Let's start brushing up your passive skills by listening to Mr. Passive Voice:
So...Who is he talking to?
a) his demanding wife
b) his boss
c) himself (he records all his duties and errands, once he's fulfilled them)
And...why on earth is he using Passive?
a) his ego was killed upon his wife's request
b) he has no personality
c) he doesn't give a damn about who did what
* Note: answers may vary, so any of them can be correct, even all... or none. The question is making you talk...
Now this video will display a similar explanation to the one I gave you on the board in class today:
And here comes the lesson:
THE PASSIVE VOICE IN ENGLISH
Passive vs Active voice:
The Active Voice
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The Passive Voice
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Most countries in Latin America speak Spanish.
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Spanish is spoken in most countries in Latin America.
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Use of Passive voice:
1. Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action.
Example: "A letter was written."
The focus, here, is on the fact that a letter was written. We actually don't know who wrote it.
Example: "A letter was written."
The focus, here, is on the fact that a letter was written. We actually don't know who wrote it.
2. Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows:
Example: "A vase was broken."
Focus, here, is on the fact that a vase was broken, but we don't blame anyone. Compare this to: "You broke the vase."
Example: "A vase was broken."
Focus, here, is on the fact that a vase was broken, but we don't blame anyone. Compare this to: "You broke the vase."
Form of Passive voice:
Subject + the appropriate form of to be + Past Participle
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NOTE: The appropriate form of to be = To be is given in the tense of the active voice main verb.
When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:
· The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
· The form of the verb is the appropriate form of to be (the tense of the active voice main verb) + the past participle.
· The subject of the active sentence becomes the agent of the passive sentence (or it's dropped, since information becomes irrelevant).
Active
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Nancy
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makes
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tea
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subject
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verb
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object
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Passive
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Tea
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is made
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(by Nancy)
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object becoming subject
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verb
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subject becoming agent or dropped
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Examples of Passive voice:
Tense
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Subject
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Verb
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Object
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Simple Present
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Active:
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Nancy
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makes
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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is made
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by Nancy.
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Present Progressive
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Active:
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Nancy
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is making
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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is being made
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by Nancy.
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Simple Past
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Active:
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Nancy
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made
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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was made
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by Nancy.
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Past Progressive
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Active:
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Nancy
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was making
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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was being made
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by Nancy.
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Present Perfect
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Active:
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Nancy
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has made
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Tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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has been made
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by Nancy.
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Past Perfect
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Active:
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Nancy
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had made
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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had been made
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by Nancy.
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Future simple
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Active:
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Nancy
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will make
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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will be made
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by Nancy.
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Future perfect
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Active:
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Nancy
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will have made
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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will have been made
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by Nancy.
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Conditional
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Active:
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Nancy
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would make
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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would be made
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by Nancy.
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Modals
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Active:
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Nancy
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can make
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tea.
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Passive:
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Tea
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can be made
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by Nancy.
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Double Object Passive:
Transforming an active sentence with two objects into passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to focus on.
Active/Passive
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Subject
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Verb
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Object 1
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Object 2
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Active:
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Nancy
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offered
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a flower
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to me.
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Passive:
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A flower
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was offered
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to me
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by Nancy.
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Passive:
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I
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was offered
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a flower
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by Nancy.
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Impersonal Passive:
Study these examples:
· They say that the planet is in danger.
· It is said that the planet is in danger.
This type of passive is called impersonal since we use the impersonal form "it is..." This is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say, think, know ...)
Examples:
· It is said that...
· It is thought that...
· It is believed that...
· It is known that...
It is also common to start the passive form of these sentences with the subject of the that-clause:
Examples:
· They say that the planet is in danger = The planet is said to be in danger.
· They think that women live longer than men = Women are thought to live longer than men.
Source: My English Pages.com
MORE ON PASSIVE, FROM BBC:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv331.shtml Passive with modals, future and infinitive forms.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1643_gramchallenge14/ Present Perfect Passive. Audio+exercises.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv65.shtml Use of Passive Voice.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv119.shtml Continuous forms of Passive
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1837_aae/page7.shtml Pseudo-Passive.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv214.shtml “see” and “hear” with Passive Voice.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv191.shtml “hurt”, “harm”, “injure”, “wound”, “damage” as Passive verbs.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv150.shtml “permit”, “allow” with Passive.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/learnit/learnitv106.shtml Relative pronoun+ Passive voice vs. Participial clauses.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1837_aae/page47.shtml Objective vs. Subjective tone in Passive
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/askaboutenglish/2009/06/090908_aae_open.shtml Intransitive verbs cannot be used in Passive voice. Example.
EXERCISES FOR FURTHER PRACTICE:
http://www.nonstopenglish.com/allexercises/grammar/grammar-passive_voice.asp Miscellaneous: Blanks, Correct mistakes, Rephrasing…
http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/active-voice-versus-passive-voice.aspx Tips for writing. Explanations by The Grammar Girl with audio, listen and read along.
http://busyteacher.org/classroom_activities-grammar/passive_voice-worksheets/page/3/ 101 Passive Voice worksheets. Exercises, recipes, texts and more stuff…
And finally these last exercises on Newspaper Reports (answers included) to review Passive Voice plus some Vocab. about Crime and Punishment, so you're all set with unit 3A.
Uploaded by me on SLIDESHARE, though source: http://www.teachitworld.com/
Cheers,
Inma.
