We use the English Language to talk about many sentences with our neighbors. These conversational statements or sentences can be of any work, place, thing, task, or event, etc. It can also be expressed as a verb. This form is known as the change of voice.
It can be divided into two types according to the voice of sentence and verb of action:
The Active voice, or passive voice, describes the actions of the subject with regard to any object, something similar, material, or other thing.
The meaning of the sentence remains the same in active or passive voice. However, sentence structure and tense can be altered.
#1. Active Voice:
An active voice refers to a sentence in which the subject acts or plays any action that is declared by the verb, who is the performer of the action.
- Active voice sentences always begin with the subject and take an action on the verb.
- Because it indicates the subject’s actions, it is known as an active voice.
- This is the easiest way to describe the action that the subject has on an object.
- Active voice is the simplest and most basic way to write a sentence in English.
General structure
Subject + verb + object.
Example: she writes a letter.
Here, “she”, a subject and a performer of the action, is used. “a letter” refers to an object on which the subject performs the action. “Write” is a verb form that describes the act of a subject performing or doing something.
#2. Passive Voice:
A sentence with the passive voice is one in which the verb is used in its passive form and the subject is applied to it.
- This simply means that the subject of a sentence becomes its receiver and the verb, which has a passive form is used as the subject, is also performed as such.
- Passive voice is not the most straightforward way to write. It can be used as a preference to modify content or to create a unique effect.
- Passive voice starts with an object and is followed by the verb. The subject appears at the end.
General structure
Object + verb + subject
- Passive Statement: A letter is written by him.
- Active statement: she writes a letter.
The verb form here tells us that subject does something for the object.
“she” refers to a subject and a performer of the action. “A letter” refers to an object on which the subject performs the action. “Write” refers to a verb form of action where a subject performs or does something.
Passive voice: The subject of a sentence in active voice is the third person. In passive voice, the verb form is converted to the past participle form.
- This simply means that the subject of a sentence becomes its receiver and the verb, which has a passive form is used as the subject, is also performed as such.
- Passive voice is not the most straightforward way to write. It can be used as a preference to modify content or to create a unique effect.
- Passive voice starts with an object and is followed by the verb. The subject appears at the end.
General structure
- Active]He finishes the task.
- Passive]The task is finished by him.
- A]Setu enjoys an pasta.
- P]An pasta is eaten by Setu.
- A]Jay assists the stranger.
- P]The stranger is helped by Jay.
- A]She wore a stunning dress.
- P]A stunning dress was being worn by her.
- A]My cousins brings the sweets.
- P]The sweets are bought by my cousins.
- Structure of the Active Voice
- Structure of passive voice
Example:
- Passive statementHe writes a book.
- Active statementHe wrote a book.
The verb form here tells us that subject does something for the object.
“A book” is now a subject.
“He” refers to a subject and a performer of the action. “A book” refers to an object on which the subject performs the action. “Write” is a verb form that describes the act of a subject performing or doing something.
Passive voice: The subject of a sentence in active voice is the third person. In passive voice, the verb form is converted to the past participle form.
Examples of active voice and passive voice:
- Active]He finishes the task.
- Passive]He has completed the task.
- A]Sarah enjoys an ice cream.
- P]Sarah eats ice cream.
- A]James assists the stranger.
- P]James helps the stranger.
- A]She wore a stunning dress.
- P]She was wearing a beautiful gown.
- A]My friend brought the drinks.
- P]My friend bought the beverages.
We can identify the structure order in the sentence to distinguish between the Active and Passive voices.
- Structure of the Active Voice
Subject + Verb + Object
- Structure of passive voice
Object + Verb + Subject
Conversion of passive voice into active voice and vice versa
Some rules are based on the tenses.
1. Simple Present Tense
To convert an Active voice sentence from Simple Past Tense to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + verb (base form) + Object.
Passive voice: Object + am/are + verb, past participle + subject (passive).
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| He studies novels. | He studies novels. |
| They speak the Madrid language. | They speak the Madrid language. |
| Every day I play football. | Every day, I play football. |
2. Present Continuous Tense:
To convert an Active voice sentence from Present Continuous Tensive to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + is/am/are+ verb (present participle + object).
Passive voice
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| He’s buying a sport bike. | He is buying a sports bike. |
| They cook chicken grills. | They are cooking the chicken grills. |
| The doctor is performing the heart operation. | The doctor is performing the heart operation. |
3. Present Perfect Tendency:
To convert an Active voice sentence from Present Perfect Tension to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + have/has+ verb (past partiple) + Object.
Passive voice: Object +have/has+ been + verb (past partiple) + subject (+ passive)
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| He has driven a bicycle. | He has driven a bike. |
| That work is done. | We have completed that work. |
| She cooked the evening’s meals. | Her culinary skills were evident in the evening’s cuisine. |
4. Simple Past Tense
To convert an Active voice sentence from Simple Past Tenure to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + verb (past simple form) + Object.
Passive voice: Object + were/were + verb, past participle + subject, passive
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| He gave her his bike key. | She took his bike key. |
| He threw it into the drainage. | He threw the ball into the drainage. |
| They were good at football. | They were good at football. |
5. Past Continuous Tense:
To convert an Active voice sentence from Past Continuous Tensive to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + was/were (present participle + object).
Passive voice: Object + were/were + verb (past partiple) + subject (+ passive)
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| She was speaking with someone. | She was talking to someone. |
| He was enjoying today’s lunch. | She was eating today’s lunch. |
| I was singing a song. | I was eating a song. |
6. Past Perfect Tense
To convert an Active voice sentence from Past Perfect Tensive to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + had + verb (past participle) + Object.
Passive voice: Object +had be + verb (past participle) + subject (+ passive)
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| Kuldeep hadn’t come with Setu. | Setu hadn’t been come with Kuldeep. |
| He had collected the stuff from the garden. | The stuff from the garden had been collected by him. |
| He has cooked the morning’s food. | The morning’s food has been cooked by him. |
7. Simple Future Tense
To convert an Active voice sentence from Simple Past Tenure to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + will/shall + Verb (base form) + Object.
Passive voice: Object + will/shall exist + verb (past partiple) + subject (+ passive)
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| They will follow the black car. | The black car will be followed by them. |
| I will improve my writing skills. | My writing skills will be improving by mine. |
| She will write a letter. | A letter will be written by him. |
8. Future Perfect Tendency:
To convert an Active voice sentence from Future Perfect Tensive to Passive voice
Structure
Active voice: Subject + will Have + Verb (past participle + Object).
Passive voice: Object + Will Have Been + Verb (past participle + subject (passive).
| Active voice | Passive voice: |
| Shivam will have called his daughter. | His daughter will have been called by Shivam. |
| He will have rejected the call. | The call will have been rejected by him. |
| They will not have forgiven their son. | Their son won’t have been forgiven by them. |