Voice tells us whether the subject of a sentence does the action or receives it. In the active voice, the subject performs the action. In the passive voice, the subject is acted upon, and the doer (the "agent") either moves to a by-phrase or disappears.
The passive voice formula
The verb be takes the tense of the original active verb; the main verb always becomes the past participle. Only transitive verbs (verbs with an object) can be made passive — She arrived or He slept have no passive.
How to change active voice to passive voice: 4 steps
- Find the object of the active sentence and move it to the subject position.
Ravi wrote the letter. → The letter … - Identify the tense of the active verb (here: past simple, wrote).
- Add the correct form of "be" for that tense + the past participle: was + written.
→ The letter was written … - Add "by + agent" only if the doer is important: The letter was written by Ravi. Pronouns change to object form: I → me, he → him, they → them.
Passive voice chart for all tenses
| Tense | Active | Passive formula | Passive |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present simple | She writes a letter. | am/is/are + V3 | A letter is written by her. |
| Present continuous | She is writing a letter. | am/is/are + being + V3 | A letter is being written by her. |
| Present perfect | She has written a letter. | has/have + been + V3 | A letter has been written by her. |
| Past simple | She wrote a letter. | was/were + V3 | A letter was written by her. |
| Past continuous | She was writing a letter. | was/were + being + V3 | A letter was being written by her. |
| Past perfect | She had written a letter. | had + been + V3 | A letter had been written by her. |
| Future simple | She will write a letter. | will + be + V3 | A letter will be written by her. |
| Future perfect | She will have written a letter. | will + have been + V3 | A letter will have been written by her. |
| going to future | She is going to write a letter. | am/is/are going to be + V3 | A letter is going to be written by her. |
Modal verbs in the passive
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| You can solve this problem. | This problem can be solved. |
| We must finish the work today. | The work must be finished today. |
| They should clean the room. | The room should be cleaned. |
| Someone may have stolen the bike. | The bike may have been stolen. |
More on can, must, should, may in the modal verbs guide.
Questions and negatives in the passive
- Negative: put not after the first helping verb. They didn't invite him. → He was not invited.
- Yes/no question: move the first helping verb to the front. Did she paint this picture? → Was this picture painted by her?
- Wh- question: Who wrote this book? → By whom was this book written? / more naturally: Who was this book written by?
- What did they discuss? → What was discussed?
Special cases
Imperative sentences
- Open the door. → Let the door be opened.
- Please help me. → You are requested to help me.
- Don't touch the wire. → Let the wire not be touched. / You are warned not to touch the wire.
Verbs with two objects
Verbs like give, send, show, tell, offer have two objects, so there are two possible passives. The person-subject version is more common:
- They gave Priya a prize. → Priya was given a prize. / A prize was given to Priya.
Reporting verbs (formal)
People say that he is rich. → It is said that he is rich. / He is said to be rich. Useful in academic writing: It is believed / thought / estimated that…
The "get" passive (informal)
In conversation, get often replaces be for events: He got promoted. My phone got stolen. They got married last year.
When should you use the passive voice?
Active voice is usually clearer and more direct, so it is the default. Use the passive when:
- The doer is unknown: My car was stolen last night.
- The doer is obvious or unimportant: The suspect was arrested. (by the police, obviously)
- The action or result matters more than who did it: Penicillin was discovered in 1928.
- Describing processes (science, manufacturing, IELTS Task 1 process diagrams): The leaves are dried and then crushed.
- Formal, impersonal or tactful writing: Mistakes were made. / The application has been rejected.
Common mistakes
| ✗ Incorrect | ✓ Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The house was build in 1990. | The house was built in 1990. | Use the past participle, not the base verb. |
| The work is doing now. | The work is being done now. | Present continuous passive needs being + V3. |
| The accident was happened at night. | The accident happened at night. | Happen has no object — no passive. |
| The letter was written by he. | The letter was written by him. | Object pronoun after by. |
| English is spoken by people all over the world. | English is spoken all over the world. | Drop a vague agent (people, someone, they). |
Practice
Change these sentences into the passive voice.
- The gardener waters the plants every morning.
- They are building a new bridge.
- Someone has stolen my wallet.
- Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.
- The teacher will check the papers tomorrow.
- You must follow the rules.
- Did the police catch the thief?
- Close the window.
Show answers
- The plants are watered (by the gardener) every morning.
- A new bridge is being built.
- My wallet has been stolen.
- Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.
- The papers will be checked (by the teacher) tomorrow.
- The rules must be followed.
- Was the thief caught (by the police)?
- Let the window be closed.
The passive depends on knowing your tenses well — review the 12-tense chart. The other big sentence-transformation topic is direct and indirect speech.
Frequently asked questions
What is active and passive voice?
In the active voice the subject does the action (“The cat chased the mouse”). In the passive voice the subject receives the action (“The mouse was chased by the cat”).
What is the formula of the passive voice?
Object + appropriate form of “be” + past participle + (by + agent). The form of “be” matches the tense of the active verb, for example “is written”, “was written”, “has been written”, “will be written”.
Can all sentences be changed into the passive voice?
No. Only sentences with transitive verbs (verbs that take an object) can be made passive. Verbs like happen, arrive, sleep and die have no passive form.
When should I use the passive voice?
Use it when the doer is unknown, obvious or unimportant, when the action matters more than who did it, and in formal or scientific writing such as process descriptions.
What is the passive of an imperative sentence?
Use “Let + object + be + past participle” (“Let the door be opened”) or a polite form such as “You are requested to…” for requests.
Is it wrong to use the passive voice?
No. The passive is correct grammar. Writing guides recommend active voice by default because it is more direct, but the passive is the better choice in many formal and scientific contexts.