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What is Voice?
Active to ofPassive
“A Grammar Voice
Contemporary Conversion
English” defines Voice as “voice is a grammatical category which makes it possible to view
the action of a sentence in two ways, without change in the facts reported”. One and the same idea can often be
expressed in two different ways, by means of an active, and by means of a passive construction.

1. Active Voice
Active voice is used to indicate the grammatical subject of the verb is performing the action or causing the happening
denoted by the verb. With the active voice, you learn ‘who’ or ‘what’ is responsible for the action at the beginning of the
sentence. In other words, the subject performs the action denoted by the verb. With help of active voice more powerful
sentences can be build than passive voice.
Use of active voice:
1. Active voice is used in a clause whose subject expresses the agent of the main verb.
2. Subject can be easily identified by asking ‘who’ or ‘what’ to the verb.

3. Sentences are short and easily understandable.

Example :
John wrote
the letter.

    -John (subject) performs the action denoted by the verb (write).

2. Passive Voice
In Passive voice the sentence focus on object i.e. who/what is receiving the action and not on who/what is performing the
action. In passive voice, the actor of the of the verb (action) is either understood at the end of the sentence or maybe not
told. The passive voice is used in writing facts, truth, lab or technical reports in which the actor is not important or
unknown, but the action happening on the object is very important.
Use of passive voice:
1. It is used if it doesn‘t need to know or we don‘t know the actor performing the job.

2. In the end of the clause or sentence “by” is prefixed to know the actor performing the job.
3. It is used if we are more interested in the job than the actors who work.

Example :

The letter was written by John.

    - letter receives the action denoted by the write (verb).

How to identify the active / passive voice?

Ask who/what performed the action(verb)? -- if the ‘who or what is at the beginning of the sentence, the sentence is
active voice.

Example :
Jack is eating the apple.
Question will be : Who is eating the apple?  

Look for the word “by”, if present it is passive voice.

Active/Passive voice using Modals:
The modal verbs consist of will, would, can, could, shall, should, may, might, must which are
used with main verbs to express ability, probability, obligation, advice etc.

To convert active voice having modal into passive voice, auxiliary verb “be” is added after modal in sentence.

Rules for Active to Passive conversion

Tense Active voice Passive voice

S + to be + past participle + by object

Subject + infinitive + object
E.g.  Fresh vegetables are sold by the
Simple Present Tense E.g.  The grocer sells fresh vegetables. grocer.

S + to be (is, am, are) + being + past

Subject + to be (is, am, are) being + present participle + by object
participle + object
E.g.  Many assignments are being given
Present Continuous Tense E.g.  My boss is giving many assignments. by my boss.

S + have/has been + past participle + by

Subject + has/have + past participle + object object

Present Perfect Tense E.g.   I have taken him out. E.g.  He has been taken out by me.
 S + was/were + past participle + by
Subject + past participle + object object

Simple Past Tense E.g.  He built a large house. E.g.  A large house was built by him.

S + was/were + being + past participle

S + was/were + being + past participle + object +by object

Past Continuous Tense E.g  She was cooking dinner. E.g.  Dinner was being cooked by her.

S + had been + past participle + by

Subject + had + past participle + object object

Past Perfect Tense E.g.  She had posted the letter. E.g.  The letter had been posted by her.

S + will + be + past participle + by

object
Subject + will + infinitive + object
E.g.  A present will be given to you by
Simple Future Tense E.g.  I will give you a present. me.

S + would + be + past participle + by

Subject + would + infinitive + object object

E.g.  The doctor shall have examined ten patients by E.g.  Ten patients will have been
Future Perfect Tense 10 O’clock. examined by 10 O’clock by the doctor.

Rules for Pronouns in Active to Passive

conversion
Active voice Passive voice

I me

you you

we us

they them

it it

Pronoun number and

person table

Person I II III

Number
     
he,she,it ->
you is
I ->
->
am John,Sara ->
are 
Singular is

you
  we ->
-> they -> are
are 
Plural are