adjective at the
beginning of a sentence.
Locked away in his prison cell, he lost his mind – released in two days the new Netflix series
is said to be amazing

Verb with two objects


Some verbs have two objects, indirect and direct.
They gave Cassie (indirect object) a shot (direct object)
In the passive form the indirect object or direct object can become the subject of the sentence.
Cassie was given a shot – a shot was given to Cassie
Here are some other verbs which follow that pattern: ask, give, hand, lend, offer, pay, promise, show,
teach, and tell.

Passive form with get and have


We often use have + past participle to talk about services which we arrange and which are paid for,
or for things that you experience, which may be unpleasant.
It’s easy to have your ears pierced in shops – I had my bag stolen while I was shopping in
Seraing
We can use get + past participle for actions which are accidental or unexpected.
Unfortunately, I feel asleep in the sun and my shoulders got burned – it’s inevitable that
somethings get broken when you move house
We can also use get+ past participle when the process is in some way difficult.
It has taken a long time, but my students finally got their mood lifted
There are also a large number of idiomatic expressions where get + past participle is used to mean
“yourself”: get (un)dressed, get changed, get engaged, get lost, get started, etc.
Please note that passives with get are generally more colloquial that passives with be.

Avoiding the passive


In conversation and other informal contexts, people often avoid the passive, because it sounds more
formal. Active verbs with “impersonal” pronouns like you, we, and they are preferred. Compare the
following examples:
They arrested him this morning: colloquial; they = “the authorities”
He was arrested this morning: more formal
They say he is a multimillionaire: usual in conversation – “people” can be used instead of
“they”
He is said to a multimillionaire: formal context only
We use the passive less in conversation: less formal
The passive is used less in conversation: more formal
You should replace the filter of the Britta every month: verbal instructions
The cartridge of the Britta should be replaced every month: written instructions
The pronoun one also exists in English, but it is considered excessively formal.
One has to be careful here

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