- 📚 ACTIVE-PASSIVE VOICE COMPLETE GUIDE
- 1. INTRODUCTION TO VOICE
- 2. RULES FOR CHANGING ACTIVE TO PASSIVE
- 3. ALL TENSES WITH EXAMPLES
- A. PRESENT TENSES
- 2. Present Continuous Tense
- 3. Present Perfect Tense
- B. PAST TENSES
- 4. Simple Past Tense
- 5. Past Continuous Tense
- 6. Past Perfect Tense
- C. FUTURE TENSES
- 8. Future Perfect Tense
- D. FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE
- 4. MODAL VERBS
- 5. IMPERATIVE SENTENCES
- Type 2: Request (using please)
- 6. INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES
- Type 1: Yes/No Questions
- Type 2: Wh-Questions
- 7. DOUBLE OBJECTS
- 8. SPECIAL CASES
- Case 2: Sentences with "Let"
- Case 3: Sentences with "Need"
- Case 4: Sentences without "by" (Impersonal Passive)
- Case 5: Reflexive/Emphatic Pronouns
- Case 6: Intransitive Verbs
- Case 7: Sentences with "Being/Been"
- 10. PRACTICE EXERCISES
- Exercise 1: Change to Passive Voice
- QUICK REFERENCE CHART
- IMPORTANT RULES SUMMARY
📚 ACTIVE-PASSIVE VOICE COMPLETE GUIDE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction to Voice
2. Rules for Changing Active to Passive
3. All Tenses with Examples
4. Modal Verbs
5. Imperative Sentences
6. Interrogative Sentences
7. Double Objects
8. Special Cases
9. Common Errors
10. Practice Exercises
1. INTRODUCTION TO VOICE
What is Voice?
Voice tells us whether the subject performs the action or receives the action.
Two Types of Voice:
Voice Definition Structure
Active Voice Subject performs the action Subject + Verb + Object
Passive Voice Subject receives the action Object + be + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
Ram eats an apple. An apple is eaten by Ram.
The cat chased the mouse. The mouse was chased by the cat.
She will write a letter. A letter will be written by her.
Hindi Meaning:
· Active Voice (सकर्मक वाच्य): कर्ता क्रिया को करता है
· Passive Voice (कर्मवाच्य): कर्म पर क्रिया का प्रभाव पड़ता है
2. RULES FOR CHANGING ACTIVE TO PASSIVE
Rule 1: Identify Subject, Verb, and Object
· Active: Subject + Verb + Object
· Passive: Object + Helping Verb + V3 + by + Subject
Rule 2: Change the Verb Form
· Main verb always becomes Past Participle (V3)
· Helping verb changes according to tense
Rule 3: Change Pronouns
I- me
We- us
You -you
He -him
She -her
They -them
It -it
Rule 4: Position of “by”
· “by” comes before the object (doer) in passive voice
· In some cases, other prepositions are used (with, to, at)
3. ALL TENSES WITH EXAMPLES
A. PRESENT TENSES
1. Simple Present Tense
Active Voice Passive Voice
Subject + V1/V5 + Object Object + is/am/are + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She writes a letter. A letter is written by her.
2 They play football. Football is played by them.
3 He eats an apple. An apple is eaten by him.
4 I read a book. A book is read by me.
5 We sing songs. Songs are sung by us.
6 The dog chases the cat. The cat is chased by the dog.
7 Mother cooks food. Food is cooked by mother.
8 Children love toys. Toys are loved by children.
9 The teacher explains the lesson. The lesson is explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers grow crops. Crops are grown by farmers.
2. Present Continuous Tense
Active Voice Passive Voice
Subject + is/am/are + V-ing + Object. Object + is/am/are + being + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She is writing a letter. A letter is being written by her.
2 They are playing football. Football is being played by them.
3 He is eating an apple. An apple is being eaten by him.
4 I am reading a book. A book is being read by me.
5 We are singing songs. Songs are being sung by us.
6 The dog is chasing the cat. The cat is being chased by the dog.
7 Mother is cooking food. Food is being cooked by mother.
8 Children are playing cricket. Cricket is being played by children.
9 The teacher is teaching students. Students are being taught by the teacher.
10 Workers are building a house. A house is being built by workers.
3. Present Perfect Tense
Active Voice Passive Voice
Subject + has/have + V3 + Object Object + has/have + been + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She has written a letter. A letter has been written by her.
2 They have played football. Football has been played by them.
3 He has eaten an apple. An apple has been eaten by him.
4 I have read a book. A book has been read by me.
5 We have sung songs. Songs have been sung by us.
6 The dog has chased the cat. The cat has been chased by the dog.
7 Mother has cooked food. Food has been cooked by mother.
8 Children have completed homework. Homework has been completed by children.
9 The teacher has explained the lesson. The lesson has been explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers have grown crops. Crops have been grown by farmers.
B. PAST TENSES
4. Simple Past Tense
Active Passive
Subject + V2 + Object Object + was/were + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She wrote a letter. A letter was written by her.
2 They played football. Football was played by them.
3 He ate an apple. An apple was eaten by him.
4 I read a book. A book was read by me.
5 We sang songs. Songs were sung by us.
6 The dog chased the cat. The cat was chased by the dog.
7 Mother cooked food. Food was cooked by mother.
8 Children loved toys. Toys were loved by children.
9 The teacher explained the lesson. The lesson was explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers grew crops. Crops were grown by farmers.
5. Past Continuous Tense
Active Passive
Subject + was/were + V-ing + Object Object + was/were + being + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She was writing a letter. A letter was being written by her.
2 They were playing football. Football was being played by them.
3 He was eating an apple. An apple was being eaten by him.
4 I was reading a book. A book was being read by me.
5 We were singing songs. Songs were being sung by us.
6 The dog was chasing the cat. The cat was being chased by the dog.
7 Mother was cooking food. Food was being cooked by mother.
8 Children were playing cricket. Cricket was being played by children.
9 The teacher was teaching students. Students were being taught by the teacher.
10 Workers were building a house. A house was being built by workers.
6. Past Perfect Tense
Active Passive
Subject + had + V3 + Object Object + had + been + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She had written a letter. A letter had been written by her.
2 They had played football. Football had been played by them.
3 He had eaten an apple. An apple had been eaten by him.
4 I had read a book. A book had been read by me.
5 We had sung songs. Songs had been sung by us.
6 The dog had chased the cat. The cat had been chased by the dog.
7 Mother had cooked food. Food had been cooked by mother.
8 Children had completed homework. Homework had been completed by children.
9 The teacher had explained the lesson. The lesson had been explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers had grown crops. Crops had been grown by farmers.
C. FUTURE TENSES
7. Simple Future Tense
Active Passive
Subject + will/shall + V1 + Object Object + will/shall + be + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She will write a letter. A letter will be written by her.
2 They will play football. Football will be played by them.
3 He will eat an apple. An apple will be eaten by him.
4 I shall read a book. A book will be read by me.
5 We shall sing songs. Songs will be sung by us.
6 The dog will chase the cat. The cat will be chased by the dog.
7 Mother will cook food. Food will be cooked by mother.
8 Children will love toys. Toys will be loved by children.
9 The teacher will explain the lesson. The lesson will be explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers will grow crops. Crops will be grown by farmers.
8. Future Perfect Tense
Active Passive
Subject + will/shall + have + V3 + Object Object + will/shall + have + been + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She will have written a letter. A letter will have been written by her.
2 They will have played football. Football will have been played by them.
3 He will have eaten an apple. An apple will have been eaten by him.
4 I shall have read a book. A book will have been read by me.
5 We shall have sung songs. Songs will have been sung by us.
6 The dog will have chased the cat. The cat will have been chased by the dog.
7 Mother will have cooked food. Food will have been cooked by mother.
8 Children will have completed homework. Homework will have been completed by children.
9 The teacher will have explained the lesson. The lesson will have been explained by the teacher.
10 Farmers will have grown crops. Crops will have been grown by farmers.
D. FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE
Note: Future Continuous Tense does NOT have a passive form.
Active Passive
She will be writing a letter. Not Possible
4. MODAL VERBS
Structure:
Active Passive
Subject + Modal + V1 + Object Object + Modal + be + V3 + by + Subject
Common Modals: can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, must, ought to, used to
Examples:
1 She can write a letter. A letter can be written by her.
2 They could play football. Football could be played by them.
3 He may eat an apple. An apple may be eaten by him.
4 I might read a book. A book might be read by me.
5 We should sing songs. Songs should be sung by us.
6 You must finish the work. The work must be finished by you.
7 He ought to help the poor. The poor ought to be helped by him.
8 She would buy a car. A car would be bought by her.
9 They used to grow vegetables. Vegetables used to be grown by them.
10 We shall meet the manager. The manager shall be met by us.
5. IMPERATIVE SENTENCES
Type 1: Order/Command/Request
Active Passive
V1 + Object Let + Object + be + V3
Do not + V1 + Object Let + Object + not + be + V3
Examples:
1 Open the door. Let the door be opened.
2 Shut the window. Let the window be shut.
3 Clean the room. Let the room be cleaned.
4 Cook the food. Let the food be cooked.
5 Write a letter. Let a letter be written.
6 Do not open the door. Let the door not be opened.
7 Do not shut the window. Let the window not be shut.
8 Do not clean the room. Let the room not be cleaned.
9 Do not cook the food. Let the food not be cooked.
10 Do not write a letter. Let a letter not be written.
Type 2: Request (using please)
Active Passive
Please + V1 + Object You are requested to + V1 + Object
Examples:
· Active: Please help me.
· Passive: You are requested to help me.
6. INTERROGATIVE SENTENCES
Type 1: Yes/No Questions
Active Passive
Helping Verb + Subject + V1/V3 + Object? Helping Verb + Object + being/been + V3 + by + Subject?
Examples:
1 Do you write a letter? Is a letter written by you?
2 Are they playing football? Is football being played by them?
3 Has he eaten an apple? Has an apple been eaten by him?
4 Did she read a book? Was a book read by her?
5 Were they singing songs? Were songs being sung by them?
6 Will you cook food? Will food be cooked by you?
7 Can she drive a car? Can a car be driven by her?
8 Must we finish the work? Must the work be finished by us?
9 Is he helping the poor? Are the poor being helped by him?
10 Have they completed homework? Has homework been completed by them?
Type 2: Wh-Questions
Active Passive
Wh-word + Helping Verb + Subject + V1/V3? Wh-word + Helping Verb + Object + being/been + V3 + by + Subject?
Examples:
1 What do you write? What is written by you?
2 What are they playing? What is being played by them?
3 What has he eaten? What has been eaten by him?
4 What did she read? What was read by her?
5 What were they singing? What was being sung by them?
6 Who wrote this book? By whom was this book written?
7 Who broke the window? By whom was the window broken?
8 Who will cook food? By whom will food be cooked?
9 Who can drive a car? By whom can a car be driven?
10 Who has done this work? By whom has this work been done?
Note: When “who” is the subject in active voice, it becomes “by whom” in passive voice.
7. DOUBLE OBJECTS
Some verbs take two objects (Direct and Indirect)
Structure:
Active Passive (Option 1) Passive (Option 2)
Subject + Verb + IO + DO DO + be + V3 + to/for + IO + by + Subject IO + be + V3 + DO + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She gave me a book. A book was given to me by her. I was given a book by her.
2 He sent her a letter. A letter was sent to her by him. She was sent a letter by him.
3 They offered him a job. A job was offered to him by them. He was offered a job by them.
4 Mother bought me a toy. A toy was bought for me by mother. I was bought a toy by mother.
5 The teacher taught us English. English was taught to us by the teacher. We were taught English by the teacher.
6 She told them a story. A story was told to them by her. They were told a story by her.
7 He showed me his photo. A photo was shown to me by him. I was shown a photo by him.
8 They awarded her a prize. A prize was awarded to her by them. She was awarded a prize by them.
9 Father promised me a bike. A bike was promised to me by father. I was promised a bike by father.
10 We lent them money. Money was lent to them by us. They were lent money by us.
8. SPECIAL CASES
Case 1: Sentences with Prepositions
Some verbs are followed by prepositions. The preposition remains in the passive voice.
Active Passive
Subject + Verb + Preposition + Object Object + be + V3 + Preposition + by + Subject
Examples:
1 She laughed at him. He was laughed at by her.
2 They sent for the doctor. The doctor was sent for by them.
3 He looks after his mother. His mother is looked after by him.
4 We care for the poor. The poor are cared for by us.
5 She agreed to the plan. The plan was agreed to by her.
6 They objected to the proposal. The proposal was objected to by them.
7 He insisted on this matter. This matter was insisted on by him.
8 She aims at perfection. Perfection is aimed at by her.
9 They hope for success. Success is hoped for by them.
10 He listens to music. Music is listened to by him.
Case 2: Sentences with “Let”
Active Passive
Let + Object + V1 Let + Object + be + V3
Examples:
· Active: Let him do the work.
· Passive: Let the work be done by him.
Case 3: Sentences with “Need”
Active Passive
Need + V-ing Need + to be + V3
Examples:
· Active: The car needs washing.
· Passive: The car needs to be washed.
Case 4: Sentences without “by” (Impersonal Passive)
When the doer is unknown or unimportant:
Active Passive
People/They + Verb + Object Object + be + V3
Examples:
1 People speak English here. English is spoken here.
2 They built this bridge in 1990. This bridge was built in 1990.
3 Someone stole my watch. My watch was stolen.
4 People grow rice in this region. Rice is grown in this region.
5 They will open the shop tomorrow. The shop will be opened tomorrow.
6 Someone has broken the window. The window has been broken.
7 People consider him a genius. He is considered a genius.
8 They made him captain. He was made captain.
9 People believe that he is honest. It is believed that he is honest.
10 They say that she is rich. It is said that she is rich.
Case 5: Reflexive/Emphatic Pronouns
Active Passive
Subject + Verb + Reflexive Pronoun Cannot be changed to passive
Examples:
· Active: She hurt herself.
· Passive: Not Possible
Case 6: Intransitive Verbs
Verbs that do not take an object cannot be changed to passive.
Examples:
· He sleeps. (No object → No passive)
· She cries. (No object → No passive)
· They arrived. (No object → No passive)
Case 7: Sentences with “Being/Been”
Active Passive
Subject + is/am/are + being + V3 Object + is/am/are + being + V3 + by + Subject
Examples:
· Active: She is being helped.
· Passive: (Already passive)
10. PRACTICE EXERCISES
Exercise 1: Change to Passive Voice
1. She writes poems.
2. They are building a hospital.
3. He has finished the work.
4. The dog bit the man.
5. She was cooking dinner.
6. They had completed the project.
7. She will buy a car.
8. He can solve this problem.
9. Open the window.
10. Who broke the glass?
Answers:
1. Poems are written by her.
2. A hospital is being built by them.
3. The work has been finished by him.
4. The man was bitten by the dog.
5. Dinner was being cooked by her.
6. The project had been completed by them.
7. A car will be bought by her.
8. This problem can be solved by him.
9. Let the window be opened.
10. By whom was the glass broken?
Exercise 2: Change to Active Voice
1. A letter is written by her.
2. Food is being cooked by mother.
3. The work has been done by him.
4. The snake was killed by the man.
5. Songs were being sung by them.
6. The project had been completed by them.
7. A car will be bought by her.
8. This problem can be solved by him.
9. Let the door be opened.
10. By whom was this painting done?
Answers:
1. She writes a letter.
2. Mother is cooking food.
3. He has done the work.
4. The man killed the snake.
5. They were singing songs.
6. They had completed the project.
7. She will buy a car.
8. He can solve this problem.
9. Open the door.
10. Who did this painting?
Exercise 3: Identify the Voice
1. The cat chased the mouse. (Active/Passive)
2. The mouse was chased by the cat. (Active/Passive)
3. A new bridge is being built. (Active/Passive)
4. She has written a novel. (Active/Passive)
5. Let the work be done. (Active/Passive)
6. English is spoken here. (Active/Passive)
7. They will finish the project tomorrow. (Active/Passive)
8. The window was broken by someone. (Active/Passive)
9. He needs to be helped. (Active/Passive)
10. People consider him wise. (Active/Passive)
Answers:
1. Active
2. Passive
3. Passive
4. Active
5. Passive
6. Passive
7. Active
8. Passive
9. Passive
10. Active
Exercise 4: Correct the Errors
1. A letter is wrote by me.
2. The house is building.
3. She is known by everyone.
4. Let the door opened.
5. The work has been did.
6. They were played football.
7. He was died in accident.
8. I am interesting in music.
9. She was married with a doctor.
10. The glass was breaked.
Answers:
1. A letter is written by me.
2. The house is being built.
3. She is known to everyone.
4. Let the door be opened.
5. The work has been done.
6. Football was played by them.
7. He died in an accident. / He was killed in an accident.
8. I am interested in music.
9. She was married to a doctor.
10. The glass was broken.
QUICK REFERENCE CHART
Tense Active Structure Passive Structure
Simple Present V1/V5 is/am/are + V3
Present Continuous is/am/are + V-ing is/am/are + being + V3
Present Perfect has/have + V3 has/have + been + V3
Simple Past V2 was/were + V3
Past Continuous was/were + V-ing was/were + being + V3
Past Perfect had + V3 had + been + V3
Simple Future will/shall + V1 will/shall + be + V3
Future Perfect will/shall + have + V3 will/shall + have + been + V3
Modals Modal + V1 Modal + be + V3
Imperative V1 + Object Let + Object + be + V3
IMPORTANT RULES SUMMARY
1. Object becomes Subject in passive voice
2. Always use V3 (Past Participle) in passive voice
3. Use “by” before the doer (except in impersonal passive)
4. Helping verbs change according to tense
5. Intransitive verbs (no object) cannot be passive
6. Future Continuous and Perfect Continuous tenses have no passive
7. Prepositions remain attached to the verb in passive
8. Two objects give two passive forms
9. Who becomes by whom in passive
10. Impersonal passive omits the doer
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HINDI MEANINGS OF GRAMMAR TERMS
English Term Hindi Meaning
Active Voice सकर्मक वाच्य
Passive Voice कर्मवाच्य
Subject कर्ता
Object कर्म
Verb क्रिया
Tense काल
Present वर्तमान काल
Past भूतकाल
Future भविष्य काल
Modal Verb सहायक क्रिया
Imperative आज्ञार्थक वाक्य
Interrogative प्रश्नवाचक वाक्य
Past Participle भूतकालिक कृदंत
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The End of Active-Passive Voice Guide
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