Changes in the structure of the sentence in the Passive Voice
•In the passive voice, the action verb is preceded by an auxiliary verb and it takes on the past participle form.
•The sentence in the passive voice makes use of the word, ‘by’ as the agent.
•A change in the pronoun in terms of person can be noticed. The pronoun ‘I’ that is the first person in the active voice changes into ‘me’ in the passive voice. This is done in order to make the sentence more impersonal and objective unlike in the active voice.
•You will notice that sentences in the passive voice are statements whereas sentences in the active voice have a more conversational tone or quality.
Students should note, however, that one cannot generalize that if the sentence contains the agent ‘by’, it is in the passive voice, because the agent ‘by’ can be omitted where the subject is a well-known entity like the Government or a competent authority. Sometimes, the subject is understood. A few examples are given as under:
1.The budget was announced last week.
2.The thief was arrested yesterday.
3.They are paid on Fridays
4.The movie is being made in Bollywood.
5.It would have been fixed during the weekend.
6.The national anthem is sung after assembly.
Where and when do we use the Passive Voice?
•We use the Passive form in official communications like public notices, legal tenders, and notifications.
•We use the Passive form in Newspaper Headlines.
•We use the Passive voice while describing a process.
Examples of the use of Passive Voice in Newspaper Headlines:
Practice Exercise1
Convert the following into the Passive voice:
1. Who has broken my teacup?
2. You need to return the assignments by Friday!
3. A team of surgeons is operating on the patient.
4. We will help you when the time comes.
5. I will write a letter to the parent.
6. He is cooking some pasta right now.
7. Tom played football in the school team for two years.
8. The students are writing an exam.
9. The boys have set up their tent.
10.Leena is taking driving lessons.
11.Will you please shut the door?
12.I can't hear you, please talk louder!
13.The police have cordoned off the crime scene.
14.We are looking into the matter, and the culprit will be arrested soon!
15.The traffic police will penalize all those who are without helmets.
Use of Passive Voice in describing processes
Practice Exercise 2
Convert the following steps into a paragraph in the passive voice. Use complete sentences.
How to make a cup of tea
1.Pour the required amount of water and milk into a saucepan.
2.Light the gas burner and place the saucepan on it.
3.Add sugar to taste and tea leaves.
4.Bring to boil, and then allow to simmer for a couple of minutes.
5.Pour the tea into cups through a strainer.
6.Serve the tea with biscuits and snacks.
Newspaper Headline Expansion
Newspaper headlines are crisp, eye-catching and they deliver a lot of information in fewer
words. Tense forms need to be taken care of while expanding headlines. Thus if the
headline is in the past tense, then the expansion should be in the past tense also.
Exercise 3
Look at the news headlines given below. Use the information in the headlines to complete
the sentences.
1. 25 injured in train accident
About 25 passengers__________________by the White Line
Express_____________injured when the train derailed at the Everest Junction.
2. Security stepped up for football match in capital
The police has________ vigil in the capital for the ____________match which will take
place on the twenty-fifth.
3. Old swords and daggers found
The Archeological Survey of India ____________ the discovery of _____________
belonging to the fifteenth century A.D.
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