CHAPTER 12. THE PASSIVE VOICE
1. Use of the passive voice
As explained in the preceding chapter, the Active Voice of a verb is used when the subject of the verb refers to the person or thing performing the action described by the verb.
In contrast, the Passive Voice of a verb is used when the subject of the verb refers to the person or thing receiving the action described by the verb. Only a verb which can take an object can be put into the Passive Voice.
The Passive Voice is more commonly used in English than it is in other European languages such as German or French. As well as being used in everyday English, the Passive Voice is used extensively in official documents and scientific papers.
In the following examples, the verbs in the Passive Voice are underlined.
e.g. The ball was struck by the boy.
Gold has been found by the explorers.
In these examples, the verbs was struck and has been found are in the Passive Voice. The subjects ball and gold refer to things receiving the actions described by the verbs.
2. Formation of the indicative mood of the passive voice
For every tense in the Active Voice, there is a corresponding tense in the Passive Voice. In the Passive Voice, the verb to be acts as an auxiliary. The Passive Voice tenses of an English verb are formed from the corresponding conjugations of to be, followed by the past participle of the verb.
a. The simple present indicative
For instance, the Simple Present Indicative of to be, and the Simple Present Indicative of the Passive Voice of the verb to show are conjugated as follows:
Simple Present Indicative Simple Present Indicative
of To Be of Passive Voice of To Show
I am I am shown
you are you are shown
he is he is shown
she is she is shown
it is it is shown
we are we are shown
they are they are shown
b. The other indicative tenses
Similarly, the other Indicative tenses of the Passive Voice of the verb to show are conjugated as indicated in the following table. The corresponding tenses of the verb to be are included for purposes of comparison.
The verb To Be compared with the Passive Voice of the verb To Show
Present Continuous Present Continuous
I am being I am being shown
you are being you are being shown
he is being he is being shown
she is being she is being shown
it is being it is being shown
we are being we are being shown
they are being they are being shown
Present Perfect Present Perfect
I have been I have been shown
you have been you have been shown
he has been he has been shown
she has been she has been shown
it has been it has been shown
we have been we have been shown
they have been they have been shown
Present Perfect Continuous Present Perfect Continuous
have been being I have been being shown
you have been being you have been being shown
he has been being he has been being shown
she has been being she has been being shown
it has been being it has been being shown
we have been being we have been being shown
they have been being they have been being shown
Simple Past Simple Past
I was I was shown
you were you were shown
he was he was shown
she was she was shown
it was it was shown
we were we were shown
they were they were shown
Past Continuous Past Continuous
I was being I was being shown
you were being you were being shown
he was being he was being shown
she was being she was being shown
it was being it was being shown
we were being we were being shown
they were being they were being shown
Past Perfect Past Perfect
I had been I had been shown
you had been you had been shown
he had been he had been shown
she had been she had been shown
it had been it had been shown
we had been we had been shown
they had been they had been shown
Past Perfect Continuous Past Perfect Continuous
I had been being I had been being shown
you had been being you had been being shown
he had been being he had been being shown
she had been being she had been being shown
it had been being it had been being shown
we had been being we had been being shown
they had been being they had been being shown
Simple Future Simple Future
I will (shall) be I will (shall) be shown
you will be you will be shown
he will be he will be shown
she will be she will be shown
it will be it will be shown
we will (shall) be we will (shall) be shown
they will be they will be shown
Future Continuous Future Continuous
I will (shall) be being I will (shall) be being shown
you will be being you will be being shown
he will be being he will be being shown
she will be being she will be being shown
it will be being it will be being shown
we will (shall) be being we will (shall) be being shown
they will be being they will be being shown
Future Perfect Future Perfect
I will (shall) have been I will (shall) have been shown
you will have been you will have been shown
he will have been he will have been shown
she will have been she will have been shown
it will have been it will have been shown
we will (shall) have been we will (shall) have been shown
they will have been they will have been shown
Future Perfect Continuous Future Perfect Continuous
I will (shall) have been being I will (shall) have been being shown
you will have been being you will have been being shown
he will have been being he will have been being shown
she will have been being she will have been being shown
It will have been being it will have been being shown
we will (shall) have been being we will (shall) have been being shown
they will have been being they will have been being shown
c. Summary of the formation of the indicative tenses of the passive voice
The following table summarizes the formation of the Indicative tenses of the Passive Voice.
The Formation of the Indicative Mood of the Passive Voice
Tense Auxiliary Verb Form
Simple Present am/is/are past participle
Present Continuous am/is/are being past participle
Present Perfect have/has been past participle
Present Perfect Continuous** have/has been being past participle
Simple Past was/were past participle
Past Continuous was/were being past participle
Past Perfect had been past participle
Past Perfect Continuous** had been being past participle
Simple Future will (shall) be* past participle
Future Continuous** will (shall) be being past participle
Future Perfect will (shall) have been past participle
Future Perfect Continuous** will (shall) have been being past participle
* The other modal auxiliaries form conjugations in the same way as shown for will and shall.
** The Present Perfect Continuous, Past Perfect Continuous, Future Continuous, and Future Perfect Continuous tenses of the Passive Voice are cumbersome, and are rarely used. Only the more commonly used tenses of the Passive Voice will be discussed below.
3. Questions and negative statements
As is the case for other English conjugations, verbs in the Passive Voice form questions and negative statements using the first auxiliary.
a. Questions
To form a question, the first auxiliary is placed before the subject. For example:
Affirmative Statement Question
You were shown the sights. Were you shown the sights?
She is being shown the sights. Is she being shown the sights?
He will have been shown the sights. Will he have been shown the sights?
We should be shown the sights. Should we be shown the sights?
See Exercise 1.
b. Negative statements
To form a negative statement, the word not is placed after the first auxiliary. For example:
Negative Statements
You were not shown the sights.
She is not being shown the sights.
He will not have been shown the sights.
We should not be shown the sights.
See Exercise 2.
c. Negative questions
To form a negative question, the first auxiliary is placed before the subject, and the word not is placed after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of not follows immediately after the auxiliary. Contractions are often used in spoken English. For example:
Without Contractions
Were you not shown the sights?
Is she not being shown the sights?
Will he not have been shown the sights?
Should we not be shown the sights?
With Contractions
Weren’t you shown the sights?
Isn’t she being shown the sights?
Won’t he have been shown the sights?
Shouldn’t we be shown the sights?
See Exercise 3.
4. Changing the voice of a verb
When the verb of a sentence is changed from the Active Voice to the Passive Voice and the other words in the sentence are left unaltered, a change in meaning results. In the following examples, the verbs are underlined.
e.g. Active Voice: He is driving to the airport.
Passive Voice: He is being driven to the airport.
The person referred to by the subject of the first sentence is behaving actively; the person is doing the driving. The person referred to by the subject of the second sentence is behaving passively; someone else is doing the driving.
Using the first person singular of the verb to show as an example, the following table compares the most commonly used tenses of the Indicative Mood of the Passive Voice with the corresponding tenses of the Active Voice.
Tense Active Voice Passive Voice
Simple Present I show I am shown
Negative Statement: I do not show I am not shown
Present Continuous I am showing I am being shown
Present Perfect I have shown I have been shown
Simple Past I showed I was shown
Negative Statement: I did not show I was not shown
Past Continuous I was showing I was being shown
Past Perfect I had shown I had been shown
Simple Future I will show I will be shown
Future Perfect I will have shown I will have been shown
Simple, with would I would show I would be shown
Perfect, with would I would have shown I would have been shown
See Exercises 4 and 5.
5. Changing the voice of a verb while preserving the meaning of a sentence
In order to preserve the meaning of a sentence when the Voice of the verb is changed, it is necessary to alter the order of the words in the sentence.
a. Changing the verb from the active voice to the passive voice
When a verb which takes an object is changed from the Active Voice to the Passive Voice, in order to preserve the meaning of the sentence, the former object becomes the subject of the verb, and the former subject may be preceded by the preposition by, and placed after the verb. In the following examples, the verbs are underlined, and the direct objects of the verbs are printed in bold type.
For instance, in the sentence:
The wind is rippling the water.
the verb is rippling has the subject wind and takes the object water. When the verb is put into the Passive Voice and the meaning of the sentence is preserved, the former object, water, becomes the subject of the verb, and the former subject, wind, becomes the object of the preposition by, as follows:
The water is being rippled by the wind.
Other examples are:
Active: The squirrel ate the nut.
Passive: The nut was eaten by the squirrel.
Active: The child will open the parcel.
Passive: The parcel will be opened by the child.
In the first pair of examples, the verb ate, in the Active Voice, is changed to was eaten, in the Passive Voice. In order to preserve the meaning, nut, the object of the verb in the Active Voice, becomes the subject of the verb in the Passive Voice, and is placed before the verb; and squirrel, the subject of the verb in the Active Voice, becomes the object of the preposition by, and is placed after the verb.
Similarly, in the second pair of examples, parcel, the object of the verb in the Active Voice, becomes the subject of the verb in the Passive Voice and is placed before the verb; and child, the subject of the verb in the Active Voice, becomes the object of the preposition by, and is placed after the verb.
See Exercise 6.
It should be noted that, when changing the Voice of a verb in a sentence while preserving the meaning of the sentence, it is necessary to make sure that the verb agrees with its new subject.
e.g. Active: The boys are mowing the lawn.
Passive: The lawn is being mowed by the boys.
In the first sentence, the subject boys is plural; therefore a plural auxiliary are is used. In the second sentence, the subject lawn is singular; therefore a singular auxiliary is is used. The agreement of verbs with noun subjects is discussed in the next chapter.
b. Changing the verb from the passive voice to the active voice
When a verb is changed from the Passive Voice to the Active Voice, in order to preserve the meaning of the sentence, the former subject becomes the object of the verb, and, if the sentence includes a phrase beginning with the preposition by, the former object of the preposition becomes the subject of the verb.
e.g. Passive: The clover is being eaten by the cow.
Active: The cow is eating the clover.
In this pair of examples, the verb is being eaten, in the Passive Voice, is changed to is eating, in the Active Voice. In order to preserve the meaning of the sentence, clover, the subject of the verb in the Passive Voice, becomes the object of the verb in the Active Voice, and is placed after the verb; and cow, the object of the preposition by, becomes the subject of the verb in the Active Voice, and is placed before the verb.
Other examples are:
Passive: The wine was ordered by the dealer.
Active: The dealer ordered the wine.
Passive: The deer could have been killed by the poacher.
Active: The poacher could have killed the deer.
See Exercise 7.
c. Changing the voice of a verb which takes both a direct object and an indirect object
When a verb in the Active Voice takes both a direct object and an indirect object, either object can become the subject of the verb when the verb is put into the Passive Voice, and the meaning of the sentence is preserved. The object which does not become the subject remains as an object. When a verb in the Passive Voice takes an indirect object, the indirect object is usually preceded by a preposition.
e.g. Active: The guide will show you the museum.
Passive: You will be shown the museum by the guide.
Passive: The museum will be shown to you by the guide.
In the first sentence, the verb will show, in the Active Voice, takes the direct object museum, and the indirect object you. In the second and third sentences, the verb will be shown is in the Passive Voice, and the meaning has been preserved by altering the word order and using the preposition by. In the second sentence, the former indirect object, you, is the subject of the verb, and the former direct object, museum, remains the direct object. In the third sentence, the former direct object, museum, is the subject of the verb, and the former indirect object, you, is preceded by the preposition to.
A similar example is:
Active: The policeman gave you a medal.
Passive: You were given a medal by the policeman.
Passive: A medal was given to you by the policeman.
In the first sentence, the verb gave, in the Active Voice, takes the direct object medal and the indirect object you. In the second and third sentences, the verb was given is in the Passive Voice. In the second sentence, the former indirect object, you, is the subject of the verb, and the former direct object, medal, remains the direct object. In the third sentence, the former direct object, medal, is the subject of the verb, and the former indirect object, you, is preceded by the preposition to.
6. The subjunctive mood of the passive voice
The Passive Voice tenses discussed so far have all been in the Indicative Mood. However, verbs in the Passive Voice can also be put into the Subjunctive Mood.
It has been seen that all of the tenses in the Passive Voice are formed using auxiliaries. As has already been explained, the Subjunctive Mood of tenses using auxiliaries is formed by putting the first auxiliary into the Subjunctive Mood.
Using the verb to show as an example, the following table illustrates the formation of the tenses of the Subjunctive Mood of the Passive Voice.
The Subjunctive Mood of the Passive Voice of the verb To Show
Simple Present Simple Past
I be shown I were shown
you be shown you were shown
he be shown he were shown
she be shown she were shown
it be shown it were shown
we be shown we were shown
they be shown they were shown
Present Continuous Past Continuous
I be being shown I were being shown
you be being shown you were being shown
he be being shown he were being shown
she be being shown she were being shown
it be being shown it were being shown
we be being shown we were being shown
they be being shown they were being shown
Present Perfect Past Perfect
I have been shown I had been shown
you have been shown you had been shown
he have been shown he had been shown
she have been shown she had been shown
it have been shown it had been shown
we have been shown we had been shown
they have been shown they had been shown
Present Perfect Continuous Past Perfect Continuous
I have been being shown I had been being shown
you have been being shown you had been being shown
he have been being shown he had been being shown
she have been being shown she had been being shown
it have been being shown it had been being shown
we have been being shown we had been being shown
they have been being shown they had been being shown
The following table summarizes the formation of the Subjunctive tenses of the Passive Voice.
The Formation of the Subjunctive Mood of the Passive Voice
Tense Auxiliary Verb Form
Simple Present be past participle
Present Continuous be being past participle
Present Perfect have been past participle
Present Perfect Continuous have been being past participle
Simple Past were past participle
Past Continuous were being past participle
Past Perfect had been past participle
Past Perfect Continuous had been being past participle
a. Use of the simple present subjunctive
Like the Simple Present Subjunctive of the Active Voice, the Simple Present Subjunctive of the Passive Voice is often used in subordinate clauses beginning with that in sentences which contain formal commands, or requests.
As can be seen from the preceding table, the Simple Present Subjunctive of The Passive Voice is formed from the invariable auxiliary be, followed by the past participle of the verb. The following sentences are examples of the use of the Simple Present Subjunctive of the Passive Voice.
e.g. I request that he be invited to speak.
We asked that our suggestions be considered.
They will insist that their colleague be admitted to the association.
See Exercise 8.
b. Use of the past forms of the subjunctive
Like the past forms of the Subjunctive of the Active Voice, the past forms of the Subjunctive of the Passive Voice are used in wishes, and in statements containing false or improbable conditions.
e.g. I wish he were allowed to come.
It would have been better if they had been invited.
In the first example, the Simple Past Subjunctive of the Passive Voice, were allowed, is used in expressing a wish. In the second example, the Past Perfect Subjunctive of the Passive Voice, had been invited, is used in expressing the false condition they had been invited.
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