To Be Done

By Matthew, 21 September 2008 - 4:25pm
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Grammar name (English): 
Passive Voice
Grammar name (日本語): 
受け身, 受動態

Passive sentences are a way to change the focus of a sentence. We do this in English when:

  1. we don't know or care who does something;
  2. we want to hide who does something;
  3. it is obvious who does something;
  4. we want to keep the subject of the conversation or story the same.

Passive and Active

When talking about a situation, there are two ways we can describe the action. With an active or passive verb:

Steven Spielberg directed the movie.
The movie was directed by Steven Spielberg.
ACTIVE [A] active verb
→ 		[B]
Steven Speilberg
 		directed the movie
 ♦
PASSIVE [B]
 		passive verb
← 		by [A]
The movie
 		was directed by Steven Speilberg

In a passive sentence, we show the doer of the action (called the agent) with the word by.

Making a Passive

Passive verbs in English are made using the verb BE (an auxiliary verb) and the past participle (P.P.) of the verb of action:

BE + P.P.

To show a change in time (a change in tense), or aspect of the passive verb, change BE as you normally would. For example:

Verb Form   BE P.P. Example
Simple Tenses Past was / were + P.P. was eaten
Present am / is / are am told
Future will be will not be brought

Progressive / Continuous

Aspects

Past was / were being were being watched
Present am / is / are being are being examined
Future (rare) will be being
 will be being taught
Perfect Aspects Past had been had been forgotten
Present have been have been said
Future will have been will not have been realised

NB: The future continuous is shown here in orange for completeness, but is very rare. Also has been being + P.P. (the perfect continuous passive) is also rarely heard.

 

Passive Infinitives and Gerunds

To make an passive infinitive or gerund,use the infinitive or gerund form of BE.

Verb Form BE P.P. Examples
Infinitive to be + P.P. to be chosen
Gerund being being asked
Passive Phrasal Verbs

A phrasal verb is formed by a verb and adverb or preposition (verb + adverb), like switch on or take over. 

Passive phrasal verbs are made with BE and the P.P. of the verb part of the verb phrase:

Verb   BE P.P. Adverb / Preposition Example
to switch on ♦ will be switched on The power will be switched on tomorrow.
to take over was taken over The company was taken over last year.
Passives with 'Get'

You can make passives in conversation and casual situations with GET instead of BE. Use GET in the same way you use BE.

 
GET + P.P.

Verb Form GET P.P. Example
Past got caught He got caught yesterday.
Present get asked When you get asked, say "yes".
Future will get married We'll get married next year.

Certain verbs cannot be passive using GET. One example is 'to get born': it is always 'to be born'

Using Passives in English

The passive voice shifts the focus of a sentence to the object. We tend to use passives in English in four main cases:

  1. We don't know or care who did something;
  2. We want to hide who did something;
  3. It is obvious who did something;
  4. We want to keep the subject of the conversation or story the same.

Generally, in all four cases, we are talking about the object of the action. The doer is less important.

Case Example
(1) We don't know who does something.

My bag has been stolen!

Their house was robbed.

Someone will be sent.

(2) We want to hide who does something.

It doesn't work beacuse it was dropped.

The files have been lost.

The police have been called.

(3) It is obvious who does something.

I was born (by my mother) in 1976.

She was fired (by her boss).

Having been arrested (by the police), they were charged (by the police).

(4) We want to keep the subject the same.

Ms. Smith is the C.E.O. She was appointed last year.

I called, and I was told that I would be given the job.

The order hasn't arrived. It should have been delivered last week.

Passives with Transitive and Instransitive Verbs

Passives may only be used with transitive verbs. You can never make a passive intransitive verb. Some examples are: run; fall; sleep; cry; die; arrive; go; grow, etc. However, some of these verbs can be used in a transitive sense, but sometimes with a change of meaning.

Passives with Stative Verbs

Some transitive verbs make strange passives. These are usually stative verbs. Some examples are: have; suit; resemble; sound; be; depend, etc. However, some stative verbs can be used in a dynamic sense.

Passives in the News, Science and Academics

The passive voice is often used in the news, science and in academic writing. This can be done for some different reasons:

  1. To avoid using the first-person authorial voice which is considered bad style by some. For example, "I think that..." might be written as "It is thought that..."
  2. To follow the style guide of old information first, new information last. For example: "Da Vinci painted the 'Mona Lisa' in the 16th century. The portrait is considered the greatest painting in the world."

The impersonal nature of the passive lends itself to news reporting also. However, notice the verb BE is often left out. These headline examples from the BBC and the International Herald Tribune indicate such use:

Britons Warned to Leave Georgia

Prophet Muhammad Novel Scrapped

Sunday Papers in Britain Hit Especially Hard

Thanou Barred from Beijing Olympics

 

Passives to Express Rules

 

Passive sentences are often used in signs for and expressions of rules and warnings:

Smoking is prohibited

Seatbelts must be worn

Tresspassers will be prosecuted 

Passive Idioms

Certain idioms in English are passive:

to be supposed to You were supposed to be here an hour ago.
to be born He was born in New Mexico.

 

Notes: 

Note that:

  1. Passives may be used more or less frequently in English than your native language;
  2. Sometimes active verbs may be used in English where you would use a passive or reflexive verb in your native language;
  3. English speakers tend not to like passives so much. We might prefer to use the active voice and a vague subject like 'they' or an entirely different structure to what you would expect like 'I hear...' instead of 'It is said...';
  4. Sometimes passives take the subject 'there' as in "There are known to be...", "There is said to be...", "There are believed to be..." and so on.