Passive verbs are used when we want to make the object of an action the topic of a sentence. Compare the following two sentences:

1. Jeremy ate the cake; and
2. The cake was eaten by Jeremy.

Sentence 2 is passive. The topic of sentence 2 is the cake. The cake is what we are interested in talking about.

To use passives well in English, you should understand that native speakers prefer them only in a few situations. Often passives are thought to be bad style. However if you read on, you will learn more about the times when passives are perfect for the job.

Love is in the air: Photo: linh.ngan via Flickr"Make" is an important grammatical word in English that can be used in a few ways that are related. If you think about the basic meaning of "make" it is "create" or "compel". This can bring the different ways of using "make" together so that they make sense.

The three most important ways to use "make" as a auxiliary verb are:

1. As a causative;
2. To show an effect or change;
3. As a passive.

To know the difference between "boring" or "bored", or "interesting" and "interested", it helps if you know the reasons for the difference. One comes from grammar: the past participle (PP) (VERB+ED/過去分詞) and one comes from the present participle (VERB+ING/現在分詞). So one way to understand the difference is to think about the grammar roots. But there are other ways:

• You can see the difference; 
• You can feel the difference; 
• You can understand the difference;
• You can learn by examples.

Participles are made from verbs. In English there are two - the present participle and the past participle (P.P).

The Present Participle

The present participle is made the following way:

[VERB]+ing