The active and passive voices in English are similar in meaning to Russian. They also show how the action is related (or not related) to its performer.

Meaning

Active and Passive Voice(English names of the active and passive voice) show, respectively, that a person (object) performs an action or an action happens to a person (object) and it does not matter by whom this action is performed.

active voice
Emphasis on the performer of the action

We built the well last year. We built a well last year.

passive voice
Focus on the action itself

The well was built last year. - The well was built last year.

Education

The active and passive tenses are formed in almost the same way. If you are fluent in the tense system of the active voice, then you probably already noticed that if you put the passive auxiliary verb (to be) at the right time and add the semantic verb in the third form, you will get a passive voice grammatically.

For example:

He is drinking juice. - The juice is being drunk. (Present Continuous).

Other times are formed similarly.

Note! The entire group of Perfect Continuous tenses and Future Perfect tenses do not have passive voice forms.

Active and Passive Voice Rule

Active voice used when it is important to show who (or what) is performing the action. For example, Tourists visit the UK. - Tourists come to the United Kingdom. In this proposal, the emphasis is on the fact that it is tourists who come (not businessmen, not politicians, but tourists).

Passive voice is used in cases where it is not important who performs the action, and attention is focused on the action itself. For example, London is visited every year. - People come to London all year round. The point of this proposal is that London is a very visited city by visitors. And it doesn't matter who comes - tourists, politicians, athletes or scientists.

Active and passive voice in English: table

If you have not yet learned how to translate the active and passive voice in English in your head, use the pivot table. It gives examples of the formation of all tenses in two voices.

		Present Simple Passive
present simple		Cards are printed.
Present Continuous	I am printing cards.	Cards are being printed.
Present Perfect	I have printed cards.	Cards have been printed.
past simple	I printed cards.	Cards were printed.
Past continuous	I was printing cards.	Cards were being printed.
past perfect	I had printed cards.	Cards had been printed.
Future Simple	I will print cards.	Cards will be printed.
Future Continuous	I will be printing cards.
Future Perfect	I will have printed cards.	Cards will have been printed.

Active and passive voice in English are widely used both in structure and in writing. At the same time, in communication there is a tendency to use the active voice more widely, and when writing (especially in an official style) - the passive voice.

There are two voices in English: active and passive. The passive voice (Passive Voice) in English is otherwise called passive, and the real voice (Active Voice) is called active.

When is it appropriate to use one or the other pledge? It is important to understand the difference between passive and active voice.

How to distinguish between passive and active voice?

If a subject refers to the thing or person doing the action , then the verb is used in the active form.

🔊 I write letters to my friend in Moscow.
I writing letters to my friend in Moscow.

If a action is performed on the subject , then the verb is used in the passive form.

Prepositions in the passive voice

Exist passive marker words, are suggestions by and with. See Table 1 below for details of their use.

It is worth noting that the passive voice in English is used more often than in Russian. Tenses in the passive voice are chosen according to the same principles as in the real voice.. We will consider the formation of tenses in the following articles.

In what other cases is the passive voice used?

1. If the narrator does not know or does not care who performed the action.

🔊 Some sculptures were stolen from an exhibition last weekend.
sculptures were stolen from the show last weekend.

1. If the subject of action or process is more important than the actor.

🔊 The forest was destroyed by fire.
Forest was destroyed fire.

1. If you intentionally do not want to point out the one who performed the action.

🔊 The balloon has been burst.
The balloon burst.

06.11.2013

The very presence of the passive voice form (sometimes called the passive voice) is not a peculiar feature characteristic only of English syntax. However, the passive voice in English is more widespread than in Russian, and the models for constructing a sentence with it are somewhat more diverse.

When is the use of the passive voice preferable? When it is not very important for the speaker who exactly performs the action, but it is important that it is performed and to what object it is directed.

What is the difference between active and passive voices

To understand this issue, let's start with the native language.

Consider the difference between "I keep the rings in this box" and "The rings are kept in this box"? In the first case, in the center of attention and in the role of the subject, the one who acts is me. In the second case, the speaker is only interested in the fact itself: the rings are here, in this box. And who put them there - it doesn't matter, it's not worth even mentioning this subject, because he is insignificant. This sentence is built in the passive voice, and its subject is a word that names not the subject of the action, but its object - rings.

In English, this semantic difference between the examples is preserved:

• I keep my rings in this jewelry-box.
• The rings are kept in the jewelry-box.

The active voice focuses on the subject of the action, while the passive voice focuses on the action itself and the object with which it is performed.

Building a sentence in the passive voice

To “flip” an active structure into a passive one, you need to follow a few steps:

1. make the object subject: in our example it is rings,
2. to be omitted (or translated in addition),
3. formulate the verb-predicate in the passive: instead of keep - are kept.

Considering how many verb tenses there are in English, it is very useful to learn the very principle of forming a passive form. It consists of several words: an auxiliary verb to be in the appropriate tense, person and number (in our example it is are), followed by the main verb in the form Participle II (kept) . For some times, rather heavy combinations are obtained, this is clearly seen in the summary table.

Formation of forms of passive voice

	present	Past	Future	Future in the Past
Simple	The ring is kept.	The ring was kept.	The ring will be kept.	The ring would be kept.
Continuous	The ring is being kept.	The ring was being kept.
Perfect	The ring has been kept.	The ring had been kept.	The ring will have been kept.	The ring would have been kept.

The semantic verb remains unchanged, all grammatical information (person, number, tense) is carried by the auxiliary verb to be: it is he who gives such cumbersome forms. The table also shows that Future Continuous, Future Continuous in the Past and all tenses of the Perfect Continuous group do not have a passive voice at all.

If a modal verb is used in the passive voice, then the model on which the sentence is built is greatly simplified: modal verb + be + main verb. For example, The rings can be kept in the jewelry-box.

To form a negative sentence, we place the particle not in its usual place after the auxiliary verb: The ring is not kept. If it itself consists of several words, then after the first: The ring is not being kept. As always, the abbreviation is acceptable: The ring isn't being kept.

Negative passive sentences

	present	Past	Future	Future in the Past
Simple	The ring is not kept.	The ring was not kept.	The ring will not be kept.	The ring would not be kept.
Continuous	The ring is not kept.	The ring was not being kept.
Perfect	The ring has not been kept.	The ring had not been kept.	The ring will not have been kept.	The ring would not have been kept.

In a general question, we put the auxiliary verb (or only its first part) in the first place: Is the ring kept? Is the ring being kept?

In a special question, this structure remains intact, and we place a question word in front of it: Where is the ring kept?

General questions with passive voice

	present	Past	Future	Future in the Past
Simple	Is the ring kept?	Was the ring kept?	Will the ring be kept?	Would the ring be kept?
Continuous	Is the ring being kept?	Was the ring being kept?
Perfect	Has the ring been kept?	Has the ring been kept?	Will the ring have been kept?	Would the ring have been kept?

English sentences in the passive do not always "lose" the subject performing the action. At the request of the speaker, it can be named, the language provides the necessary means for this. Let's go back to our example and add a little clarification to it: The rings are kept in the jewelry-box by me. Object with the preposition by indicates the one who performs the action(keeps the rings in the box): in the active voice it was the subject of I, now it is a prepositional object used in the instrumental case: by me.

Additions in passive sentences

In such sentences, additions are often used that name the tools or means by which the action is performed. They use the preposition with: The rings are cleaned with toothpaste.
Pretext of in such cases, they are used to designate the material: The rings are made of silver.

Features of the use of the passive voice

1. In different languages, the prevalence of passive and active voice is not the same. In particular, a number of English verbs can be used in the passive as a predicate with a direct object, although similar Russian words cannot.

For example, a proposal I shown Maria the ring transforms into two different sentences in the passive:

• The ring was shown to Maria (The ring was shown to Maria).
• Maria was shown the rings (Maria was shown the rings).

To translate such sentences into Russian, one has to use impersonal sentences without naming the person who performs the action. If the subject is known, you can translate in the active voice: Tom was told by his teacher to sit down (The teacher told Tom to sit down).

2. Another difficulty is English verbs with so-called postpositions used in the passive. Postpositions retain their place after the verb: The rings were sent for (They sent for the rings). In translation, we put the word for (for the Russian language this is a preposition) before the noun - the subject.

To show that an action is being performed on an object/person, English uses passive voice.

Look at the examples: “English is spoken in many countries. These machines are made in Germany. This house is for sale.

In such sentences, the emphasis is not on who performs the action, but on what action is performed on the person / object. This is the passive (or passive) voice.

In this article, we will consider schemes for constructing a passive voice in the present tense in English -. We will analyze in detail how to build affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences.

In the article you will learn:

• Formation of the passive voice in time Present Simple

What is passive (passive) voice in English

First, let's understand what a deposit is and what it is for.

In English, the pledge shows who is doing the action:

• the person/object itself performs the action;
• a person/object experiences the action of another object.

In accordance with this, in English there are two types of collateral

• active voice(Active voice) - the actor himself performs actions.

For example

• Passive voice(Passive voice) - the actor experiences the action of another person.

For example

The vase is broken. (The vase broke, but it didn't break itself, but someone did it).

She is awakened by noise in the street. (She did not wake up by herself, but something woke her up).

When do we use the passive voice?

Rules for using the passive voice in English

The most important thing to remember is that the passive voice is used when we talk about an action that is performed on a person/object.

The following use cases can be distinguished:

1. If we don't know who did the action
For example: "Her wallet was stolen" (we don't know who did it).

2. The action itself is important to us, and not the one who performed it.
For example: "The watch is made in Switzerland" (we don't care who made it).

3. If something bad happened but we don't want to blame anyone else
For example: “The holiday is ruined” (we don’t want to say who exactly did it).

Now let's see how to build sentences in the passive voice in the simple present tense.

Present Simple Passive Voice in English

In the Present Simple, we use the passive voice when we talk about a regular, regular, constant action, which is carried out on a person/object.

For example

Cheese is made from milk.
Mail is delivered every day.

Rules for constructing the passive voice in Present Simple

The passive voice in Present Simple is formed using:

• the verb to be in the present tense (am, are, is);
• verb in the past tense.

There are regular and irregular verbs in English. Depending on the verb, we:

• add the ending -ed if the verb is correct;
• put it in the 3rd form if the verb is irregular.

The scheme for constructing a passive voice in Present Simple will be as follows.

Object/person + am/are/is + 3rd form of irregular verb or regular verb with -ed ending.

I	am
You		3rd form irregular verb or correct verb with ending -ed
We	are
They
He
She	is
It

Examples

The bread is baked every morning.
This bread is baked every morning.

Paper is made from wood.
Paper is made from wood.

These rooms are cleaned every day.
These rooms are cleaned every day.

Using by in the passive voice

If we want to indicate who made the action, we add preposition by. We put it at the end of the sentence, and after it comes the actor who performs the action itself.

The scheme of the proposal will be as follows.

Object / person + am / are / is + 3rd form of an irregular verb or a regular verb with the ending -ed + by + the one who performs the action.

Let's look at examples.

Our dinner is cooked by mom.
Mom cooks our dinner.

These jewels are made by Kate.
These decorations are made by Kate.

Using with in the passive voice

If we are talking about the instrument with which the action is performed, we use preposition with. We put it at the end of the sentence, and after it comes the instrument.

Schematic of such a proposal.

Object / person + am / are / is + 3rd form of an irregular verb or a regular verb with the ending -ed + with + an instrument with which an action is performed.

Examples

Bread is cut with a knife.
Bread is cut with a knife.

The pictures are drawn with a pencil.
These pictures are drawn with a pencil.

Negative Present Simple sentences in the passive voice

We can make the offer negative. For this you need to put not after the verb to be.

Negative Sentence Scheme in Present Simple Voice

Object/person + am/are/is + not + 3rd form of irregular verb or regular verb with -ed ending.

I	am
You			3rd form irregular verb or correct verb with ending -ed
We	are
They		not
She
He	is
It

Sentence examples

The flowers are not watered.
Flowers are not watered.

This car is not washed.
This car is not washed.

I am not invited.
I am not invited.

Interrogative sentences Present Simple in the passive voice

To ask a question, we need to put the verb to be in the first place in the sentence. The scheme of the proposal will be as follows.

Am/are/is + object/person + 3rd irregular verb or regular -ed verb?

Am	I
	you	3rd form irregular verb or correct verb with ending -ed
Are	we
	they
	he
Is	she
	it

Examples

Is the house sold?
Is this house for sale?

Are the dogs walked by Tom?
Does Tom walk the dogs?

Now let's put the theory into practice. To do this, do the exercise on the use of the passive voice.

Reinforcement task

Translate the following sentences into English. Leave your answers in the comments below the article.

1. These songs are listened to often.
2. She doesn't get gifts every day.
3. The phone is for sale.
4. Is the exam written with a pen?
5. Are these items made in China?
6. He is punished by his parents.

They are used in the active form of the pledge - "the Active Voice" and in the passive ( passive) - "the Passive Voice". In the active voice, the subject performs the action indicated by the verb, and in the passive voice, the verb itself acts on the subject. She wrote a book (Active) - A book was written by her (Passive). So easy! But let's clarify some details just in case. C "mon.

What is passive voice?

Passive voice is widely used in both spoken and written modern English. Often, passive constructions are used when there is no need to name the performer of any action, and also, if there is no difference in who exactly performs this action, only the result is important.

The passive voice is used to show interest in the object that is experiencing the action, not the object that is performing it.

The book was written last Monday. The book was written last Monday.

In this sentence, the subject “the book” experiences the action of the subject, that is, the book did not write itself, but was written by someone. At the same time, most likely, it is known who wrote it, but the fact of the action itself is important here (the book was written, and it is ready), and not the performer. Therefore, the sentence is used in the passive voice.

When it is necessary to indicate the performer of the action in the passive voice, then we add the preposition " by» :

The book was written by me. - This book was written by me.

The formation of the passive voice in different tenses

The passive voice is formed with the help of the auxiliary verb " be» and forms Past Participle(of a semantic verb in form 3) and only transitive verbs (denoting an action that, in its meaning, passes to a certain object) can form forms of the passive voice.

Formation of the passive voice

Time	Formula	Example
present simple	is/am/are + Ved (V3)	Mails are sent every day. - Parcels are sent every day.
past simple	was/were + Ved (V3)	Mails were sent yesterday. - The parcels were sent yesterday.
Future Simple	will/shall + be + Ved(V3)	Mail will be sent tomorrow. - Parcels will be sent tomorrow.
Present Continuous	is/am/are + being + Ved (V3)	Mails are being sent now. - Parcels are being sent now.
Past continuous	was/were + being + Ved (V3)	Mails were being sent at 5 yesterday. - Parcels were sent yesterday at 5 o'clock.
Future Continuous	—	—
Present Perfect	has/have + been + Ved (V3)	Letters have already been sent. - The letters have already been sent.
past perfect	had + been + Ved (V3)	Letters had been sent before he phoned. - The letters were sent before he called.
Future Perfect	will/shall + have/has+ been + Ved (V3)	Letters will have been sent by 5 tomorrow. - Letters will be sent tomorrow by 5 o'clock.
Perfect Continuous	—	—

Attention: The Perfect Continuous is not used at all in the passive voice. And Continuous time has no future segment.

In addition, you can still form passive sentences with two objects. So an active sentence in the passive form of the pledge might look like this:

Active Voice:

Linda gave an apple to me.

Passive Voice:

An apple was given to me by Linda or
I was given an apple by Linda.

One of the two objects becomes the subject and the other remains the object. Which object turns into a subject depends on what you focus on.

Negative and interrogative forms of the verb in the passive voice

negative the form of the verb is formed using the particle " not”, which follows the auxiliary verb (if there are several auxiliary verbs, then “not” is placed after the first one):

The cat was not fed by him yesterday. - The cat was not fed it yesterday.
The cat was not often left hungry. - The cat was not often left hungry.

Nothing complicated and interrogative form. To form such in the passive voice first auxiliary verb put before the subject:

Are you often invited to the circle? - Are you often invited to the circus?
Has the book was written by her? - Was the book written by her?

to be born

This passive form is often used in the past tense, but in some cases the present or future tense is also appropriate.

We say "I was born" (was born) - I was born(not I am born). Action refers to the past:

I was born in Chicago. - I was born in Chicago.
Where were you born? - Where you were born?

But if we talk not about ourselves, but about the birth of children in a general sense, then Present can be used depending on the situation:

How many kids are born every day? - How many children are born every day?
Around 100 babies are born in this hospital every week. - About 100 babies are born in this hospital every week.

We don't know on exactly which day the baby will be born.

Modal verbs

First you need to remember the most commonly used modal verbs:

• can- to be able, to be able. I can do that. - I can do it;
• should- verb adviser. When you need to advise or recommend something. You should be careful. - You should be careful;
• must- a verb expressing the speaker's obligation or prohibition. Shows awareness of the speaker's obligation to do something or is used to indicate a prohibition, for example: You musn "t smoke here. - You can't smoke here. I must admit. - I must admit;
• have to- a verb expressing present or future obligations that cannot be violated. You have to do that. - You must do it;
• ought to- a synonym for the verb "should", a more polite version of it. You ought to stop smoking. - You should stop smoking;
• be supposed to is a modal verb based on rules or expectations. That is, it is used when you need to say that someone needs to do according to certain rules or when something is expected. You were supposed to save him, Batman! - You should have saved him, Batman (because Batman saves people or puts them in jail).

To make a correct sentence with a modal verb in the passive voice, we need to put the verb "be" in combination with the modal. It will look like this:

• must be(it should be);
• have to be(it should be);
• ought to be(should be);
• can be(may be);
• should be(should be);
• be supposed to be(assume that; assume that).

In practice, "modal verbs" are used quite often. And since they can also have a passive form, there is a special case of use with them.

There is no difficulty here: after the modal verb, add "be" and put the main verb following it in the Participle II form. So, it's like: (to) be + past participle(3rd form of the verb).

The next step is to put the main verb into the third form:

The writer should write a book. - A writer should write a book.
The book should be written by the writer. - The book should be written by a writer.

He has to do this test. - He must pass this test.
This test has to be done by him. - This test must be performed by him.

They were supposed to leave the bed an hour ago. “They were supposed to have vacated the bed an hour ago.
The bed was supposed to be left by them an hour ago. “They were supposed to have vacated the bed an hour ago.

Conclusion

As you can see, there is nothing complicated in this English section. You just need to determine the role of the subject: whether it acts or is acted upon. Then indicate the time, the auxiliary verb, the ending of the predicate - and voila! In the bag. If anything, the Passive Voice education table will help you.

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