Active and Passive Voice:
Understanding Active and Passive Voice is crucial for the SSC CGL exam’s English section. This guide breaks down the concept with clear definitions, rules, and examples to ensure you can easily identify and convert sentences.
1. What is Voice?
Voice is a form of a verb that shows whether the subject of a sentence does the action or receives the action.
- Active Voice: The subject performs the action.
- Passive Voice: The subject receives the action.
2. Active Voice
- In the Active Voice, the subject is the ‘doer’ of the action. The sentence is direct and clear.
- Structure: Subject + Verb + Object
- Examples:
- The chef (Subject) cooked (Verb) the meal (Object).
- She (S) writes (V) a letter (O).
- The lion (S) chased (V) the deer (O).
3. Passive Voice
- In the Passive Voice, the subject is the ‘receiver’ of the action. The focus is on the action itself or the object of the active sentence. The doer (agent) is often omitted.
- Structure: Object (of Active Voice) + Helping Verb + Main Verb (V3) + By + Subject (of Active Voice)
- Examples:
- The meal (Object) was cooked (Helping Verb + V3) by the chef (Subject).
- A letter (O) is written (HV + V3) by her (S).
- The deer (O) was chased (HV + V3) by the lion (S).
5. Rules for Converting Active to Passive Voice
- Identify the Subject, Verb, and Object in the active sentence.
- Swap the Subject and Object. The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
- Use the Past Participle (V3) of the main verb.
- Add a suitable helping verb (is, am, are, was, were, be, been, being) according to the tense of the active sentence. The helping verb must agree with the new subject (which was the object earlier).
- Place the preposition ‘by‘ before the new object (which was the original subject). The ‘by‘ phrase can be omitted if the doer is unimportant or unknown.
6. Tense-wise Conversion Table with Examples
| Tense | Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Present Indefinite | S + V1(s/es) + O | O + is/am/are + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He writes a book. | A book is written by him. |
| Past Indefinite | S + V2 + O | O + was/were + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He wrote a book. | A book was written by him. |
| Future Indefinite | S + will/shall + V1 + O | O + will be/shall be + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He will write a book. | A book will be written by him. |
| Present Continuous | S + is/am/are + V1-ing + O | O + is/am/are + being + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He is writing a book. | A book is being written by him. |
| Past Continuous | S + was/were + V1-ing + O | O + was/were + being + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He was writing a book. | A book was being written by him. |
| Present Perfect | S + has/have + V3 + O | O + has been/have been + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He has written a book. | A book has been written by him. |
| Past Perfect | S + had + V3 + O | O + had been + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He had written a book. | A book had been written by him. |
| Future Perfect | S + will have + V3 + O | O + will have been + V3 + by + S |
| Example | He will have written a book. | A book will have been written by him. |
7. Special Cases
A. Sentences with Modals
Rule: Active: S + Modal + V1 + O
Passive: O + Modal + be + V3 + by + S
- Active: You should finish the work.
- Passive: The work should be finished by you.
- Active: She can solve this puzzle.
- Passive: This puzzle can be solved by her.
B. Sentences with Two Objects
Some verbs like give, tell, show, send, lend, teach, promise, offer, etc., can have two objects (Direct & Indirect). Either can become the subject in the passive voice.
Active: He gave me (Indirect Object) a book (Direct Object).
- Passive (1): I was given a book by him.
- Passive (2): A book was given to me by him.
C. Interrogative Sentences (Questions)
The helping verb comes before the subject in the passive form.
- Active: Do you know him?
- Passive: Is he known to you?
- Active: Why did you break the vase?
- Passive: Why was the vase broken by you?
D. Imperative Sentences (Commands & Requests)
Use ‘Let’ in the passive voice.
- Active: Shut the door.
- Passive: Let the door be shut.
- Active: Please help the poor.
- Passive: You are requested to help the poor.
E. Sentences with “People/They/Someone” as subject
We often omit the ‘by’ agent in such cases.
- Active: People say that he is a genius.
- Passive: It is said that he is a genius.
Key Takeaway
- Always look for the subject, verb, and object.
- Passive voice sentences will always have a form of the verb ‘to be‘ (is, am, are, was, were, be, been) + the past participle (V3).
- Practice identifying the tense of the active sentence to choose the correct helping verb in the passive.