Passive voice (present and past simple)
In the passive voice we focus on the action and the thing it happens to, not the person who does it; we form it with the verb "be" plus the past participle, and we use the present simple ("am/is/are + past participle") or the past simple ("was/were + past participle") depending on the time.
What the passive voice is and why we use it
In an active sentence, the subject does the action: "The chef cooks the soup." In a passive sentence, the subject receives the action: "The soup is cooked by the chef." We use the passive when the action is more important than who does it, or when we do not know (or do not need to say) who did it. We can add the doer with the word "by", but very often we leave it out.
- •Active: Workers clean the office every day. / Passive: The office is cleaned every day.
- •Active: A thief stole my bike. / Passive: My bike was stolen.
- •English is spoken in many countries.
- •The bridge was built by a famous engineer.
Present simple passive: am / is / are + past participle
We use the present simple passive for facts, routines, and things that are generally true. The form is "am/is/are" plus the past participle of the main verb (for example: made, sent, used). Choose "is" for one thing and "are" for more than one thing, and use "isn't/aren't" for the negative.
- •This bread is made every morning.
- •The emails are sent automatically.
- •Coffee is grown in Brazil.
- •These rooms aren't cleaned on Sundays.
Past simple passive: was / were + past participle
We use the past simple passive for finished actions in the past. The form is "was/were" plus the past participle. Use "was" for one thing and "were" for more than one thing, and use "wasn't/weren't" for the negative; for questions, put "was/were" before the subject.
- •The letter was written last week.
- •The windows were broken in the storm.
- •Were the tickets bought yesterday?
- •The museum wasn't opened until 1990.
Forming the passive and choosing the right form
To make a passive, take the object of the active sentence and make it the new subject, then use the correct form of "be" plus the past participle. The form of "be" tells you the time: present (am/is/are) or past (was/were). Remember the irregular past participles, such as build-built, take-taken, and write-written.
- •Active: They build houses here. / Passive: Houses are built here.
- •Active: She painted the door. / Passive: The door was painted.
- •The cars are washed by the staff.
- •The photos were taken in Paris.