01:40
Fourteenth Class
Use of Passive
Passive
voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not
known, however, who or what is performing the action.
Example: My bike was stolen.
In the
example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know,
however, who did it.
Sometimes a
statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example
shows:
Example: A mistake was made.
In this
case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone
(e.g. You have made a mistake.).
Form of Passive
Subject +
finite form of to be + Past Participle
Example: A
letter was written.
When
rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:
- the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence
- the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)
- the subject of the active
sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)
Examples of Passive
|
Tense
|
Subject
|
Verb
|
Object
|
|
|
Simple
Present
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
writes
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
is written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Simple
Past
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
wrote
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
was
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Present
Perfect
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
has
written
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
has been
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Future I
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
will write
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
will be
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Hilfsverben
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
can write
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
can be
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
Examples of Passive
|
Tense
|
Subject
|
Verb
|
Object
|
|
|
Present
Progressive
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
is writing
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
is being
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Past
Progressive
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
was
writing
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
was being
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Past
Perfect
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
had
written
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
had been
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Future II
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
will have
written
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
will have
been written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Conditional
I
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
would
write
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
would be
written
|
by Rita.
|
|
|
Conditional
II
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
would have
written
|
a letter.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
would have
been written
|
by Rita.
|
|
Passive Sentences with Two Objects
Rewriting an
active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two
objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to
transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on.
|
|
Subject
|
Verb
|
Object 1
|
Object 2
|
|
Active:
|
Rita
|
wrote
|
a letter
|
to me.
|
|
Passive:
|
A letter
|
was
written
|
to me
|
by Rita.
|
|
Passive:
|
I
|
was
written
|
a letter
|
by Rita.
|
.
Excercise
v the documents / print ________________
v the window / open ___________________
v the shoes / buy ______________________
v the car / wash ______________________
v the litter / throw away __________________
v the letter / send ______________________
v the book / read / not ____________________
v the songs / sing / not __________________________
v the food / eat / not ____________________________
v the shop / close / not _____________________
