Grammar: Active and Passive Voice (Revision) - JSS3 English language Lesson Note
Active Voice
In an active voice sentence, the subject performs the action expressed by the verb. This structure is straightforward and often preferred for its clarity and directness.
Structure:
Subject + Verb + Object
Example:
The cat (subject) chased (verb) the mouse (object).
Key Points:
The subject is the doer of the action.
The object receives the action.
Passive Voice
In a passive voice sentence, the subject is acted upon by the verb. This structure can be useful when the focus is on the action or the receiver of the action rather than the doer.
Structure:
Object of the active sentence + auxiliary verb (be) + past participle of the main verb + (by + subject of the active sentence)
Example:
The mouse (object) was chased (auxiliary verb + past participle) by the cat (subject).
Key Points:
The focus is on the action or the receiver of the action.
The doer of the action (the agent) is often introduced by the preposition "by."
Forming Passive Voice
To form a passive voice sentence from an active one, follow these steps:
1. Identify the subject, verb, and object:
- Active: The chef (subject) cooked (verb) the meal (object).
2. Move the object of the active sentence to the subject position:
- The meal...
3. Add the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb "be":
- The meal was...
4. Add the past participle of the main verb:
- The meal was cooked...
5. Optionally, add the agent (the original subject) introduced by "by":
- The meal was cooked by the chef.
Examples:
Active: The teacher (subject) teaches (verb) the students (object).
Passive: The students are taught by the teacher.
Active: The company (subject) will launch (verb) the product (object).
Passive: The product will be launched by the company.
Tense Changes in Passive Voice
The tense of the verb in the active voice changes accordingly in the passive voice:
1. Present Simple:
Active: She writes the report.
Passive: The report is written by her.
2. Past Simple:
Active: They built the house.
Passive: The house was built by them.
3.Future Simple:
Active: He will deliver the package.
Passive: The package will be delivered by him.
4. Present Continuous:
Active: She is baking a cake.
Passive: A cake is being baked by her.
5. Past Continuous:
Active: They were cleaning the room.
Passive: The room was being cleaned by them.
6. Present Perfect:
Active: She has completed the assignment.
Passive: The assignment has been completed by her.
7. Past Perfect:
Active: They had finished the work.
Passive: The work had been finished by them.
8. Future Perfect:
Active: He will have painted the fence.
Passive: The fence will have been painted by him.