In the active voice, the subject does the action: “The dog chased the cat.” In the passive voice, the subject receives the action: “The cat was chased by the dog.”
To make the passive, move the object to the front and use a form of be with the past participle: “Sam broke the window” becomes “The window was broken by Sam.”
The passive is useful when the doer is unknown or less important: “The museum was opened in 1902.” Scientists often use it in reports.
Worked example
Change to the passive: “The chef cooks the meals.”
- The object, the meals, becomes the subject.
- Present tense passive: are cooked.
Answer:The meals are cooked by the chef.
Key words
- active voice
- the subject does the action
- passive voice
- the subject receives the action
- past participle
- the verb form used after was or been
Practise this
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