In English, sentences can be formed in two ways:

Active Voice: I drive my car.
Passive Voice: My car is driven (by someone else!).

Does this theory remind you of your middle and high school lessons? Don’t panic: you’ll see that it’s actually very simple to use the passive voice!

The passive voice is used frequently by English speakers, even more than in other languages.

What is the difference between active voice and passive voice in English?

The active voice is the form we use most. In the active voice, the subject performs the action of the verb. For example, in She reads the book, she is doing the reading.

In the passive voice, the word order is reversed: the subject receives the action, and the actor (doer) is not the main focus. For example, in The book is read by her, the book is receiving the action, and her is not the main focus.

Examples of active voice

Example	Remark	Audio
Someone is cleaning the car.	Subject: Someone; Object: The car
A dog crosses the road.	Subject: A dog; Object: The road

Someone is the subject of is cleaning. The subject is therefore active: it is he who is performing the action. A dog is the subject of crosses. Here too, the subject is therefore active.

Examples of passive voice

Example	Remark	Audio
The car is being cleaned.	The action is being done to the car.
The road is crossed by a dog.	The dog performs the action.

When to use the passive voice in English

We use the passive voice in several situations:

When we don’t know who did the action (subject of the verb).
When the subject of the verb is not important.
When it’s clear who did the action.
When we want to focus on the result of the action rather than who did it.

1. When we do not know the subject of the verb

Example	Audio
My car has been stolen.
The door was closed when I came back home.

2. When the subject of the verb is not important

Example	Audio
A new building is being built next to our house.

3. When the subject of the verb is obvious

Example	Audio
My leg is broken.
He has been arrested at 6 o’clock this morning.

4. When we are interested in the result of the action rather than the subject

Example	Audio
A new planet has been discovered by scientists.

How to form the passive voice in English

To summarize, here is how to change from active voice to passive voice in English:

Invert the subject and object: The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
Change the verb tense: Adjust the verb tense to fit the passive voice.
Use by to introduce the agent: Use by to introduce the real subject of the verb in the passive voice.

The passive voice is formed from the auxiliary verb be followed by the past participle. To change from the active voice to the passive voice, you must change the word order:

Replace the subject with the object of the action.
Transform the original subject into the agent, introduced by by.
Add the auxiliary verb be before the past participle of the main verb.

How to write a question in the passive voice in English

To form an interrogative sentence in the passive voice:

Start the question with the auxiliary verb be, just like in the affirmative passive sentences.
Conjugate be in the correct tense and combine it with the past participle of the main verb.
The word order will change based on whether an interrogative pronoun (like who, where, what, which) is used or not.

1. The question in the passive voice does not begin with an interrogative pronoun.

You will apply the following order: Auxiliary be (conjugated in the required tense) + subject + past participle + continuation of the sentence.

Example	Audio
*Was the first computer invented in the 20th century?*

2. The question in the passive voice begins with an interrogative pronoun

Apply the following order: Interrogative pronoun + auxiliary be (conjugated in the required tense) + subject + past participle + continuation of the sentence.

Example	Audio
*Where was the film 1917 filmed?*
*Who was America discovered by?*

Attention! Depending on the meaning of your sentence, you might need to add the preposition by at the end of your question. This by indicates who performed the action.

How to write a negative sentence in passive voice in English

To form a negative sentence in the passive voice:

It is imperative to keep the auxiliary verb be, just as in affirmative passive sentences.
Be should be conjugated in the appropriate tense and associated with the past participle of the verb.
Add the adverb not (or its contracted form n’t) after be to show negation.

Apply the following order: subject + auxiliary be (conjugated in the required tense) + not + past participle + continuation of the sentence.

Example	Audio
The first computer was not invented in the 20th century.
The movie, 1917, was not filmed in France.
This cake hasn’t been made by my aunt.

When is transformation to the passive voice impossible?

In some languages, there are many situations where the passive voice cannot be used. English, however, is more flexible and allows the passive voice in cases where foreign languages would use different expressions.

Sentences in Passive Voice	Audio
She was told to leave work early.
I am said to be quite a gentleman.
Jim was asked not to smoke in his housemate’s bedroom.
*Bill Gates is known to be very intelligent.*

How to conjugate verbs in the passive form

The passive voice can be used in many tenses in English, including the present, past, and future. Let’s explore how to form the passive voice in each of these main tenses, with examples for better understanding:

in the simple present
in the present continuous
in the past tense
in the past continuous
in the present perfect
in the present perfect continuous
in the past perfect
in the past perfect continuous
in the future with will

In the present simple

In Engish, the present simple expresses habits, general truths, ideas, feelings, preferences or even intention (will).

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary be in the simple present (like is, are) and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
He cleans the car.	*The car is cleaned.*

In the present continuous

The present continuous tense is used when an action is happening right now and is not yet finished.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary verb be in the present continuous (like is being, are being) and follow it with the past participle of the main verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
I am selling my fridge.	*My fridge is being sold.*

In the past simple

The past simple, also known as the preterite, is used to talk about actions or events that happened and were completed in the past.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary be in the past simple (like was, were) and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
She just lost her keys.	*Her keys were just lost.*

In the past continuous

The past continuous is used to describe an ongoing action in the past or actions that were happening at the same time.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary be in the past continuous (like was being, were being) and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
She was keeping all her grandmother’s letters.	*Her grandmother’s letters were being kept by her.*

In the present perfect

The present perfect is used to express the present outcome of a past action that is either ongoing or has effects in the present.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary have in the present perfect (like has been, have been) and follow it with the past participle of the verb be.

Active voice	Passive voice
He has sold all the books.	*All the books have been sold.*

In the present perfect continuous

Also known as the present perfect progressive, the present perfect continuous is used to highlight the duration of an action that started in the past and is still ongoing. The passive voice is rarely used in the present perfect continuous tense.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary be in the present perfect continuous (like has been being, have been being)and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
I have been cooking pork for dinner for several years.	*Pork has been being cooked for several years by me.*

In the past perfect

The past perfect, also known as the pluperfect, is used to describe an action that was completed before a specific moment in the past.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary verb be in the past perfect (had been) and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
She had met her boyfriend.	*Her boyfriend had been met by her.*

In the past perfect continuous

The past perfect continuous is used to describe an action that started in the past and continued up to another point in the past. The passive voice is rarely used in this tense.

For this tense, you must conjugate the auxiliary verb be in the past perfect continuous (had been being) and follow it with the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
He had been drinking a beer for one hour.	*His beer had been being drunk by him for one hour.*

In the future with will

Will is a modal verb used in English to talk about actions or events that will happen in the future.

For this tense, you must use the modal will then follow it with the auxiliary be in the infinitive and the past participle of the verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
I will buy a new car soon.	*A new car will be bought soon.*

With modal verbs

Modal verbs, also known as modal auxiliaries, are special verbs used to express different aspects of an action or situation. They help convey: possibility, obligation, ability, necessity, permission, prohibition, suggestion, deduction, certainty, etc.

For each modal verb, you must use the modal and then follow it with the auxiliary be in the infinitive (base form) and the past participle of the main verb.

Active voice	Passive voice
He can drive the car.	The car can be driven by him.
She may open the window.	*The window may be opened by her.*
*I could hear you.*	*You could be heard by me.*
We must clean our room.	Our room must be cleaned by us.
You should accept this.	This should be accepted by you.
They would learn English.	English would be learnt by them.

Exercises

Exercise 1

These sentences are in the active voice, transform them into the passive voice!

He bought a plane for her birthday.
They warned you.
She gave him a present.
Someone has stolen my wallet from my bag.
They can repair the car.
She will do her homework later.

Passive voice	Audio
*A plane was bought for her birthday by him.*
*You were warned.*
*He was given a present by her.*
*My wallet has been stolen from my bag.*
*The car can be repaired (by them).*
*Her homework will be done later (by her).*

Exercise 2

Convert the following sentences from passive voice to active voice.

A cake was baked by my grandmother.
The new policies were announced by the company yesterday.
His car is being repaired by the mechanic.
The email will be sent by my assistant.
Her presentation has been prepared by the team.
Our house was painted by the contractors last month.
The rules are being followed by everyone.
This movie was directed by a famous filmmaker.

Active voice
*My grandmother baked a cake.*
*The company announced the new policies yesterday.*
*The mechanic is repairing his car.*
*My assistant will send the email.*
*The team has prepared her presentation.*
*The contractors painted our house last month.*
*Everyone is following the rules.*
*The famous filmmaker directed the movie.*

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Active and Passive Voice in English: Simple and Complete Course