Category Archives: General

The Passive Voice

Remember we need a transitive verb! Otherwise the passive won’t be possible. The direct object (D.O.) becomes the subject of the passive sentence. Then, the next thing to do is thinking about the passive verb: TO BE and the PAST PARTICIPLE of the main verb of the active sentence verb, as you can see in the following chart:

Active Passive Time Reference
They make Fords in Cologne. Fords are made in Cologne. Present Simple
Susan is cooking dinner. Dinner is being cooked by Susan Present Continuous
James Joyce wrote “Dubliners”. “Dubliners” was written by James Joyces. Past Simple
They were painting the house when I arrived. The house was being painted when I arrived. Past Continuous
They have produced over 20 models in the past two years. Over 20 models have been produced in the past two years. Present Perfect
They are going to build a new factory in Portland. A new factory is going to be built in Portland. Future Intention with Going to
I will finish it tomorrow. It will be finished tomorrow. Future Simple

If you want to start your practise, follow this link ‘Exercises on Passive’