This document provides information about the passive voice in English grammar. It discusses the formation of the present and past passive, including affirmative and negative forms. It also covers question forms in the passive voice. Additionally, it explains when and why the passive voice is used, such as when the actor is unknown or the action is more important than the actor. It contrasts the active and passive voices and provides examples of sentences in both voices.
This document provides information about the passive voice in English grammar. It discusses the formation of the present and past passive, including affirmative and negative forms. It also covers question forms in the passive voice. Additionally, it explains when and why the passive voice is used, such as when the actor is unknown or the action is more important than the actor. It contrasts the active and passive voices and provides examples of sentences in both voices.
This document provides information about the passive voice in English grammar. It discusses the formation of the present and past passive, including affirmative and negative forms. It also covers question forms in the passive voice. Additionally, it explains when and why the passive voice is used, such as when the actor is unknown or the action is more important than the actor. It contrasts the active and passive voices and provides examples of sentences in both voices.
This document provides information about the passive voice in English grammar. It discusses the formation of the present and past passive, including affirmative and negative forms. It also covers question forms in the passive voice. Additionally, it explains when and why the passive voice is used, such as when the actor is unknown or the action is more important than the actor. It contrasts the active and passive voices and provides examples of sentences in both voices.
Affirmative Negative answers I’m (am) paid. I’m not (am not) paid. Present passive You’re (are) paid. You aren’t (are not) paid. Am I paid? Yes, I am. He/She/It’s (is) paid. He/She/It isn’t (is not) paid. No, I’m not. We/You/They’re (are) We/You/They aren’t (are not) Are you paid? Yes, you are. paid. paid. No, you aren’t.
• the present simple passive is formed with the present
Is he/she/it paid? Yes, he/she/it is. No, he/she/it isn’t.
simple of be + the past participle of the verb Are we/you/they paid? Yes, we/you/they are. English is spoken all over the world. No, we/you/they aren’t. • for past participles of irregular verbs, see the irregular
verb list on p80 Past passive • we use by in passive sentences if we want to talk Was I invited? Yes, I was.
about who or what does the action No, I wasn’t. This song is sung by Taylor Swift. Were you invited? Yes, you were. No, you weren’t. The passive: past Was he/she/it invited? Yes, he/she/it was. No, he/she/it wasn’t. Affirmative Negative Were we/you/they invited? Yes, we/you/they were. I was invited. I wasn’t (was not) invited. No, we/you/they weren’t. You were invited. You weren’t (were not) invited. • passive questions are formed with (question word) +
the present/past simple of be + subject + the past He/She/It was invited. He/She/It wasn’t (was not) participle of the verb invited. When was the Eiffel Tower built? We/You/They were We/You/They weren’t (were invited. not) invited. • we put prepositions and other words at the end of
the question • the past simple passive is formed with the past Who was the photo taken by?
simple of be + the past participle of the verb What is the statue made of? The film was directed by Spike Lee.
Active and passive
• active sentences start with the subject; the subject is
the person or thing that does the action Ed Sheeran wrote the song. • we use the passive when the action of the sentence
is important, not the person who did it active: They make chopsticks from wood. passive: Chopsticks are made from wood. • we also use the passive when we do not know who
does the action active: Somebody designed the app in 2019. passive: The app was designed in 2019. • we use the passive in writing more than in speaking •