Explaining the Passive Voice: Why, When and How
Most of the English we all speak is in the active voice. But the passive voice also has its place, and is at times the better choice of the two.
This article will help you explain the differences between the two styles and also provides tips on how and when to use the passive voice naturally.
The differences between active and passive voice
In the active voice, the structure of a sentence is subject-verb-object (SVO). For example:
Tom closed the door.
Here, Tom is the subject, “close" is the verb, and “the door” is the object.
In sentences in the passive voice, the structure changes to object-verb-subject (OVS).
Here’s the previous sentence in the passive voice:
The door was closed by Tom.
This time, the action itself is more important than who performed the action.
How to form the passive voice
To form the passive voice, start with the object of the sentence rather than the subject. Then, add the verb “be” and use the past participle of the main verb.
Alex ate the pizza. > The pizza was eaten (by Alex).
Someone pushed the button. > The button was pushed.
Someone broke the glass. > The glass was broken.
We mention the person or thing that performs an action by including them at the end of the sentence along with “by.”
The pizza was eaten by Alex.
The taxes were paid by the company.
When to use the passive voice
The passive voice is commonly used in a few different situations:
- When we don’t know who performed an action
- When the person who performed an action is unimportant
- To hide who has performed an action
You can present the following sentences as examples:
The house was built 15 years ago.
The organization was founded to help the local community.
The package was delivered this morning.
The people who performed the actions in the sentences above are either not known or not important to the conversation.
For the first sentence, we could say, "Someone built the house 15 years ago," which is the same sentence but in the active voice. However, because we do not know who exactly built the house, simply removing the subject of the sentence by using the passive voice sounds more natural.
What about hiding who performed an action?
In some situations, mentioning a specific person can sound as if we are blaming them for something. As a result, we often don’t mention a person specifically — even when that person is the speaker themself!
We made a lot of mistakes. [active]
A lot of mistakes were made. [passive]
A lot of mistakes were made. [passive]
Caroline spilled a drink on the carpet. [active]
A drink was spilled on the carpet. [passive]
A drink was spilled on the carpet. [passive]
My puppy made a mess in the living room. [active]
A mess was made in the living room. [passive]
A mess was made in the living room. [passive]
In these examples, the passive versions avoid placing blame by simply removing the subjects from the sentences.
Wrap-up
While the active voice is more common in most situations, there are still times when the passive voice may be more appropriate. Learning to switch between the two styles at the right moments will help students become much stronger English speakers (and listeners).
Once you've explained how the passive voice works, test your students by asking them to express the same ideas in both ways until they can use both comfortably.
