Pledge in English. Passive voice

In this section, we will look at how interrogative, negative and affirmative sentences are constructed. What's the most important thing to know? That's right, the most important thing is to correctly compose a sentence using the passive voice. That's why we have prepared tables for the passive voice of the English language, you won't have any difficulties with them!

What is the passive voice in English?

We can say that the passive voice is when the person who performs the action suffers because it is partially mentioned in the passive or is not affected at all.

Let's remember a couple of characteristics of the Passive voice rule:

• When we change a sentence, the object becomes the subject.
• The passive voice can only be used (give, write, take, open etc.) Verbs such as: sleep, happen, come, go, seem are not used in the passive voice of the English language.
• In this form, we can mention who performed the action or we have the right not to mention.
• To understand who performed an action, you need to use the preposition ‘by’.

Passive voice formula.

The formation of the passive voice in English is used according to the following formula:

Subject + form of ‘to be’ + past participle + by + object.

- A house has been built - The house was built.
OR
- A house has been built by my husband - The house was built by my husband.

Did you find out how the passive voice is formed in English?! Now you can move on to the tables with examples.

Passive voice in English: tables with examples

Remember that temporary forms of the passive voice are used in the same cases as the corresponding forms of the active voice.

Table of indefinite tenses of the passive voice

Examples of sentences with tenses in the passive voice:

• Passive voice Present Simple:
  — Basketball is played by two teams of five players each — Two teams of five players play basketball.
• Past Simple Passive:
  - Our institute was established in 1930 - Our institute was founded in 1930.
• Future Simple Passive:
  — These competitions will be held in Moscow.
• Passive Future-Simple-in-the-past:
  - She said that the annual swimming competition would be held in a few days - She said that the annual swimming competition would take place in a few days.

Long passive tenses

In this table we will touch on long tenses such as: Present Continuous passive voice, Past Continuous passive.

Examples:

• Passive Present Continuous:
  - The question is being discussed - The question is being discussed.
• Passive Past Continuous:
  — Were new records being established when I arrived? – Were new records set when I arrived?

Perfect tenses of the passive voice

Perfect tenses that will be in this table: Passive voice Present Perfect, Past Perfect Passive voice, Future Perfect, Future Perfect-in-the-past in the passive voice.

Examples with the above aspects:

• Present Perfect Passive:
  - These splendid houses have been built this year - These magnificent houses were built this year.
• Passive Past Perfect:
  - The game had been finished by 3 o’clock yesterday - The game was over by three o’clock yesterday.
• Future Perfect Passive:
  - The letter will have been sent by Friday - The letter will be sent by Friday.
• Passive Future Perfect-in-the-past:
  - He said that the construction of the new stadium would have been finished by the end of the year - He said that the construction of the new stadium would be completed by the end of the year.

Passive voice in English examples

We hope that the English passive voice will not torment you anymore. After all, essentially all you need to know is how to correctly construct any type of sentence and in what cases to use it. Read more examples and give your own examples of passive voice in English.

Affirmative sentences:

• He was taken to the hospital when the ambulance crashed - He was taken to the hospital when the ambulance crashed.
• We couldn’t go to my favorite café. It was being redecorated - We couldn't go to my favorite cafe. They were doing renovations there.
• The politician is being interviewed now - The politician is being interviewed now.

Negative Suggestions:

• All the competitors were not given souvenirs – All participants were not given souvenirs.
• The floor hasn’t been cleaned yet - The floor has not been cleaned yet.
• This plant can’t be kept indoors – This plant cannot be kept indoors.

Questions in the passive voice in English:

• Is whiskey made in Poland – Is whiskey made in Poland?
• Was Mona Liza painted by Leonardo da Vinci? – “Mona Lisa” was painted by Leonardo da Vinci?
• Will I be invited? -Will I be invited?

Passive voice English dialogue:

Your friend: How was your weekend?

You: It was good. We went out of town this weekend because it was my daughter’s birthday. We went to see the grandparents. When we got home I walked in and a layout had been knocked over and some of the trash had been eaten in the kitchen and some of the cabinets had been opened. There were some things that had been left on the floor.

Your friend: Sounds like somebody broken in, no?

You: No, No. Nobody broke in. The door hadn’t been broken or anything like that. It was still locked. But it turns out that my dog ​​had eaten some out of the trash and had opened the cabinets.

Your friend: I hope next time you won’t leave your puppy alone.

Dialogue 2

Author: Once upon a time a father went grocery shopping with his daughter. The whole time the girl had one thing on her mind.
Girl: Buy me biscuits.
Father: No.
Girl: Buy me biscuits.
Father: No way.
Girl: Buy me biscuits.
Father: They are too sugary.
Girl: Buy me biscuits.
Father: Nope! Would you stop asking me?
Girl: Please, please, please.
Father: Fine, go get your biscuits.
Author: When they got home, father put away the groceries and then went to do some work.
Leaving the little girl alone in the kitchen…with the biscuits. Realizing that her father was busy, she decided to go to town on the biscuits.
Girl: Yum, yum, yum….
Author: Meanwhile, her father was busy at work. All of a sudden, he heard the scariest noise a parent can hear….. THE SOUND OF SILENCE. So he decided to go and check on his daughter.
Father: Oh, My! What happened here?
Girl: Look dad, a big mess was made.
Father: I can see that, darling. Who made the mess?
Girl: I don't know. The biscuits were eaten.
Father: Who ate the biscuits?
Girl: I don't know. =)

Underline the passive structures from the examples and dialogues above and share them in the comments.

Passive voice test

Time to apply your knowledge and take a test on the passive voice in English.

We would like to start this article by telling you that the Passive Voice in English is not as difficult to understand as you think. We actually sympathize with this poor passive structure, since many people hate it.
All you need is a good command and knowledge of the past participle to construct a beautiful sentence using Passive voice in English.

In this article, you can independently study the passive voice in English. You will also learn how the passive voice is formed in English and how to use it. Understand the difference between active and passive voice. Let's look at the table to compare the active voice and the passive voice, using the appropriate tense.

Active voice in English

Let's first find out what is pledge in English?

Pledge is a verb form that shows whether the subject performs an action (= active voice) or is influenced by it (= passive voice).

The active voice is the most commonly used voice in English. And if you think about it, it is usually much simpler than passive sentences.
We must see the characteristics of this form.

Active voice:

• The active subject is at the beginning of the sentence.
• After the subject comes , verb and object.
• We can say that the verb is active.
• Active voice clearly tells us who performed the action.

active voice sentence structure:

Subject+ Verb+ Object

Example with explanation:

- My daughter has won the prize - My daughter won the prize.

In the above sentence we have subject(my daughter) verb(has won) addition(prize).

Which sentence would you use in everyday speech?

- I ate breakfast / the breakfast was eaten by me - I ate breakfast / breakfast was eaten by me.

- They will buy a yacht/ the yacht will be bought - They will buy a yacht / the yacht will be bought.

The answer is obvious. However, in some cases it is better to use passive voice. A little later you will learn in what cases to use the passive voice in English.

What is the passive voice in English?

The passive voice in English is used when the person or thing taking the action is more important than the person or thing performing the action.

Simply put, when we say what a person or thing does, we use Active verb forms. When we say what happened to a person or thing, we often use Passive verb forms.

Let's start with how the passive voice is formed.

Formation of the passive voice

The passive voice is formed with the verb in the correct tense to be + past participle(past participle or regular verb ending in -ed). Let's look again at how the passive voice is formed.

Passive voice formula in English:

Passive voice - Table

The table shows the active and passive voice in English. Compare the two examples, paying attention to the highlighted words.

The windows have been broken Not(the windows have broken).

• 3. Use Present Participle instead of Past Participle

— Someone has broken the windows —>
— The windows have been broken NOT (the windows has been breaking).

• 4. Confuse plural and singular.

Someone– units h so the verb comes after it has reported.
The windows is plural, so we have to say have been broken Not(the windows has been...).

Verbs that cannot be used in the passive

Not all verbs are used in the passive voice. Passive structures are not possible with , such as die, cry, arrive which do not have an addition (object).

- She died last year - She died last year.
- My baby cried - My baby cried.

Some are also rarely used in the passive. Most of these verbs express a state, not an action.

Examples: have, resemble, lack, etc.:

- I have a flat in the countryside - I have an apartment in the village. ( Not A flat is had by me).
- My jacket doesn’t fit me - My jacket doesn’t suit me. ( Not I’m not fitted by my jacket).

Some prepositional verbs are more often used in the active.

Examples: agree with and walk into:

— I walked into the room ( Not The room was walked into by me).
— He agreed with his mother ( Not He was agreed with by his mother).

When not to use Passive voice in English?

Many who study the passive voice begin to 'abuse' the passive. Here's an important point:

Don't use the passive voice unless you have a reason to.
For example, if you use passive, especially when writing, think about why you would use passive. Do you need to use it to highlight the beginning of a sentence? Or sound polite and formal? Do you want to highlight an action, but no one has done it? If not, then don't use Passive Voice.
By using the passive, your sentences will be long and complex.

Watch the passive voice video and listen to how the passive voice is used in TV series.

We have looked at what the active and passive voice is in English and when exactly to use it in speech. As you understand, active and passive voice in English have their own characteristics.
Of course, active voice is more common, but having learned the rules of the passive voice, now you can easily understand any text. Learning the passive voice will be difficult if you leave it aside for a long time. But if you repeat the table and usage from time to time and also use this rule in speech, then the rule will have no choice but to obey you and stay with you forever!

Passive voice exercises

Do passive voice exercises. Your task will be to open the brackets in the passive voice; if you have difficulty answering, do not hesitate to look at the table.

P.S.
Since many people may forget to put points in the test, we did not use them, so they do not need to be put. If you put a period, the point will not be counted.

Today we will talk about one of the important topics when studying English - “Passive Voice”, the table of formation of which forms raises many questions. This is a rather complex type of predicate. All times have their own formula, and we will look at each of them with examples. The very concept of voice (Passive Voice), the table, the rule of formation - this is what every person who wants to correctly express their thoughts in a foreign language should know.

The concept of collateral

Before moving specifically to the formulas for the formation of the passive voice in different tenses, you need to understand what the very essence of the voice is. Let's remember what voices exist in the English language. Here it is best to base your knowledge on the grammar of the Russian language, since there are certain similarities. So, there are two pledges:

1. Active Voice.
2. Passive Voice.

What is the difference? In active voice, the subject of the sentence is the active person, and the action is performed with his participation. (Mom washed the frame). The passive voice shows that the action is performed on a person or object. That is, the subject experiences a certain action and is not its performer. (The frame was washed by mom). It is important to use Passive Voice correctly. The table, examples and formulas help the user understand the difference in collateral at one time or another.

Features of the use of passive voice

One of the difficulties when using the passive voice for a Russian speaker is that we are basically completely focused on constructing sentences according to the norms of our native language. We must not forget that, unlike Russian, in English there is a fairly strict word order - first the subject, then the predicate. Thanks to it, you can navigate the objects and subjects of action. The Russian language has cases, which English cannot boast of. Passive Voice, the table of forms of which is proposed below, is based precisely on the strict order of constructing sentences. Let's look at this with an example:

• The man killed a gangster.- A man killed a bandit. In this case, the subject is “man”. He is the active person, which means that in the sentence we observe an active voice. We see this in the form of the verb.
• The man was killed by a gangster. - The man was killed by a bandit. In this sentence, the subject is also “man,” but he is no longer an actor, but, on the contrary, acts as an object of action. Therefore, the predicate in a sentence is formed according to the rules of the passive voice. This is done in order to show: it was not a man, but a man who was killed.

The difficulty with such sentences is that we can express the idea in Russian in different ways. It is acceptable to use the phrase: “The bandits killed the man.” In such a sentence, “man” is no longer the subject, but becomes an object. In English, word order is unchanged, and the role of the subject remains with the "man". In order to avoid making a mistake, you need to analyze the members of the sentence not in the Russian version, but taking into account the construction of the phrase in English. Then you will clearly know which word serves as your subject and will be able to correctly evaluate and form the type of voice.

Passive Voice: Form Table

Let's consider all the variants of forms used in oral and written speech in English. We remember that there are four groups of times:

• Indefinite.
• Continuous.
• Perfect.
• Perfect Continuous.

The last group of tenses does not use the passive form of the verb, which means it does not interest us today, but the first three almost all have a passive form. The main formula of the voice we are interested in is the verb “to be” paired with the past participle (Participle II). We know that to be has different forms in each time. Accordingly, the formula changes along with the verb. As for Participle II, there are two options for education:

• We add endings to regular verbs - ed in accordance with spelling rules,
• irregular verbs are collected in a single table, where you need to take the ready-made participle form.

The passive voice is also not used in the future continuous tense. Now let's look at each formula with examples in groups.

Passive voice during the Indefinite era

Passive Voice, the table of forms of which is given above, is most often used with verbs of the Indefinite tense group.

• The car is washed every day. - The car is washed every day.
• The man was called Hitch. - The man was called Hitch.
• Nelson will be asked to come. - Nelson will be asked to come.

All forms express a constant action that is happening in the present tense, has happened in the past or will take place in the future. But Passive Voice is used not only in simple indefinite tenses. The table shows us that there are other forms, for example in the group of Continuous tenses.

Passive voice in Continuous times

Continuous (or Long) tense means that an action occurs at some specific moment in the present or past tense. As already indicated, this form of passive does not apply in the future tense.

Passive voice during the Perfect era

There is another group of tenses that the Passive Voice table talks about. All tenses of a completed group mean that the action has already been completed, the result has been received, and it is visible either in the present tense, or was visible in the past, or will be observed in the future.

• The bed has been made already. - The bed has already been made (we see the result now).
• The bed had been made by 6 o’clock. - By 6 o’clock the bed was made (we already saw the result at 6 o’clock).
• The bed will have been made by the next morning.- The bed will be made by the next morning (we will see the result the next morning).

How correctly you use the form of the verb determines how the person with whom you are speaking in English will understand you.

To show that an action is carried out on an object/person, in English we use passive voice.

Look at the examples: “English is spoken in many countries. These machines are manufactured 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 look at the schemes for constructing the passive voice in the present tense in English -. We will look in detail at how to construct affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences.

In the article you will learn:

• Formation of the Passive Voice in Present Simple Time

What is passive (passive) voice in English

First, let's figure out what collateral is and why it is needed.

In English, voice shows who performs the action:

• the person/object performs the action itself;
• 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 on the street. (She didn’t wake up on her own, 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 cases of its use can be distinguished:

1. If we do not know who performed the action
For example: “Her wallet was stolen” (we don’t know who did it).

2. What matters to us is the action itself, not the person who performed it.
For example: “The watch is made in Switzerland” (it doesn’t matter to us who exactly made it).

3. If something unpleasant happened, but we don’t want to blame someone for it
For example: “The holiday is ruined” (we don’t want to say who exactly did it).

Now let's look at how to construct 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 an ordinary, 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 the Present Simple

The passive voice in the Present Simple is formed using:

• 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 regular;
• we put it in the 3rd form if the verb is irregular.

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

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

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 did 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 proposal outline will be as follows.

Object/person + am/are/is + 3rd form of irregular verb or regular verb 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.
Kate makes these jewelry.

Using with in the passive voice

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

A diagram of such a proposal.

Object/person + am/are/is + 3rd form of an irregular verb or regular verb ending -ed + with + a tool used to perform an action.

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. To do this you need to put not after the verb to be.

Scheme of a negative sentence in Present Simple Voice

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

Example sentences

The flowers are not watered
Flowers are not watered.

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

I am not invited.
I'm not invited.

Present Simple Interrogative Sentences in Passive Voice

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

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

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 an exercise on using 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 is not given gifts every day.
3. The phone is for sale.
4. Is the exam written with a pen?
5. Are these products made in China?
6. He is punished by his parents.

Let's start with the active voice because it's simpler. The subject (subject) itself produces the action. A simple example: “Steve loves Amy.” Steve is the subject, and he performs the action: he loves Amy, who in this sentence is the object.

Another example is the title of Marvin Gaye's song "I Heard It through the Grapevine". “I” is the subject who performs the action, that is, hears “it”, the object of the action.

Passive voice

In passive voice. Instead of "Steve loves Amy", we can say "Amy is loved by Steve". Amy becomes the subject of the sentence, but she does not perform the action. She is Steve's crush. Thus the focus shifts from Steve to Amy.

If we put the title of the above-mentioned song in the passive, we would say “It was heard by me through the grapevine,” which would immediately lose expressiveness.

Is the verb "to be" a passive voice?

Many people think that any sentence containing , is in the passive voice, but this is not true. For example, the sentence “I am holding a pen” is in the active voice, even though it uses the verb “am,” which is a form of “to be.” The passive form of this sentence would be: "The pen is being held by me."

Notice that the subject (“pen”) does not perform any action, it is passive. This is a sign that the sentence is in the passive voice - the subject does not perform a direct action.

Is it always bad to use passive voice?

There is one important point - sentences in the passive voice are not always incorrect. It's just often not the best way to express your thoughts. Sometimes the passive voice looks awkward, sometimes it looks too vague. Also, passive is usually the case, so if you replace passive sentences with active ones, you will make the text more concise.

When a sentence is in the passive voice, most often it is possible not to indicate the person or thing performing the action. For example, “Amy is loved.” The problem is that in this case we don't know who loves Amy.

Politicians often use the passive deliberately to avoid specifying who is doing the action. Ronald Reagan's famous words regarding the Iran-Contra scandal: “Mistakes were made.”

Other examples of using the passive voice for political reasons: “Bombs were dropped” or “Shots were fired.” Listen to the news in English and pay attention to the use of passive voice.

Another reader named Matthew adds that... He notes that it is much better to write “Your electricity will be shut off” than “We, the electric company, will be shutting off your power.”

Is it true that passive voice is more difficult to understand?

According to a recent study, less educated people—those without college degrees—have a harder time understanding sentences written in the passive voice than in the active voice. Therefore, when you are writing for a general audience, it is better to stick to the active voice.

Is it okay to use passive voice in crime reports?

On the other hand, passive voice has its advantages. For example, if you really don't know who did the action, then you can't name that person. This is especially true for crime reports. For example, a security guard might write “The museum was robbed” because no one knows who the burglar was.

Is passive voice necessary in fiction?

Sometimes the passive voice is used in fiction. For example, if you are writing a detective story and want to focus the reader's attention on the stolen cookies, it is best to use the passive voice. It is much better to write “The cookies were stolen” than “Somebody stole the cookies.”

The difference is not that great, but in the sentence “The cookies were stolen” the emphasis is on the cookies. In the sentence “Somebody stole the cookies,” the emphasis will be on the faceless “someone.”

The passive voice can be useful when you want to create an atmosphere of mystery. But this is precisely why it should not be used when you are writing non-fiction text and want everything to be clear and understandable.

To give the text objectivity and separate the results of experiments from personal opinion.

Some reference books on scientific style allow limited use of the active voice. For example, you can write “We sequenced the DNA” instead of “The DNA was sequenced,” but it is still considered undesirable for scientists to write conclusions on their own behalf.

For example, “We believe the mutation causes cancer” looks unscientific. But here you can do without the passive voice. For example, you can write “The data suggests that the mutation causes cancer.” The voice remains active, but the sense of subjectivity disappears.

Is it true that Strunk and White's handbook gets the passive voice wrong?

Finally, I would like to mention how Strunk and White describe the passive voice in their classic reference book, The Elements of Style. Three of the four examples of passive voice they gave are not actually passive.

In general, try to avoid passive voice except in situations where it is absolutely necessary. Of course, he expresses the meaning of what was said too vaguely, but in fiction, and especially scientific literature, the passive voice can be very useful to you.

Did you know that passive voice is widely used in crime reports?