What Is the Passive Voice?
The English passive voice is more than the formula “be + past participle.” To use it well, you need to understand what a sentence emphasizes, how to change an active sentence into a passive one, how to preserve its tense, and what changes in special structures.
Active voice emphasizes the person or thing performing the action. In Tom cleaned the room., the focus is on what Tom did, and the structure is “subject + verb + object.” Passive voice moves the receiver of the action to the front: The room was cleaned by Tom. The focus now shifts to the room and what happened to it.
- Active voice: shows who did something, as in Tom opened the door.
- Passive voice: shows what happened to someone or something, as in The door was opened by Tom.
- Change in focus: active sentences focus on the doer; passive sentences focus on the receiver, result, or process.
The Past Participle Is Not the Past Tense
In grammar formulas, done is shorthand for “past participle”; it does not mean every passive sentence uses the verb do. Regular verbs usually have the same past-tense and past-participle forms, but irregular verbs must be learned separately.
- make → made → made: The car was made in Japan.
- build → built → built: The bridge was built in 1990.
- write → wrote → written: The book was written by George Orwell.
- eat → ate → eaten: The food has been eaten.
- buy → bought → bought: A computer was bought for me.
- clean → cleaned → cleaned: The room was cleaned.
- break → broke → broken: The window was broken.
- steal → stole → stolen: My phone was stolen.
So The car was make in Japan. and The book was wrote by him. are incorrect. Be must be followed by a past participle such as made, written, or stolen.
When to Use the Passive Voice
When the Doer Is Unknown
My bike was stolen. is more natural than Someone stole my bike. when the speaker does not know who took it; someone adds no useful information.
When the Doer Is Unimportant or Obvious
English is spoken in many countries. emphasizes how widely English is used without naming individual speakers. In He was arrested yesterday., by the police is usually unnecessary because the doer is obvious from context.
When the Result Matters More Than the Doer
A news report might say Three people were injured in the accident. because the injuries matter more than who caused them. Product updates, project reports, and notifications often use the passive for the same reason.
Formal Writing, News, Instructions, and Academic Work
The experiment was conducted in 2025. keeps the focus on the experiment. Formal writing often emphasizes methods, data, and results instead of repeatedly naming we or the researchers.
Five Steps for Changing Active to Passive
Take Tom cleans the room. as an example. A fixed sequence makes the conversion straightforward.
- Step 1 — Find the object: in Tom / cleans / the room, the room is the object.
- Step 2 — Move the object to the front: The room becomes the new subject.
- Step 3 — Identify the original tense: cleans is in the simple present, so choose am, is, or are.
- Step 4 — Change the main verb to its past participle: clean becomes cleaned.
- Step 5 — Add the doer only if needed: The room is cleaned by Tom. Omit by Tom when the doer is unimportant.
In shorthand, an active sentence is A + verb + B, while its passive counterpart is B + be + past participle + by A. For example, Tom opened the door. becomes The door was opened by Tom.
Passive Forms in Seven Common Tenses
Simple Present: am / is / are + Past Participle
- People speak English here. → English is spoken here.
- Workers make these cars in Japan. → These cars are made in Japan.
- Cars is plural, so use are made rather than is made.
Simple Past: was / were + Past Participle
- Someone stole my phone. → My phone was stolen.
- They built this bridge in 1990. → This bridge was built in 1990.
- They built these houses in 2010. → These houses were built in 2010.
Simple Future: will be + Past Participle
They will finish the project next week. becomes The project will be finished next week. Be cannot be omitted, and the base form finish cannot follow be here.
Present Progressive: am / is / are being + Past Participle
- They are repairing the road. → The road is being repaired.
- Someone is cleaning my room. → My room is being cleaned.
- My room is cleaned every day. describes a routine; My room is being cleaned now. describes an action in progress.
Past Progressive: was / were being + Past Participle
- They were repairing the road. → The road was being repaired.
- The police were questioning him. → He was being questioned by the police.
Present Perfect: have / has been + Past Participle
- They have finished the work. → The work has been finished.
- Someone has stolen my car. → My car has been stolen.
Past Perfect: had been + Past Participle
They had finished the work before I arrived. becomes The work had been finished before I arrived., showing completion before another point in the past.
Use build to See How the Tense Stays the Same
- Simple present: They build houses here. → Houses are built here.
- Simple past: They built the house last year. → The house was built last year.
- Simple future: They will build a new hospital. → A new hospital will be built.
- Present progressive: They are building a new hospital. → A new hospital is being built.
- Present perfect: They have built a new hospital. → A new hospital has been built.
The most useful patterns are is done, was done, will be done, is being done, and has been done. Mastering these five covers most everyday situations and exam questions.
Modals, Negatives, and Questions
Modal Verbs: Modal + be + Past Participle
- You can solve this problem. → This problem can be solved.
- You must finish the work today. → The work must be finished today.
- We should protect the environment. → The environment should be protected.
- They may cancel the meeting. → The meeting may be cancelled.
- Could, might, have to, and similar forms follow the same principle: the core remains be + past participle.
Negative Sentences
In an ordinary passive sentence, place not after be: The door was not opened. and This product is not made in Japan. With a modal, place the negative after the modal: The problem cannot be solved.
Questions
- The car was stolen. → Was the car stolen?
- The products are made in China. → Are the products made in China?
- The work has been finished. → Has the work been finished?
- The problem can be solved. → Can the problem be solved?
When to Use by, and How by Differs from with
A passive sentence does not need by somebody. Omit the doer when it is unknown, unimportant, or already obvious. My bike was stolen. is more natural than My bike was stolen by someone.
Keep by when the doer is important information, as in Harry Potter was written by J. K. Rowling. and The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci.
- by + doer: The window was broken by Tom.
- with + tool: The window was broken with a hammer.
- Both together: The window was broken by Tom with a hammer.
Which Verbs Cannot Normally Be Passive?
A basic requirement for the passive is that the active sentence has an object. Tom opened the door. contains the object the door, so it can be converted. Tom arrived. has no object, so there is nothing to move into subject position.
- Common intransitive verbs: arrive, happen, sleep, die, go, come, and occur.
- Correct: The accident happened yesterday.
- Incorrect: Yesterday was happened the accident.
Special Cases: Two Objects and Object Complements
Two Objects Can Produce Two Passive Forms
In Tom gave me a book., both me and a book function as objects. The sentence can become either I was given a book by Tom. or A book was given to me by Tom.
My father bought me a computer. can theoretically become I was bought a computer by my father., but A computer was bought for me by my father. is usually more natural.
make somebody do: Add to in the Passive
- Active: My boss made me work overtime.
- Passive: I was made to work overtime.
- Active: The teacher made him clean the classroom.
- Passive: He was made to clean the classroom.
The active structure make + person + base verb does not use to. In the passive, however, to must return before the verb.
see, hear, and watch somebody do: Add to in the Passive
- Someone saw him enter the building. → He was seen to enter the building.
- People heard him shout. → He was heard to shout.
Common Fixed Passive Expressions
Some structures developed from the passive but now function almost like fixed expressions. Learn them as complete phrases instead of translating them word for word.
- be born: I was born in China.
- be known for: Japan is known for its food.
- be interested in: I'm interested in technology.
- be worried about: I'm worried about the exam.
- be surprised by / at: I was surprised by the news.
- be satisfied with: I'm satisfied with the result.
- be covered with: The mountain was covered with snow.
- be made of: The table is made of wood.
made of, made from, made in, and made by
- be made of: the original material remains recognizable. The table is made of wood.
- be made from: the material has been transformed. Wine is made from grapes.
- be made in: identifies the place of manufacture. This car was made in Japan.
- be made by: identifies the maker. This car was made by Toyota.
get done and have something done
get + Past Participle: A More Conversational Passive
- He got fired. = He was fired.
- They got married. = They were married.
- He got hurt. = He was injured.
- My phone got stolen. = My phone was stolen.
Get + past participle is more conversational than be + past participle and often suggests that an event actually occurred, sometimes unexpectedly. My phone was stolen. is neutral; My phone got stolen. sounds more like an everyday account of what happened.
have + Object + Past Participle: Arrange for Someone Else to Do It
- I cut my hair. usually means that I cut it myself.
- I had my hair cut. means that someone else cut it for me.
- I had my car repaired. means that I arranged for someone to repair it.
- I need to have my phone fixed. means that I need someone to fix it.
- I'm going to have my teeth checked. means that a dental professional will check them.
Have something done is not an ordinary passive construction. It emphasizes arranging for someone else to provide a service or complete a task.
Choosing Between Active and Passive
Someone cleaned the room. emphasizes the person performing the action; The room was cleaned. emphasizes the completed result. Both are correct. The better choice depends on what belongs at the center of the message.
More passive voice does not make writing more sophisticated. In everyday communication, I sent you the email yesterday. is much clearer and more natural than The email was sent to you by me yesterday. Use the passive when the receiver, result, or process genuinely matters more.
Six Common Mistakes
Forgetting be
Incorrect: The car made in Japan. Correct: The car is made in Japan. A passive verb requires be + past participle, not the past participle alone.
Using the Past Tense Instead of the Past Participle
- Incorrect: The book was wrote by him. Correct: The book was written by him.
- Incorrect: My phone was stole. Correct: My phone was stolen.
Using the Wrong Tense of be
- They built this house in 2020. → This house was built in 2020.
- They will finish it tomorrow. → It will be finished tomorrow.
Subject–Verb Disagreement
- The car is made in Japan. / The cars are made in Japan.
- The house was built. / The houses were built.
Omitting being in a Progressive Form
The road is repaired now. does not clearly express an action in progress. The present progressive passive should be The road is being repaired.
Omitting been in a Perfect Form
To say that the work is already complete, write The work has been finished. The structure is have / has + been + past participle.
How to Identify Passive Voice Quickly
When you see be + past participle, ask whether the subject receives the action. In The door was opened., the door receives the action of open, so the sentence is clearly passive.
Some past participles, however, function much like adjectives. I'm interested in English. describes a state or feeling rather than highlighting an action performed on me. Always consider both the grammatical form and the intended meaning.
A Reliable Method for Exam Questions
For a question such as The company produces thousands of cars every year., follow four steps.
- Find the SVO elements: the subject is The company, the verb is produces, and the object is thousands of cars.
- Move the object forward: Thousands of cars becomes the new subject.
- Check tense and number: produces is in the simple present, and cars is plural, so use are.
- Write the past participle: produce becomes produced, giving Thousands of cars are produced every year.
If the doer is unimportant, by the company can be omitted. On an exam, check every answer in this order: find the object, identify the tense, choose the correct form of be, and write the past participle.
Active-to-Passive Practice
- Someone broke the window. → The window was broken.
- They will announce the results tomorrow. → The results will be announced tomorrow.
- Someone is using my computer. → My computer is being used.
- They have cancelled the meeting. → The meeting has been cancelled.
- You must complete this form. → This form must be completed.
English Can Be Passive Even When Chinese Has No “被”
Do not judge English voice by looking for an explicit passive marker in a translation. This bridge was built in 1995. may be translated naturally as “This bridge dates from 1995,” without a word corresponding to was built. Likewise, The shop is closed on Sundays. may simply become “The shop closes on Sundays.”
English grammar marks the relationship and information focus directly, while a Chinese translation follows natural Chinese usage. The two do not need to correspond word for word.
Common Passive Expressions in Everyday Life
- Made in Japan. A standard manufacturing label.
- Smoking is prohibited. A formal no-smoking notice.
- Breakfast is served from 7:00 to 10:00. A hotel or restaurant service notice.
- Two people were injured. A common news-reporting pattern.
- Your application has been received. A confirmation message.
- Your order has been shipped. A shipping update.
- Your password has been changed. An account-security notice.
Other useful combinations include be made, be built, be used, be called, be known, be written, be found, be created, be designed, be sold, be produced, be required, be allowed, be prohibited, be included, be canceled, be delayed, be completed, be damaged, be stolen, and be injured.
Review Every Form with repair the car
- The car is repaired. Simple present: a regular or general situation.
- The car was repaired yesterday. Simple past: a completed past action.
- The car will be repaired tomorrow. Simple future: a planned future action.
- The car is being repaired. Present progressive: work is in progress now.
- The car has been repaired. Present perfect: the repair is complete now.
- The car was being repaired. Past progressive: work was in progress then.
- The car had been repaired. Past perfect: the repair was complete before another past point.
- The car must be repaired. The repair is required.
- The car can be repaired. The repair is possible.
- The car should be repaired. The repair is advisable.