Raquel's School

Passive Voice Mastery

2nd Batxillerat Grammar Revision & Assessment

The Passive Voice: Essential Rules

The Basic Structure

Active: Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.

Passive: Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.

Rule: Object + Be (Correct Tense) + Past Participle (+ by Subject).

Tense Examples

  • Present Simple:
    The office is cleaned every day.
  • Past Simple:
    The letter was sent yesterday.
  • Present Cont.:
    The car is being repaired now.
  • Past Cont.:
    The room was being painted when I arrived.
  • Present Perfect:
    The keys have been found.
  • Past Perfect:
    The work had been finished before 5.
  • Future:
    A new school will be built here.
  • Modals:
    The rules must be followed.

Advanced Passive Examples

Personal / Impersonal

"It is said that he is rich."

"He is said to be rich."

Double Object

Active: "They gave me a prize."

Passive 1: "I was given a prize."

Passive 2: "A prize was given to me."

Causative Have

"I had my hair cut."

(Someone else did it for me)