Active Voice and Passive Voice Rules with Examples

Active voice is what is most commonly used while speaking and writing. In active voice the subject is doing the action and the object is receiving the action, The verb form in active voice depends on the tense the sentence is in.

In passive voice the subject and object switch places, which means that the subject receives the action and the object does the action. The passive voice uses the word by before its object and the past participle form of the verb.

Passive voice is a roundabout way of expressing the same thing as the active voice. We usually use passive voice more in writing than in speaking when our focus is on the action and not on its doer or when we don’t know who the doer of the action is.

Simple Present Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex paints pictures.
Passive Pictures are painted by Alex.
Present Continuous Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex is painting pictures.
Passive Pictures are being painted by Alex.
Present Perfect Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex has painted pictures.
Passive Pictures have been painted by Aiex.

 

Simple Past Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex painted Pictures.
Passive Pictures      Were painted by Alex.
Past Continuous Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Al ex was painting Pictures.
Passive Pictures were being painted by Alex,
Past Perfect Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex had painted Pictures.
Passive Pictures had been painted by Alex.

 

Simple Future Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex will paint pictures.
Passive Pictures will be painted by Alex.
Future Perfect Tense
Subject Verb Object
Active Alex will have painted pictures.
Passive Pictures will have been painted by Alex.

It should be noted that the following lenses are not changed passiveness voice:

1. Present perfect continuous tense

2. Past perfect continuous tense

3. Future continuous tense.

4. Future perfect continuous tense

Some more examples

1)    Active :Bob drives a tractor.

        Passive : A tractor is driven by Bob.

2)    Active : Fiona is making clay pots.

        Passive : Clay pots are being made by Fiona.

3)    Active: Mom has cooked dinner.

        Passive: Dinner has been cooked by Mom.

4)    Active : lane washed the dishes.

        Passive : The dishes were washed by lane.

5)    Active :The children were reading books.

        Passive : Books were being read by the children.

6)   Active : Veronica had finished her homework.

       Passive The homework had been finished by Veronica.

7)   Active : Lack will drop Harry at school.

       Passive : Harry will be dropped at school by lack.

8)   Active : Julia will have eaten the chocolates.

       Passive: The chocolates will have been eaten by Julia.

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Active Voice and Passive Voice Rules with Examples

Active Voice and Passive Voice Rules for future tense

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Active Voice and Passive Voice Rules for present tense

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Active Voice and Passive Voice Rules for past tense

 

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