Active Voice vs. Passive Voice

Active:

SVO

The pitcherthrowsthe ball.

The girlpickedthe flower.

Passive:

O -> S“to be”past participle/noun phrase

transitive verb

The ball isthrownby the pitcher.

The flower waspickedby the girl.

When to Use the Passive Voice

  • When knowing exactly who executed the action is not important or not known:

-The garden was planted last year. (passive)

-The church bell is rung at noon.. (passive)

  • When the agent is obvious:

-The law was signed. (passive)

-The ferry fees were increased again. (passive)

  • When the author wants to sound objective:

-It is believed that passage of the immigration reform legislation was President Obama’s greatest achievement. (passive)

-It was assumed that the automobile accident resulted when a semi-truck swerved into oncoming traffic. (passive)

When to Use the Passive Voice (cont.)

  • When the author wants to keep the same subject in consecutive clauses:

-The USA Olympic hockey team beat Canada to advance to the quarter finals, but they weredefeated by them in the game for the Gold.

-In 2006, Apolo Ohno won the Olympic Gold Medal for the 500 m short track skate, but he was not awarded any Gold Medals in 2010.

  • When information is shared but the agent is different:

-It’s a beautiful garden. It was planted by my son.

-It is a stunning stained glass window. It was created by Hans Gottfried von Stockhausen.

  • To draw attention to the subject of a sentence by using the by-phrase:

- The volunteers constructed the library. (active)

vs.

- The library was constructed by the volunteers. (passive)

KEEP THE “BY”

PROPER NAME

  1. “Huckleberry Finn” was written by Mark Twain
  1. The national anthem was played at Woodstock by Jimi Hendrix.

WHEN IMPORTANT

  1. Many malpractice lawsuits have been filed by Dr. Smiths’ patients.
  1. The deciding votes were cast by the Florida voters.

INANIMATE NOUN PHRASE THAT IS UNEXPECTED

  1. The soldiers were being attacked by waves of scorching heat
  1. Her memory was awakened by the scent of jasmine.

Class Exercise

Find the Passive Tense

The sun was hidden by the clouds. Her sweatshirt couldn’t keep the chill out. The last bits

of tundra cotton danced in the breeze, reminiscent of the snowflakes that would soon fall.

The river banks were abandoned by all but the smallest bears, still in search of one last salmon meal. The loud honking of trumpeter swans could be heard from above. Their pulsating V shapes all pointed south. She knew it was time to go.

Tense Forms for Passive Voice

Tense / Active / Passive
Simple Present / John washes the dog. / The dog is washed by John.
Present Progressive / John is washing the dog. / The dog is being washed by John.
Present Perfect* / John has washed the dog. / The dog has been washed by John.
Simple Past / John washed the dog. / The dog was washed by John.
Past Progressive / John was washing the dog. / The dog was being washed by John.
Past Perfect* / John had washed the dog. / The dog had been washed by John.
Simple Future / John will wash the dog. / The dog will be washed by John.
Future Progressive / John is going to wash the dog. / The dog is going to be washed by John.
Future Perfect* / John will have washed the dog. / The dog will have been washed by John.
Question Form of Passive Verb** / Was the dog washed by John?
Has the dog been washed by John?

* The present perfectprogressive, past perfectprogressive, and future perfect progressive are seldom used in the passive voice.

** An auxiliary verb precedes the subjectwhen a question is askedin the passive.

Modals and Phrasal Modals for Passive Voice

Passive: modal + be + past participle
Janie will be selected by the committee.
The flower ought to be placed in a vase with water.
The bus can’t be stopped.
You should be ashamed of yourself.
May I be excused?
Jack had better be told about our plans.
The dog has to be deflead before riding in the car.
Jason is supposed to be debriefed about the secret meeting.
Past-Passive: modal + have been + past participle
That bill should have been paid last month.
Jerry ought to have been selected for the position.
The letter must have been sent to the wrong address.
The dog couldn’t have been hit by the car.