Active and Passive Voice: Rules, Uses, and Examples
Master Active and Passive Voice with Example
When we write or speak English, we can express the same idea in two ways: Active Voice and Passive Voice.
Both are grammatically correct, but they serve different purposes.
In this lesson, you’ll learn what they mean, when to use each, and how to change a sentence from active to passive easily.
🔹 What Is Active Voice?
In Active Voice, the subject performs the action of the verb.
It’s direct, clear, and commonly used in everyday English.
Structure:
👉 Subject + Verb + Object
Examples:
- The teacher explains the lesson.
- Riya wrote a letter.
- They are cleaning the room.
💡 Tip: Use active voice when you want to make your writing strong and personal.
🔹 What Is Passive Voice?
In Passive Voice, the subject receives the action of the verb.
The doer (the agent) may or may not be mentioned.
Structure:
👉 Object + be + Past Participle (+ by + Subject)
Examples:
- The lesson is explained by the teacher.
- A letter was written by Riya.
- The room is being cleaned by them.
💡 Tip: Use passive voice when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious.
⚙️ How to Change from Active to Passive Voice
Follow these 3 simple steps 👇
1️⃣ Identify the object of the active sentence.
2️⃣ Make it the subject of the passive sentence.
3️⃣ Use the correct form of “be” + past participle of the verb.
| Tense | Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Present Simple | She writes a book. | A book is written by her. |
| Past Simple | He cleaned the room. | The room was cleaned by him. |
| Future Simple | They will build a house. | A house will be built by them. |
| Present Continuous | She is cooking dinner. | Dinner is being cooked by her. |
| Past Continuous | He was painting the wall. | The wall was being painted by him. |
| Present Perfect | They have finished the work. | The work has been finished by them. |
| Modal (can, must, should) | We can solve this problem. | This problem can be solved by us. |
🧩 When to Use Passive Voice
1️⃣ When the doer is unknown:
The window was broken last night.
2️⃣ When the doer is unimportant:
The road is cleaned every morning.
3️⃣ When you want to focus on the action or result:
The project has been completed.
4️⃣ In formal or academic writing:
The data was analysed using new methods.
💡 Passive voice makes writing sound formal and objective, useful in reports, news, and academic essays.
🚫 When NOT to Use Passive Voice
❌ When clarity or emotion is more important than formality.
✅ Use active voice for personal writing, stories, and conversations.
Example:
- Active: We won the match! 🎉
- Passive: The match was won by us. 😴
📝 Quick Practice
Change these sentences into passive voice 👇
- The students are reading the novel.
- She will prepare the report.
- They cleaned the classroom yesterday.
- The chef is cooking dinner.
- Someone stole my phone.
Answers:
- The novel is being read by the students.
- The report will be prepared by her.
- The classroom was cleaned yesterday.
- Dinner is being cooked by the chef.
- My phone was stolen.
🎯 Learn English Grammar the Smart Way with Sujyoti
At Sujyoti Language School, we make English grammar simple and practical for learners of all levels (A1–C2).
Our courses include:
- Grammar through real-life examples
- Speaking & pronunciation practice
- Weekly one-to-one oral and written exams
- In-house books, digital lessons, and CEFR certification
👉 Ready to speak and write confidently?
Book your Free Demo Class today and start learning English the Sujyoti way!
