Chapter 2

Passive Sentences
A. Active Sentences and Passive Sentences

Active Voice

Passive Voice

(agent performing action has been omitted.)

Choosing Active Voice

passive (indirect) active (direct):

Sentences in active voice are also more concise than those in passive voice because fewer
words are required to express action in active voice than in passive.

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passive (more wordy) active (more concise)

Changing passive to active

Passive Voice Agent Changed to Active Voice

most of the
class

agent not
specified;
most likely
agents such
as "the
researchers"

the CIA
director and
his close
advisors

agent not
specified;
most likely
agents such
as "we"

Choosing Passive Voice

active passive
The dispatcher is notifying police that threePolice are being notified that three prisoners
prisoners have escaped. have escaped.
Surgeons successfully performed a new A new experimental liver-transplant operation
experimental liver-transplant operation was performed successfully yesterday.
yesterday.
"Authorities make rules to be broken," he "Rules are made to be broken," he said
said defiantly. defiantly.

Changing active to passive

Active Voice Agent Changed to Passive Voice

The
presiding
officer

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 The
leaders

The
scientists

Some suggestions

1. Avoid starting a sentence in active voice and then shifting to passive.

Unnecessary shift in voice Revised

Many customers in the restaurant
found the coffee too bitter to drink, but
it was still ordered frequently.
He tried to act cool when he slipped in
the puddle, but he was still laughed at
by the other students.
Many customers in the restaurant found the coffee
too bitter to drink, but they still ordered it
frequently.
He tried to act cool when he slipped in the puddle,
but the other students still laughed at him.

2. Avoid dangling modifiers caused by the use of passive voice. A dangling modifier is a
word or phrase that modifies a word not clearly stated in the sentence.

Dangling modifier with passive voice Revised

To save time, the paper was written on a
To save time, Kristin wrote the paper on a
computer. (Who was saving time? The
computer.
paper?)
Seeking to lay off workers without
taking the blame, consultants were Seeking to lay off workers without taking the
hired to break the bad news. Who was blame, the CEO hired consultants to break the
seeking to lay off workers? The bad news.
consultants?)

3. Don't trust the grammar-checking programs in word-processing software. Many

grammar checkers flag all passive constructions, but you may want to keep some that are
flagged. Trust your judgement, or ask another human being for their opinion about which
sentence sounds best

B. TRANSITIVE AND INTRASITIVE VERBS

(a) Transitive Verbs Only transitive verbs can be used in the

passive
Active : Bob mailed the letter
A transitive verbs is a verbs that is
Passive: the letter was mailed by bob followed by an object. Examples

(b) Intrasitive Verbs S V O

Active : an accident happened Bob mailed the letter

Passive : (not possible) Mr lee signed the check

(C)INCORRECT : an accident was A cat killed the bird

happened

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 An intransitive verb is a verb that is not
followed by an object. Example:

S V

An accident happened

John came to our hourse

I slept well last night

An intransitive verb CANNOT be used

in the passive

C. USING THE “ BY-PHRASE”

(a). This sweater was made by my aunt
(b) That sweater was made in korea (by
someone)
(C) Spanish is spoken in Colombia. (by
people)
(d) That house was built in 1940.(by
someone)
The “by-phrase” is used in passive
sentences when it is important to know
who performs an action. In (A): by my
aunt is important information
Usually there is no “by-phrases” in a
passive sentence. The passive is used
when it is not known or not important to
know exactly who performs an action.
In (b): the exact person (or people) who
made the sweater is not known and is
not important to know, so there is no
“by-phrase” in the passive sentence.

(e) Rice is grown in many countries.(by

people)

C. USING PAST PARTICIPLES AS ADJECTIVE (Stative Passive)

The passives described so far have all been eventive (or dynamic) passives. There exist
also stative (or static, or resultative) passives; rather than describing an action, they
describe the result of an action. English does not usually distinguish between the two. For
example:

• The rule was broken.

This sentence has two different meanings, roughly the following:

• [Someone] broke (violated) the rule.

• The rule was in a broken (dysfunctional) state.

The former meaning represents the canonical, eventive passive; the latter, the stative
passive. (The terms eventive and stative/resultative refer to the tendencies of these forms
to describe events and resultant states, respectively. The terms can be misleading,
however, as the canonical passive of a stative verb is not a stative passive, even though it
describes a state.)

Some verbs do not form stative passives. In some cases, this is because distinct adjectives
exist for this purpose, such as with the verb open:

• The door was opened. → [Someone] opened the door.

• The door was open. → The door was in the open state.

BE + ADJECTIVE Be can be followed by an adjective. The

adjective describe or gives information

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 about the subject of the sentences.
a. Paul is young
b. Paul is tall Be can be followed by a past participle (the
c. Paul is hungry passive form). The past participle describes
or gives information about the subject of
Be + past participle the sentence. Past participles are used as
adjective in many common, everyday
d. Paul is married expressions
e. Paul is tired

f. Paul is frightened
g. Paul is married to Susan
h. Paul was excited about the game
i. Paul will be prepared for the exam
Often the past participles in these
expressions are followed by particular
prepositions + an object.
For example:

Married is followed by to (+an object)

Excited is followed by about (+an object)

Prepared is followed by for (+an object)

Some common expressions with be + past participle

Be acquainted (with) Be excited (about) Be opposed (to)

Be bored (with, by) Be exhausted(from ) Be pleased (with)

Be broken ( Be funished(with) Be prepared (for)

Be closed Be frightened (of, by) Be qualified (for)

Be composed of Be gone (from) Be related (to)

Be crowded (with) Be hurt Be satisfied (with)

Be devoted(to) Be interested (in) Be scared (of, by)

Be disappointed(in, with) Be involved (in) Be shut

Be divorced(form) Be located in, south of, etc Be spoiled

Be done (with) Be lost Be terrified (of, by)

Be drunk (on) Be made of Be tired (of, from)

Be engaged (to) Be married (to) Be worried (about)

E. PARTICIPLE ADJECTIVES: -ED vs –ING

Indian art interests me The past participle (-ed) and the present
a. I am interested in Indian art participle (-ing) can be used as adjectives.
Incorrect : I am interesting in Indian art In (a): the past participle (interested)
b. Indian art is interesting describes how a person feels
Incorrect : Indian art is interested In (b): the present participle (interesting)
The news surprised kate describe the cause of the feeling. The cause
c. kate was surprised of the interest is Indian art.
d. the news was surprising In (c):”surprised” describes how Kate felt.
The past participle carries a passive

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 meaning: Kate was surprised by the news.
In (d):”the news” was the cause of the
surpise.

D. GET + ADJECTIVE; GET + PAST PARTICIPLE

Get + Adjective Get can be followed by an adjective. Get
a. I am getting hungry. Let’s eat gives the idea of change-the idea of
b. Eric got nervous before the job becoming, beginning to be, growing to be.
interview In (a): I’m getting hungry = I wasn’t
hungry before, but now I’m beginning to be
hungry.
Get + Past Participle Sometimes get is followed by a past
c. I’m getting tired. Let’s stop participle. The past participle after get is
working like an adjective; it describes the subject of
d. Steve and Rita got married last the sentences
month
Get + Adjective Get + Past participle
Get angry Get acquainted
Get bald Get arrested
Get big Get bored
Get busy Get confused
Get close Get crowded
Get cold Get divorced
Get dark Get done
Get dirty Get dressed
Get dizzy Get drunk
Get dry Get engaged
Get fat Get excited
Get full Get finished
Get hot Get frightened
Get hungry Get hurt
Get interested Get interested
Get late Get invited
Get nervous Get involved
Get old Get killed
Get quiet Get lost
Get rich Get married
Get serious Get married
Get sick Get scared
Get sleepy Get sunburned
Get thirsty Get tired
Get well Get worried
Get wet

F. USING BE USED/ACCUSTOMED TO + NOUN

AND GET USED/ACCUSTOMED TO + GERUND
a. I am used to hot weather
b. I am accustomed to hot weather
c. I am used to living in a hot climate I’m familiar with what it is like to live in a
d. I am accustomed to living in a hot
climate
e. I just moved from Florida to Alaska. I
have never lived in a cold climate before,
but I am getting used to (accustomed to)
the cold weather here.
a. and b. have the same meaning:”Living”
in a hot climate is usual and normal for me.
hot climate. Hot weather isn’t strange or
different to me”
notice in c. and d. : to (a preposition) is
followed by the –ing form of a verb (a
gerund)
In e.: I’m getting used to/accustomed to =
something is beginning to seem usual and
normal to me

G. USING BE SUPPOSED TO
a. mike is supposed to call me Be supposed to is used to talk about an
tomorrow. (IDEA: I expect mike to activity or event that is expected to occur.

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 call me tomorrow)
b. We are supposed to write a
composition. (IDEA: people expect
it to rain today)
c. It is supposed to rain today ( IDEA:
people expect it to rain today)
d. Alice was supposed to be home at
ten. (IDEA: someone expected
Alice to be home at ten)
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In (a): the idea of is supposed to is that
Mike is expected (by me) to call. I asked
him to call me. He promised to call me. I
expect him to call me.
Note : the present form of be is used for
both future expectations an present
expectations.
REFERENCE
Azar, Betty Schrampfer.1992.Fundamental of English Grammar/Betty Schrampfer Azar-
2nded.
file:///G:/Documents/English_passive_voice4.htm
file:///G:/Documents/passive%20voice%202.htm