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THE PASSIVE VOICE

We use passive forms for reasons of style and of clarity, as well as for meaning. Mostly the rules of
passive formation are straightforward, but it needs to be noted that certain words and structures cannot
be used in the passive.
In English the person or thing you want to talk about is usually put first as the subject of the clause, and
new information about the subject is normally at the end. So, when we want to talk about someone or
something that is the performer of an action (the agent), we make them the subject of the verb and we
use an active form of the verb. The other person or thing is made the object of the verb.
However, we may want to focus on the person or thing affected by an action, which would be the object
of an active form of the verb. In that case, we make that person or thing the subject of a passive form of
the verb.
Clauses which contain an active form of a verb are in the active voice and clauses with a passive form
of a verb are in the passive voice.
The choice between an active and passive sentence allows us to present the same information in two
different orders. Compare:

Active: The storm damaged the roof. Æ this sentence is about the storm and says what it did. (The storm
is the ‘agent’)

Passive: The roof was damaged by the storm Æ this sentence is about the roof, and says what
happened to it. (The ‘agent’ goes in a prepositional phrase with by after the verb)

We choose between active and passive because using a passive form of a verb gives us the option of
not mentioning the person or thing responsible for the action, often called ‘the agent’ of the action. We
may want to do this for one of these reasons:
• The topic we are talking about, specially when reporting information.
An English football supporter, interested in the fortunes of the England team, is likely to report:
We got beaten in extra time.
A German supporter, more interested in his team, is likely to report:
We beat them in extra time.

• The agent is unknown or obvious

I was born in 1982.
The fence between the two properties has been removed.
• It is obvious who or what the agent is, because it might have already been mentioned:
Such items should be carefully packed.
The government responded quickly, and new measures were passed which strengthened
their powers.

• The agent is ‘people or things in general’:

Some verbs cannot be used in the Continuous.

• The agent is a long phrase:

Helen was surprised by all the messages of sympathy that she received.

• Avoiding references to ourselves and making a statement impersonal:

We can’t possibly complete this work overnight Æ This work can’t possibly be completed
overnight. (the work is the problem, not us)

• Avoiding ‘you’ in orders or rules:

You must give in your application before the end of the week. Æ All applications must be
given in before the end of the week.

• In factual writing when we focus is usually on events, achievements, etc. rather than agents:
Vaccination had been pioneered two hundred years earlier.

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 Lengua BI (inglés)
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• We want to conceal the agent’s identity or to distance oneself from the own action.
The original has been destroyed.

A) Formation of passive tenses

Passive forms consist of an appropriate tense of ‘be’ followed by the past participle of the verb.Passive
verb forms are:

Present simple
Active: tell(s) John tells me that you’re thinking of leaving.
Passive: am / is / are told I’m told (by John) that you’re thinking of leaving.

Past simple
Active: told John told me that you were leaving.
Passive: was / were told I was told (by John) that you were leaving.

Present Perfect
Active: have / has told John has told me that you are leaving.
Passive: have / has been told I have been told (by John) that you are leaving.

Past Perfect
Active: had told John had already told me that you were leaving.
Passive: had been told I had already been told (by John) that you were leaving.

Present Continuous
Active: am / is / are telling John is always telling me that you are leaving.
Passive: am / is / are being I am always being told (by John) that you are leaving
told

Past Continuous John was always telling me that you were leaving.
Active: was / were telling I was always being told (by John) that you were leaving
Passive: was / were being told

Future simple
Active: will tell I will tell John that you are leaving.
Passive: will be told John will be told (by me) that you are leaving.

Future perfect
Active: will have told By tomorrow I will have told John that you are leaving.
By tomorrow John will have been told that you are leaving.
Passive: will have been told

Present Perfect Continuous

(rare in the passive)
Active: has / have been telling John has been telling me for ages that you are leaving
Passive: has / have been I have been being told (by John) for ages that you are
being told leaving.

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Facultad deTraducción e Interpretación 09 / 10
Ana Belén Bravo De Pedro

We avoid using the passive of the perfect continuous tenses. We prefer to use an active form and an
impersonal subject, e.g. they / one:
By next month the murder will have been being investigated for over a year. (INCORRECT)
By next month they will have been investigating the murder for over a year. (CORRECT)

We usually avoid repeating the same passive auxiliary forms.

The contracts have been signed and (have been) dated in front of two witnesses.

In spoken English, we sometimes use get instead of be in the passive:

They got told off for making so much noise.

However, get + -ed is more common with an active meaning similar to ‘become’ in phrases like get
dressed, get married…

Modal verbs with passives

Active: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) tell You should tell John.
Passive: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) be told John should be told.

Active: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) have told You should have told John.
Passive: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) have been John should have been told.
told

Active: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) have been You should have been telling John
telling while I was outside.
John should have been being told
Passive: should / could / might / ought to (etc.) have been while I was outside.
being told

a.
Verbs which take an object (transitive verbs) can have a passive form. So we can make corresponding
passive sentences for:
They destroyed the building ÅÆ The building was destroyed.
The news surprised me Å Æ I was surprised by the news.

Most verbs transitive verbs can be made passive: e.g. drive is transitive because one can drive
something (a car). However, a few transitive verbs may not be used in the passive. These include:
become, fit (be the right size), get, have, lack, let, like, resemble, suit.

Verbs which do not take an object (intransitive verbs) do not have passive forms. Some of these verbs
are: arrive, come, die, exist, happen, have, live… These verbs do not have an object that can be
changed into the subject. For example, there are no passive forms for the following sentences:
I slept for nearly ten hours last night.
The ship slowly disappeared from view.
However, many verbs can be used at different times with and without objects – that is, they can be both
intransitive and transitive. Compare:
Are they meeting him at the station? (transitive) Is he being met at the airport?
(passive)
When shall we meet? (intransitive; no passive possible)

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b.
Verbs which have two objects can be made passive in two ways:
I was handed a note. A note was handed to me.
This is a common use with the following verbs: bring, give, lend, pass, pay, promise, sell, send, show,
tell.
Note that if the object of the passive verb is the indirect object of the active verb (the customer) it is
usually introduced with a preposition (e.g. to the customer)

However, some verb phrases with two objects can’t be passive at all:
The book earned him a fortune.
Let me wish you luck.

c.
Some verbs are followed by two nouns, but the second is not really an object: it is a complement. We
can see this if it is replaced by an adjective:
They declared him President.
He was declared President.

When these are made passive, the complement goes directly after the verb:
He was considered a failure.
Jim was elected class representative.

d.
When we use the passive, we can of course mention the agent at the end of the clause by using ‘by’. But
this puts emphasis on the agent, because the end of the clause is an important position, and so we often
do this when we want to refer back to the agent in the next clause.
The defending champion, John Pritchard, was beaten by Christ Boardman.
Using a passive allows us to omit the agent by leaving out the prepositional phrase with by:
My office was broken into when I was on holiday. (unknown agent)
An order form can be found on page 2. (agent = people in general)
These boxes should be handled with care. (unimportant agent)
She is being treated in hospital. (obvious agent; presumably ‘doctors’)

e.
In factual writing, particularly in describing procedures or processes, we often wish to omit the agent, and
use passives:
Nuclear waste will still be radioactive even after 20,000 years, so it must be disposed of very
carefully. It can be stored as a liquid in stainless-steel containers which are encased…

f.
The passive form of reporting verbs is often used in an impersonal ‘it’ structure, when it is clear whose
words or thoughts we are giving or when we are giving the words or thoughts of people in general.
It was agreed that he would come and see us again the next day.

g.
In spoken English we often use a subject such as people, somebody, they, we, or you even when we
do not know who the agent is. In formal English, particularly in writing, we often prefer to use a passive.
Compare:
They’re installing the new computer system next month.
The new computer system is being installed next month. (more formal)

h.
Notice also that some verbs have corresponding nouns. These nouns can be used as the subject of
passive sentences, with a new passive verb introduced:
The installation of the new computer system will be completed by next month.

i.
In English we usually prefer to put old information at the beginning of a sentence (or clause) and new
information at the end. Choosing the passive often allows us to do this. Compare these two texts and

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Facultad deTraducción e Interpretación 09 / 10
Ana Belén Bravo De Pedro

notice where the old information (in italics) and new information (in bold) is placed in the second
sentence of each. The second text uses a passive:
The three machines tested for the report contained different types of safety valve. The Boron Group
in Germany manufactured the machines.
The three machines tested for the report contained different types of safety valve. The machines
were manufactured by the Boron Group in Germany.

j.
Verbs that can be followed by either object +object or object + object +prepositional object in active
clauses can have two corresponding passive forms. The passive form you choose depends on which is
more appropriate in a particular context. Compare:

Active Passive
• She handed me the plate. • I was handed the plate.
• She handed the plate to me. • The plate was handed to me.

Other verbs like this include give, lend, pay, offer, promise, sell, teach, tell, throw. In this cases, the
‘indirect / person object’ is generally placed as the subject of the new passive sentence.
They gave John (indirect) a warm welcome (direct).
John was given a warm welcome.
A warm welcome was given to John. (less common)

However, verbs that can’t be followed by object + object in the active have only one of these passive
forms:

Active Passive
• He described me the situation. • I was described the situation.
• He described the situation to me. • The situation was described
to me.

Other verbs like this include demonstrate, explain, introduce, mention, report, suggest.

k.
We can make a passive form of transitive two – and three-word verbs. We must remember that all
elements have to be included in the new passive sentence. Compare:
Martha talked me into buying a motorbike. (= V + object + preposition)
I was talked into buying a motorbike by Martha.

l.
As with active forms of verbs, we can mention something that the agent used to perform the action after
the preposition ‘with’.
A circle was drawn in the dirt with a stick.
We can mention the method using an ‘-ing’ form after ‘by’.
Much of their strong taste can be removed by changing the cooking water.

m.
Because of their meaning, some verbs are far more commonly used in the passive than in the active.
This is usually because the agent is unknown or unimportant.
I was born in Italy.
My neighbour’s been arrested!
Some other verbs are so commonly used in the passive, without mentioning an agent, that they work in a
similar way to –ed adjectives:
I heard the news and was horrified.
Tuscan truffles are particularly prized for their pungent aroma.
Certain verbs describing states, such as have (=own), be, belong, lack, resemble, and seem, cannot be
made passive.
A Ferrari is had by John. (INCORRECT)
John has a Ferrari. (CORRECT)

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 Lengua BI (inglés)
Facultad deTraducción e Interpretación 09 / 10
Ana Belén Bravo De Pedro

These verbs cannot be used in the passive even when they describe an action.
Lunch is being had by John. (INCORRECT)
John’s having lunch. (CORRECT)

GET

1.
Sometimes you can use ‘get’ instead of ‘be’ in the passive, to say that something happens to somebody
or something, especially if this is unplanned or unexpected. It is usually informal
Our dog got run over by a car.
There was a fight at the party, but nobody got hurt. (=nobody was hurt)
I don’t often get invited to parties. (=I’m not often invited)

2.
You can ‘get’ only when things happen or change. For example, you cannot use ‘get’ in these sentences:
Jill is liked by everybody. (not ‘gets liked’ – this is not a ‘happening’)
He was a mystery man. Nothing was known about him. (not ‘got known’)

3.
We use ‘get’ mainly in informal spoken English. You can use ‘be’ in all situations.

4.
We also use ‘get’ in the following expressions (which are not passive in meaning):
get married get divorced get dressed get changed

5.
We can use get (as have) in both active or passive patterns when we talk about making other people do
something for us. The ative pattern, meaning ‘cause or order someone to do something’, is
get+person+to-infinitive:
I’ll get the waiter to bring you the menu.
The passive pattern, meaning ‘arrange for somebody else to do something’ is get / have +object + past
participle:
I’ll get the menu brought to you.
I must go and get my photo taken for my new passport.

HAVE SOMETHING DONE

1.
We use ‘have something done’ to say that we arrange for somebody else to do something for us. The
active pattern, meaning ‘cause or order someone to do something’, is have+person+infinitive without
to:
Jill repaired the roof. (=she repaired it herself)
Jill had the roof repaired. (=she arranged for somebody else to repair it)
‘Are you going to repair the car yourself?’ ‘No, I’m going to have it repaired’.
I’ll have the waiter bring you the menu.
The passive pattern, meaning ‘arrange for somebody else to do something’, is have+object+past
participle:
I’ll have the menu brought to you.
I’ll have my jacket cleaned after the party.

2.
Be careful with word order. The past participle (repaired /cut…) is after the object (the roof):
have + object + past participle

3.
You can also say ‘get something done’ instead of ‘have something done’ (mainly in informal spoken
English):
When are you going to get the roof repaired?
I think you should get your hair cut.

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4.
Sometimes ‘have something done’ has a different meaning.
Jill and Eric had all their money stolen while they were on holiday.
Of course this does not mean that they ‘arranged’ for somebody to steal their money. It means ‘All their
money was stolen from them’. With this meaning, we use ‘have something done’ to say that something
happens to somebody or their belongings. Usually what happens is not nice.
George has his nose broken in a fight.
Have you ever had your passport stolen?

IT IS SAID THAT… HE IS SAID TO… (BE) SUPPOSED TO…

a.
With verbs that report people’s opinions, a passive construction is often used to avoid a weak subject,
and to give a generalised opinion. You can use these structures with a number of other verbs, especially:

thought believed considered reported known expected

alleged understood

Henry is very old. Nobody knows exactly how old he is, but
It is said that he is 108 years old.
He is said to be 108 years old.
With present reference, the passive is followed by the present infinitive:
The criminal is thought to be in hiding in the London area.
With past reference, the passive is followed by the past infinitive:
Smith is believed to have left England last week.
If the reporting verb is in the past, the past infinitive tends to follow, though not always if the verb be is
used.
People thought Sue had paid too much.

b.
These structures are often used in news reports. For example, in a report about an accident:
It is reported that two people were injured in the explosion.
Two people are reported to have been injured in the explosion.

c.
Sometimes ‘it is supposed to’ means ‘it is said to’
Let’s go and see the film. It’s supposed to be very good.
‘Why was he arrested?’ ‘He’s supposed to have kicked a policeman’.
But sometimes ‘supposed to’ has a different meaning. ‘Something is supposed to happen’ = it is planned,
arranged or expected. Often this is different from what really happens:
I’d better hurry. It’s nearly 8 o’clock and I’m supposed to be meeting Ann at 8.15.
The train was supposed to arrive at 11.30 but it was an hour late.

d.
‘You’re not supposed to do something’ = it is not allowed or advisable for you to do it.
You’re not supposed to park your car here. It’s private parking only.

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