The document discusses active and passive voice in English sentences. It begins by defining active and passive voice, noting that active sentences have the subject performing the action, while passive sentences have the object as the focus of the action. It then covers forming passive sentences using the appropriate form of "to be" plus the past participle of the main verb. The document provides examples of changing active sentences to passive in both the simple present and simple past tenses. It concludes by discussing appropriate uses of the passive voice.

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Passive Voice 2
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3. AGENDA
1. Welcome!
2. Active and Passive Voice
3. Passive Verb Tenses – Simple Present and Simple Past
4. Examples
5. Practice
6. Homework
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4. Active and Passive Voices
What is the difference…?
All sentences in English are either active or passive.
In an active sentence, a person or thing does the
action, and this comes first.
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5. Active Voice
An active sentence is formed like this:
Subject + Verb + Object
Jon washes dishes.
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6. Passive Voice
A passive sentence is formed like this:
Object + Verb + Subject
(The object is the focus, and the verb is changed into a
passive verb).
The dishes are washed by Jon.
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7. Active and Passive Voices
This person or thing doing the action is called the actor
of the sentence.
EXAMPLE:
We offer online English classes.
“We” is the actor.
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8. Active and Passive Voices
In a passive sentence, the person or object that
receives the action is placed at the beginning of the
sentence, and the actor is placed at the end, often
introduced with “by”.
Example:
English classes are offered by us.
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9. Active voice: I ate the whole cake, and I’m not sorry.
Here is the same sentence in the Passive voice in different verb tenses:
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simple present
The whole
cake
is
eaten (by me) and I’m not sorry.
simple past was

10. Passive and Active Voice
What is the focus in each of the sentences?
1. a. Your money was lost (by me). Passive
b. I lost your money. Active
2. a. His house was burnt down (by us). Passive
b. We burnt down his house. Active
3. a. All the cookies were eaten (by them). Passive
b. They ate all the cookies. Active
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11. Passive and Active Voice
What is the focus in each of the sentences?
The passive voice focuses on what the action is.
The active voice focus on who did the action, the actor.
1. Your money was lost (by me). Passive
I lost your money. Active
2. His house was burnt down (by us). Passive
We burnt down his house. Active
3. All the cookies were eaten (by them). Passive
They ate all the cookies. Active
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12. The Passive Voice
From active to passive…
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1. Move the receiver of the action to the beginning of the sentence.
2. Move the actor to the end.
3. When it is important to know who does the action, we use ”by” before
the actor.

13. The Passive Voice
From active to passive…
13
4. Don’t forget to change pronouns:
use “me” instead of “I”
him/her instead of he/she
us instead of we
them instead of they
Pronoun actors in active sentences: I/she/he/they/we
Pronoun actors in passive sentences: me/her/him/them/us

14. The Passive Voice
But, what happens to the verb?
Let’s have a look…
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15. Verbs – a quick review:
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A note about verbs:
The base form of the verb is the verb in its simplest form – no ending (ed,
ing).
For example:
run, walk, read, lost, listen, buy,
(https://www.thoughtco.com/past-participle-1691592)

16. Verbs – a quick review:
16
A note about verbs:
These are base forms of regular verbs:
walk, listen, jump, look, agree, dance
Regular verbs will take “ed” in the past form.

17. Verbs – a quick review:
17
A note about verbs:
These are base forms of irregular verbs (these verbs to not use “ed’ or “ing”
endings, but have a different past form):
awake, begin, read, lost, bring, buy, choose,
These verbs do not take an “ed” in their past forms.

18. The Passive Voice
How do we make a passive sentence…?
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In a simple present passive sentence, we use the “be” verb and a past
participle.
Notice the verb in these examples:
We offer online English classes. (ACTIVE)
Online English classes are offered by us. (PASSIVE)
So, what is the past participle…?

19. A Past Participle – Defined
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“In English grammar, the past participle refers to an action that was started and
completed entirely in the past.
It is created by adding -ed, -d, or -t to the base form of a regular verb.
An irregular verb will have its own past participle.”
(https://www.thoughtco.com/past-participle-1691592)

20. Past Participle Examples:
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Regular verbs:
BASE VERB: PAST PARTICIPLE: WITH “BE”
walk walked was walked
listen listened was listened (to)
jump jumped was jumped
look looked was looked (at)
agree agreed was agreed
dance danced was danced

21. Past Participle Examples:
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BASE VERB: PAST PARTICIPLE: WITH “BE”
awake awoken was awoken
begin begun was begun
read read was read
lost lost was lost
bring brought was brought
buy bought was bought
choose chosen was chosen

22. The Passive – Simple Present
Simple Present: we form the passive with:
the “be” verb + past participle
The “be” verbs (simple present) are:
am / is / are
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23. The Passive – Simple Past
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In a simple past passive sentence, we use the simple past form of the “be” verb
and a past participle.
Notice the verb in these examples:
We offered online English classes. (ACTIVE)
Online English classes were offered by us. (PASSIVE)

24. Passive: Simple Past
Simple Past: we form the passive with:
the “be” verb + past participle
In the simple past, the “be” verbs are:
was /were
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25. Passive: Simple Present
Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Examples:
Ben walks the dog. ACTIVE
The dog is walked by Ben. PASSIVE
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26. Passive: Simple Past
Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Examples:
Ben walked the dog. ACTIVE
The dog was walked by Ben. PASSIVE
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27. Passive: Simple Present
Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Example:
They make cookies here. ACTIVE
The cookies are made here (by them). PASSIVE
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28. Passive: Simple Past
Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Example:
They made cookies here. ACTIVE
The cookies were made here (by them). PASSIVE
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29. Passive: Simple Present
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Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Example:
Many people watch this movie. ACTIVE
This movie is watched by many people. PASSIVE

30. Passive: Simple Past
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Like this:
the “be” verb + past participle
Example:
Many people watched this movie. ACTIVE
This movie was watched by many people. PASSIVE

31. Simple Present
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Talking about the present:
I make coffee.
You write letters.
She owns a dog.
They drive that truck.
We like Winnipeg.

32. Passive: Simple Present
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Talk about the present:
ACTIVE: PASSIVE:
I make coffee. Coffee is made by me.
You write letters. Letters are written by you.
She owns a dog. A dog is owned by her.
They drive that truck. That truck is driven by them.
We like Winnipeg. Winnipeg is liked by us.

33. Simple Past:
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Talk about the past.
I made coffee.
You wrote letters.
She had a dog.
They drove that truck.
We liked Winnipeg.

34. Passive: Simple Past
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Talk about the past.
ACTIVE: PASSIVE:
I made coffee. Coffee was made (by me).
You wrote letters. Letters were written (by you).
She owned a dog. A dog was owned by her.
They drove that truck. That truck was driven by them.
We liked Winnipeg. Winnipeg was liked by us.

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simple present
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36. Simple Present - Practice
1. The shark eats the dolphin.
Her friend celebrates a job promotion.
Active: simple present verb
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37. Simple Present: Passive
1. The shark eats the dolphin.
The dolphin is eaten by the shark.
Her friend celebrates a job promotion.
A job promotion is celebrated by her friend.
Active: simple present verb
Passive: verb “to be” + past participle verb
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38. Let’s practice!
Change these active sentences into passive sentences.
Active: subject + (simple present) verb + object
Passive: object + verb “to be” + (past participle) verb
+ subject
1. He eats cereal each morning.
2. Everyday, I speak English.
3. We cook pasta for supper.
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39. Let’s practice!
Change these active sentences into passive sentences.
Active: subject + (simple present) verb + object
Passive: object + verb “to be” + (past participle) verb
+ subject
1. He eats cereal each morning.
Cereal is eaten every morning by him.
2. Everyday, I speak English.
English is spoken everyday by me.
3. We cook pasta for supper.
Pasta is cooked for supper by us.
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40. Image shared under CC0
simplepast
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41. Simple Past
2. The dog ate my dinner.
Her friend played hockey.
Active: simple past verb
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42. Simple Past
2. The dog ate my dinner.
My dinner was eaten by the dog.
Her friend played hockey.
Hockey was played by her friend.
Active: simple past verb
Passive: verb “to be” + past participle verb
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43. Let’s practice!
Change these active sentences into passive sentences.
Active: subject + (simple past) verb + object
Passive: object + verb “to be” + (past participle) verb + subject
1. The police brought my roommate home.
2. Elena made a beautiful sweater.
3. He delivered the packages late.
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44. Let’s practice!
Change these active sentences into passive sentences.
Active: subject + (simple past) verb + object
Passive: object + verb “to be” + (past participle) verb + subject
1. The police brought my roommate home.
My roommate was brought home by police.
2. Elena made a beautiful sweater.
A beautiful sweater was made by Elena.
3. He delivered the packages late.
The packages were delivered late (by him).
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45. Passive: More Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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Example:
He _________(drive) a small car.
He drives a small car. SIMPLE PRESENT
A small car is driven by him. PASSIVE

46. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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1. Jack _____________ (write) the novel last year.

47. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
47
1. Jack _____________ (write) the novel last year.
Jack wrote the novel last year. SIMPLE PAST
The novel was written by Jack last year. PASSIVE

48. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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2. The owners _______________ (sell) the company for $1 million dollars.

49. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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2. The owners ____________ (sell) the company for $1million dollars.
The owners sold the company for $1 million dollars. SIMPL PAS
The company was sold by the owners for $1 million dollars. PASSIVE

50. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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3. Grandma _________ (bake) bread every morning.

51. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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3. Grandma _________(bake) bread every morning.
Grandma bakes bread every morning. SIMPLE PRESENT
Bread is baked every morning by Grandma. PASSIVE

52. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
52
4. Stephan ____________ (write) beautiful music.

53. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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4. Stephan ____________ (write) beautiful music.
Stephan writes beautiful music. SIMPLE PRESENT
Beautiful music is written by Stephan. PASSIVE

54. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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5. Mya ____________ (prefer) coffee with sugar and cream.

55. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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5. Mya ____________ (prefer) coffee with sugar and cream.
Mya prefers coffee with sugar and cream. SIMPLE PRESENT
Coffee with sugar and cream is preferred by Mya. PASSIVE

56. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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6. Jake ____________ (wash) the windows every Spring.

57. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
57
6. Jake ___________ (wash) the windows every Spring.
Jake washed the windows every Spring. SIMPLE PAST
The windows were washed every Spring by Jake. PASSIVE

58. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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7. I ___________ (shovel) the snow yesterday.

59. Passive Practice
In each of the sentences below:
• Use a simple present or simple past verb
• Change the sentence to its passive form.
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7. I ___________ (shovel) the snow yesterday.
I shoveled the snow yesterday. SIMPLE PAST
The snow was shoveled yesterday by me. PASSIVE

60. Use of the Passive
We use the passive voice when the object is more
important than the subject. This shifts the focus from
who is doing something, to what is being done.
Passive voice is not very common but is more
common in written English than spoken English.
There are some times when the passive voice is more
effective. Here are three:
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61. We use the passive voice…
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1. to not say who did an action.
Maybe we don’t know who did it, or it is obvious, or we don’t want to say.
“The post office was robbed!”
“Who did it?”
“I don’t know!”
2. to emphasize who did an action.
When the actor is a new and important piece of information.
This painting is very valuable. It was painted by Van Gogh.
3. when writing in an academic style. Although using the passive voice is less
popular now than it was ten years ago.
Passive: The experiment was performed.
Active: We performed the experiment.

62. The Passive Voice – When to Use It:
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1. When we want to change the focus of the sentence:
Example: This book was written by Steve.
(We are more interested in the book than the writer.)

63. The Passive Voice – When to Use It:
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2. When the actor is unknown or unimportant or obvious or “people in
general”:
Example: The kitchen was cleaned.
(The people who did the cleaning are unknown or unimportant.)
*In this case, we can leave out the actor and “by”.

64. The Passive Voice – When to Use It:
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3. In factual (like news reports) or scientific/academic writing:
Example: In this study, a new model is used.
*In this case, also, we can leave out the actor, and “by”.

65. Homework:
Change each sentence from active to passive voice.
1. My naughty dog ate the Thanksgiving turkey.
2. I stop for coffee every morning.
3. Michael repaired the fence last Spring.
4. Elsa loves English grammar.
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66. HOMEWORK – The Details:
1. Submit your homework to Lori on Skype. live: loramoren.
2. After class, you have until the 11:59 pm the same day to complete the assignment.
3. I will correct your homework and provide feedback!

67. Sources:
Beare, Kenneth. "Passive Voice Usage and Examples for ESL/EFL."
ThoughtCo, Apr. 5, 2023
https://www.thoughtco.com/passive-voice-in-english-grammar-
1211144
https://ellii.com/video/the-passive-voice
https://ell.brainpop.com/level3/unit1/lesson1/summary/#:~:text=In
%20the%20present%20simple%2C%20the,the%20form%20of%20be
%20changes.
Powerpoint (N. Wall): Passive Voice
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69. Thankyou!
Lori Morency
Skype: live:loramoren
livelearn.ca

70. Thankyou!
Blaine
broberts@myenglishonline.ca
livelearn.ca
1-204-946-5140
Website:
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Email:
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