Thursday 11 February 2016

THE PASSIVE VOICE IN ENGLISH


Transitive verbs have both active and passive forms:

active
passive
The hunter killed the lion.
>> 
The lion was killed by the hunter.
Someone has cleaned the windows
>> 
The windows have been cleaned

The passive forms are made up of the verb be with a past participle:

be
past participle
English
is
spoken
all over the world
The windows
have been
cleaned
Lunch
was being
served
The work
will be
finished
soon
They
might have been
invited
to the party

We sometimes use the verb get to form the passive:

Be careful with the glass. It might get broken.
Peter got hurt in a crash.
If we want to show the person or thing doing the action we use by:
She was attacked by a dangerous dog.
The money was stolen by her husband.

We can use the indirect object as the subject of a passive verb:

active
passive
I gave him a book for his birthday
>> 
He was given a book for his birthday.
Someone sent her a cheque for a thousand euros
>> 
She was sent a cheque for a thousand euros.

We can use phrasal verbs in the passive:

active
passive
They called off the meeting.
>> 
The meeting was called off.
His grandmother looked after him.
>> 
He was looked after by his grandmother.
They will send him away to school.
>> 
He will be sent away to school.

Some verbs very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:

be supposed to
be expected to
be asked to
be scheduled to
be allowed to
be told to

John has been asked to make a speech at the meeting.
You are supposed to wear a uniform.
The meeting is scheduled to start at seven.

ADAPTADO DESDE: learnenglish.britishcouncil.org


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