Hard Skills Model (5th Semester) ACTIVE & PASSIVE VOICE Hard Skills Model (5th Semester)

Voices of verb In traditional grammar, voice of verb is defined as the quality of verb that indicates whether its subject acts or is acted upon. It has two types: the active voice and the passive voice.

Active Voice In most English sentences with an action verb, the subject performs the action denoted by the verb.  These examples show that the subject is  doing the verb's action. Because the subject does or "acts upon" the verb in such sentences, the sentences are said to be in the active voice.

Marilyn mailed the letter. The active voice The active voice is the "normal" voice. This is the voice that we use most of the time. In the active voice, the object receives the action of the verb: Marilyn mailed the letter. ACTIVE SUBJECT VERB OBJECT > Marilyn mailed the letter.

Active Voice Uses direct action verbs Has a clearly defined actor and action

Passive Voice One can change the normal word order of many active sentences (those with a direct object) so that the subject is no longer active, but is, instead, being acted upon by the verb - or passive.  Note in these examples how the subject-verb relationship has changed. Because the subject is being "acted upon" (or is passive), such sentences are said to be in the passive voice.

The letter was mailed by Marilyn. The passive voice The passive voice is less usual. In the passive voice, the subject receives the action of the verb. We use the passive voice when we want to make the active object more important. The letter was mailed by Marilyn. PASSIVE SUBJECT VERB OBJECT < The letter was mailed by Marilyn.

Passive Voice Uses “to be” verb forms. Emphasizes what was found, not who did the finding. Can be pedantic and wordy in the hands of amateur.

The passive is generally found in more formal kinds of texts, such as reports, forms, evaluations, etc. E.g. A small amount of water was added to the beaker, while the mixture was heated using a Bunsen-burner. The passive is used because the person doing the action (the agent) is not needed.

Look out for the use of the passive voice in sentences. Try to establish the effect of the passive in different texts. Use it in your own writing when appropriate.

We usually use the active voice in writing and speaking. E.g. The girl kicked the ball. Someone or something (the agent) does something (verb) to someone or something else (recipient)

Here’s another example: The rain soaked the pitch. Someone or something (the agent) does something (verb) to someone or something else (recipient)

In the passive voice, we change this around, so that the recipient has something done to it by the agent. E.g. The ball was kicked by the girl. Someone or something (recipient) has something done to it (verb) by someone or something (the agent)

Let’s see that again. The pitch was soaked by the rain. Someone or something (recipient) has something done to it (verb) by someone or something (the agent)

In these examples, spot the use of the active voice and the passive voice. The music was played by the DJ. The sun was hidden by the clouds. Delighted fans streamed onto the pitch. Marie wrote the letter to the headteacher. Danny was praised by the headteacher. passive passive active active passive

Examples of Active Voice: The dog jumped onto the boy. The dog (subject) is doing the jumping (verb) onto the boy (object). Kristy will give a book report to the class. Kristy (subject) is doing the giving (verb) to the class (object).

Active Verbs & Passive Verbs Doer + Active verb + Receiver Passive = Receiver + Passive verb + Doer

The dishes are washed by Mrs Chan

The first prize was won by our class.

Sometimes in passive sentences, the agent is left out. The agent - ‘the rain’ - is left out. Why do you think that the agent might be left out in this example? Someone or something (recipient) has done to it (verb) by someone or something (the agent) by the rain was soaked The pitch

Far better to leave out the agent if you don’t want to be involved! Compare these sentences. One has the agent, and the other hasn’t. Discuss the differences. The man was murdered by someone! The man was murdered! I see your car was damaged last night by my friend damaged last night. Far better to leave out the agent if you don’t want to be involved! We do not know who did the murder so the agent is not needed. It’s more dramatic without it. Create your own passive sentences which would be best without an agent.

Steps on how to convert active to passive Move  the active sentence's direct object into the sentence's subject  slot.

Steps on how to convert active to passive Place the active sentence's subject into a  phrase beginning with the preposition by.

Steps on how to convert active to passive Add a form of the auxiliary verb be to the main verb and change the  main verb's form.

Steps on how to convert passive TO ACTIVE Move  the passive sentence's subject into the active  sentence's  direct object slot.

Steps on how to convert passive to active Remove  the auxiliary verb be from the main verb and change main verb's form if needed.

Steps on how to convert passive to active Place the passive sentence's object of the preposition by into the subject slot.

Examples: A man is cutting down a tree. A tree is being cut down by a man. The boy is carrying the girl. The girl is being carried by the boy. John reads a book every day. A book is read every day by John.

Examples: He cooks food. Food is cooked by him. He is building a sand castle. A sand castle is being built by him. She told me a secret. A secret was told (to) me by her. The hunter shot the deer with an arrow. The deer was shot with an arrow by the hunter.

Examples The boy was jumped on by the dog. The dog jumped on the boy. A book report will be given by Kristy to the class. Kristy will give a book report to the class.

What is the difference?

Active voice is generally stronger Both kinds of verbs are useful in writing. That’s why we have both. But, unless you’re a diplomat or bureaucrat, you need to rely on the active voice more than the passive.

Which verb form to use Largely a matter of what you want to emphasize Active Voice emphasizes an action taken by a subject. Passive Voice emphasizes what was found, the end result. hides who was responsible for the action.

Advantages of active voice: Shorter, more direct More forceful Greater clarity (The reader knows immediately who is doing what.) Sharper imagery

Which is more effective? Stay away from the hot wire. It can kill you. The hot wire should be avoided. You can be killed by it.

Use passive voice When you want a gentler or more diplomatic approach. A teenage girl was killed Tuesday by a gunshot. When you want to strengthen the impression of objectivity—as, for example, in a research report. When you want to achieve a particular effect—whether it be wry, sardonic, sarcastic or comedic.

Good writers use both voices. Use active voice whenever possible. You need to know when to use one voice or the other, and when to use them together.

Active Passive Present Simple Tense   Active Passive Present Simple Tense (passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: am/is/are He sings a song. A song is sung by him. He does not sing a song. A song is not sung by him. Does he sing a song? Is a song sung by him?

  Active Passive Present Continuous Tense (passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: am being/is being/are being I am writing a letter A letter is being written by me. I am not writing a letter. A letter is not being written by me. Am I writing a letter? Is a letter being written by me?

  Active Passive Present Perfect Tense (passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: has been/have been She has finished his work. Her work has been finished by her. She has not finished her work. Her work has not been finished by her. Has she finished her work? Has her work been finished by her?

Active Passive A snake was killed by me.   Active Passive Past Simple Tense (passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: was/were I killed a snake A snake was killed by me. I did not kill a snake. A snake was not killed by me. Did I kill a snake? Was a snake killed by me?

  Active Passive Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: was being/were being He was driving a car. A car was being driven by him. He was not driving a car. A car was not being driven by him. Was he driving a car? Was a car being driven by him?

  Active Passive Past Perfect Tense (Passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: had been They had completed the assignment. The assignment had been completed by them. They had not completed the assignment. The assignment had not been complete by them. Had they completed the assignment? Had the assignment been completed by them?

  Active Passive Future Simple Tense (Passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: will be She will buy a car. A car will be bought by her. She will not buy a car. A car will not be bought by her. Will she buy a car? Will a car be bought by her?

  Active Passive Future Perfect Tense (passive Voice) Auxiliary verb in passive voice: will have been You will have started the job. The job will have been started by you. You will have not started the job. The job will not have been started by you. Will you have started the job? Will the job have been started by you?

The following tenses cannot be changed into passive voice. NOTE The following tenses cannot be changed into passive voice. Present perfect continuous tense Past perfect continuous tense Future continuous tense Future perfect continuous tense

Tech Mahindra 41. Do you imitate others? A.   Are others being imitated by you? B.   Are others imitated by you? C.   Have others being imitated by you? D.   Were others being imitated by you? Ans. B

Tech Mahindra You need to clean your shoes properly. A.   Your shoes are needed to clean properly. B.   You are needed to clean your shoes properly. C.   Your shoes need to be cleaned properly. D.   Your shoes are needed by you to clean properly. Ans. C

Tech Mahindra He is said to be very rich. A. He said he is very rich. B.   People say he is very rich. C.   He said it is very rich. D.   People say it is very rich. Ans. B

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