2. Passive sentences are much less common than active
sentences, but they are very useful when we want to
focus on what happened and to what or whom.
My brother just
an unusual house.
The second sentence focuses on what happened (was
designed) and to what/whom (the house) and uses
passive verb forms.
The first sentence below focuses on the agent or
performer of the action (My brother) and uses an
active verb form.
bought
was designed and built
in the 1950s.
It
3. Their car was stolen.
(by someone unknown)
We often use the passive because the agent:
• is unimportant in a particular context
• is unknown
Dr. Henry, one of our most
prominent scientists, was honored
with an award last night.
(We aren’t interested in who gave the award.)
4. We often use the passive because the agent:
What is this called in English?
(by everyone)
Sam Edwards, 32, was arrested
at his home last night.
(by the police)
• is obvious from the context
• refers to people in general
6. David didn’t notify anyone
about the meeting.
No one was notified about
the meeting.
We have made many mistakes
in this war.
Many mistakes have been made
in this war.
We sometimes use the passive:
• to avoid taking responsibility for something
• to avoid blaming someone for something
8. Because the focus of a passive sentence is on what
happens and to what/whom, we rarely mention the agent.
Ega is an endangered
language. It is spoken in
Ivory Coast by only 300
people.
The engine is started by
an electric device.
The few times that we do, it is because the agent is
worth noticing. This might be because the agent is:
• nonhuman (We expect agents to be human.)
• new, unique, or unexpected
