Understanding the Rules of Changing Voice is essential for mastering English grammar, whether for academic purposes, job exams, or everyday communication. In BD JOBZ PREPARATION, we aim to provide clear and easy-to-understand explanations to help learners strengthen their grammar skills. This article will guide you through the rules of transforming active voice into passive voice, along with practical examples to enhance your understanding. Whether you’re preparing for a competitive exam or improving your writing, this detailed guide will be highly beneficial.
Read More: Preposition Uses and Examples for Class 5
Rules of Changing Voice: Active to Passive
The Active voice is changed into the Passive voice following these rules:
Rule 1: Changing the Object to the Subject
- In the Passive voice, the object of the Active voice becomes the subject.
- If the object is a personal pronoun, it is changed into its subjective form in the Passive voice.
- Example: “me” becomes “I,” “him” becomes “he,” “her” becomes “she,” etc.
Rule 2: Using the Correct Auxiliary Verb
- The tense of the Active voice determines the auxiliary verb in the Passive voice.
Rule 3: Changing the Main Verb to Past Participle (V3)
- The main verb in the Passive voice always takes its past participle (V3) form.
- Usually, “by” is used after the verb, but sometimes “to,” “with,” “at,” “in,” “about,” etc., may be used based on the verb’s meaning.
Rule 4: Changing the Subject to the Object
- The subject of the Active voice becomes the object in the Passive voice.
- If the subject is a personal pronoun, it changes into its objective form after “by,” “to,” “with,” etc.
- Example: “I” becomes “me,” “he” becomes “him,” “she” becomes “her,” etc., because a preposition is always followed by an objective form of a pronoun.
Examples:
Active: She likes me.
Passive: I am liked by her.Active: We do not like noisy neighbors.
Passive: Noisy neighbors are not liked by us.Active: Scientists discover new planets.
Passive: New planets are discovered by scientists.Active: Hard work brings success.
Passive: Success is brought by hard work.Active: We informed the authorities of the incident.
Passive: The authorities were informed of the incident.
Rule 5: Passive Voice Without an Auxiliary Verb
Structure:
- Active: Subject + verb + object
- Passive: Object + am/is/are/was/were + V3 + by + subject (which becomes the object)
Examples:
Active: All the students admire him.
Passive: He is admired by all the students.Active: We read newspapers.
Passive: Newspapers are read by us.Active: She won the competition.
Passive: The competition was won by her.Active: John sang a song.
Passive: A song was sung by John.Active: CNN broadcast the latest news.
Passive: The latest news was broadcast by CNN.Active: We do not like bitter medicine.
Passive: Bitter medicine is not liked by us.Active: Hard work rewards the determined.
Passive: The determined are rewarded by hard work.Active: I do not like sour fruits.
Passive: Sour fruits are not liked by me.Active: Monica paid the bill.
Passive: The bill was paid by Monica.Active: Tigers hunt deer.
Passive: Deer are hunted by tigers.
Rule 6: Changing Present Continuous and Past Continuous into Passive
Structure:
- Active: Subject + am/is/are/was/were + V1 + ing + object
- Passive: Object + am/is/are/was/were + being + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: The engineer is designing the new project.
Passive: The new project is being designed by the engineer.Active: Emma is writing a book.
Passive: A book is being written by Emma.Active: The director is signing the documents.
Passive: The documents are being signed by the director.Active: They were flying paper lanterns.
Passive: Paper lanterns were being flown by them.
Rule 7: Changing Present Perfect and Past Perfect into Passive
Structure:
- Active: Subject + have/has/had + V3 + object
- Passive: Object + have/has/had + been + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: I had completed the assignment.
Passive: The assignment had been completed by me.Active: Alex has prepared the presentation.
Passive: The presentation has been prepared by Alex.Active: A tornado has destroyed the old building.
Passive: The old building has been destroyed by a tornado.Active: He has removed the posters.
Passive: The posters have been removed by him.
Rule 8: Changing Present Perfect Continuous and Past Perfect Continuous into Passive
Structure:
- Active: Subject + have/has/had + been + V1 + ing + object
- Passive: Object + have/has/had + been being + V3 + by + subject
Example:
- Active: I had been doing the project for three weeks.
Passive: The project had been being done by me for three weeks.
Rule 9: Transforming Active Voice with “Shall/Will + V1” into Passive Voice
- Active Structure: Subject + shall/will + V1 (base form) + Object
- Passive Structure: Object becomes the subject + shall/will + be + V3 (past participle) + by + Subject (which becomes the object)
Examples:
- Active: I shall complete the project.
Passive: The project will be completed by me. - Active: She will write the report.
Passive: The report will be written by her.
Rule 10: Transforming Active Voice with “Shall/Will + be + V1 + ing” into Passive Voice
- Active Structure: Subject + shall/will + be + V1 + ing + Object
- Passive Structure: Object becomes the subject + shall/will + be + being + V3 (past participle) + by + Subject
Examples:
- Active: I shall be preparing the presentation.
Passive: The presentation will be being prepared by me. - Active: They will be discussing the issue.
Passive: The issue will be being discussed by them.
Rule 11: Transforming Active Voice with Reflexive Pronouns into Passive Voice
- Reflexive pronouns (himself, herself, myself, themselves, ourselves, etc.) never become the subject in passive voice.
- Therefore, the subject and object positions remain unchanged.
Passive Voice Structure:
- Subject remains unchanged + auxiliary verb according to tense + V3 (past participle) + by + Reflexive Object
Examples:
- Active: He blamed himself.
Passive: He was blamed by himself. - Active: Maria dresses herself.
Passive: Maria is dressed by herself.
Rule 12: Transforming Active Voice with Reciprocal Pronouns into Passive Voice
- Reciprocal pronouns (each other, one another) never become the subject in passive voice.
- The subject and object positions remain unchanged.
Passive Voice Structure:
- Subject remains unchanged + auxiliary verb according to tense + V3 (past participle) + by + Reciprocal Object
Examples:
- Active: The two friends respect each other.
Passive: The two friends are respected by each other. - Active: The siblings support one another.
Passive: The siblings are supported by one another.
Rule: 13
If a sentence has a double object, any of the objects can be taken as the subject while converting the active voice into the passive voice.
Structure:
Active: Subject + verb + indirect object + direct object
Passive 1: Direct object + auxiliary verb + V3 + indirect object + by + subject
Passive 2: Direct object + auxiliary verb + V3 + for (if it implies ‘for’) + indirect object + by + subject
Examples:
Active: She has given me a laptop.
Passive: A laptop has been given to me by her.
Passive: I have been given a laptop by her.
Active: They gave him a trophy.
Passive: A trophy was given to him by them.
Passive: He was given a trophy by them.
Active: The hen lays us eggs.
Passive: Eggs are laid for us by the hen.
Active: He made us practice.
Passive: Practice was made by him for us.
Passive: We were made practice by him.
Rule: 14
In passive voice, by is not always used. Instead, other prepositions like to, at, with, in can be used.
Examples:
Active: She irritated me.
Passive: I was irritated with her.
Active: His words annoyed me.
Passive: I was annoyed at his words.
Active: He pleases his parents.
Passive: His parents are pleased with him.
Active: Their attitude shocked me.
Passive: I was shocked at their attitude.
Active: The teacher pleased us.
Passive: We were pleased with the teacher.
Active: The news panicked me.
Passive: I was panicked by the news.
Active: Smoke fills the hall.
Passive: The hall is filled with smoke.
Active: Do you recognize them?
Passive: Are they recognized by you?
Active: Her words worried us.
Passive: We were worried about her words.
Active: Take care of your belongings.
Passive: Let your belongings be taken care of.
Active: He laughed at the stranger.
Passive: The stranger was laughed at by him.
Active: Everyone laughed at the comedian.
Passive: The comedian was laughed at by everyone.
Active: I knew the artist.
Passive: The artist was known to me.
Active: We spoke about them.
Passive: They were spoken about by us.
Active: My mother takes care of me.
Passive: I am taken care of by my mother.
Active: He visited me last week.
Passive: I was visited by him last week.
Rule: 15
When using modal auxiliary verbs (can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should, ought to, used to, must), the structure of the modal verbs of passive voice does not change.
Structure:
Active: Subject + modals + base form of verb + object
Passive: Object + modals + be + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: You must complete this assignment.
Passive: This assignment must be completed by you.
Active: We ought to respect our elders.
Passive: Our elders ought to be respected by us.
Active: We must follow the instructions.
Passive: The instructions must be followed.
Active: They will not allow children under five.
Passive: Children under five will not be allowed by them.
Active: We should appreciate good work.
Passive: Good work should be appreciated by us.
Rule: 16
When using be going to, the word going does not change. Instead, going to + be + V3 is used in passive voice.
Structure:
Active: Subject + be verb + going to + base form + object
Passive: Object + be verb + going to + be + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: He is going to launch a business.
Passive: A business is going to be launched by him.
Active: The government is going to revise the law.
Passive: The law is going to be revised by the government.
Active: They are going to organize a festival.
Passive: A festival is going to be organized by them.
Rule: 17
If am to, is to, are to, have to, has to exist in active voice, be is added before the past participle form of the verb in passive voice.
Structure:
Active: Subject + am to/is to/are to/have to/has to + base form + object
Passive: Object + am to/is to/are to/have to/has to + be + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: I have to complete the project.
Passive: The project has to be completed by me.
Active: You are to paint this picture.
Passive: This picture is to be painted by you.
Rule: 18
If the active sentence includes a modal auxiliary verb along with have + V3, the passive voice will use modals + have + been + V3.
Structure:
Active: Subject + modals + have + V3 + object
Passive: Object + modals + have + been + V3 + by + subject
Examples:
Active: A student could not have solved this problem.
Passive: This problem could not have been solved by a student.
Active: He must have taken the documents.
Passive: The documents must have been taken by him.
Active: You should have completed the task.
Passive: The task should have been completed by you.
Rule: Voice Change of Interrogative Sentences
Rule 19: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with Do/Does/Did
Structure:
Active: Do/Does/Did + Subject + Verb (base form) + Object + ?
Passive: Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + Object + V3 + by + Subject + ?
Examples:
- Active: Did John complete the assignment?
Passive: Was the assignment completed by John? - Active: Does she play the piano well?
Passive: Is the piano played well by her? - Active: Do they invite you to the event?
Passive: Are you invited to the event by them? - Active: Did you not watch the movie?
Passive: Was not the movie watched by you? - Active: Does he read novels?
Passive: Are novels read by him? - Active: Did you eat the apple?
Passive: Was the apple eaten by you?
Rule 20: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + Verb-ing
Structure:
Active: Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + Subject + Verb-ing + Object + ?
Passive: Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + Object + being + V3 + by + Subject + ?
Example:
- Active: Is she writing a story?
Passive: Is a story being written by her?
Rule 21: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with “Who”
Structure:
Passive: By/To/With whom + Auxiliary verb (according to tense) + Subject + V3 + ?
Or, Who + Auxiliary verb (according to tense) + Subject + V3 + by + ?
Examples:
- Active: Who taught you mathematics?
Passive: By whom were you taught mathematics? - Active: Who gave you this book?
Passive: By whom were you given this book? - Active: Who will complete the project?
Passive: By whom will the project be completed? - Active: Who has written the novel?
Passive: Who has the novel been written by? - Active: Who is calling her?
Passive: By whom is she being called? - Active: Who painted the portrait?
Passive: By whom was the portrait painted?
Rule 22: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with “Whom”
Structure:
Passive: Who + Auxiliary verb (according to tense) + V3 + by + Object + ?
Examples:
- Active: Whom do they admire?
Passive: Who is admired by them? - Active: Whom does she trust?
Passive: Who is trusted by her? - Active: Whom did he blame?
Passive: Who was blamed by him?
Rule 23: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with “What”
Structure:
Active: What + Do/Does/Did + Subject + Verb + ?
Passive: What + Am/Is/Are/Was/Were + Object + V3 + by + Subject + ?
Or,
Active: What + Verb + Object + ?
Passive: By what + Auxiliary verb + Object + V3 + ?
Examples:
- Active: What do you need?
Passive: What is needed by you? - Active: What caused the problem?
Passive: By what was the problem caused?
Rule 24: Passive Voice for Interrogative Sentences Starting with Why/When/Where/How
Structure:
Active: Why/When/Where/How + Auxiliary verb + Subject + Verb + Object + ?
Passive: Why/When/Where/How + Auxiliary verb (according to tense) + Object + V3 + by + Subject + ?
Examples:
- Active: Where did they find the lost bag?
Passive: Where was the lost bag found by them? - Active: How can she solve this puzzle?
Passive: How can this puzzle be solved by her? - Active: Why did your friend write such a message?
Passive: Why was such a message written by your friend? - Active: When did he complete the report?
Passive: When was the report completed by him?
Rule: Other Rules
Rule 25: Changing Active Voice with Present Participle into Passive Voice
When converting an active voice sentence that contains a present participle (V-ing) into passive voice, the rest of the sentence remains unchanged. Only the part before the present participle takes the passive form.
Examples:
Active: She noticed them painting a house.
Passive: They were noticed painting a house by her.
Active: We observed him writing a letter.
Passive: He was observed writing a letter by us.
Rule 26: Using Base Form after Certain Verbs
In active voice, if verbs like see, hear, make, help are followed by an object and a base verb, the passive voice must include “to” before the second verb.
Examples:
Active: She made me complete the assignment.
Passive: I was made to complete the assignment by her.
Active: They made him clean the room.
Passive: He was made to clean the room by them.
Active: We heard her sing a song.
Passive: She was heard to sing a song by us.
Active: I saw him cross the street.
Passive: He was seen to cross the street by me.
Active: They made her reveal the secret.
Passive: She was made to reveal the secret by them.
Rule 27: Passive Voice with “Help” and “Teach”
If the verbs help or teach are followed by an infinitive (to + verb), the infinitive remains unchanged in the passive form. However, if help is followed by a base verb, “to” is added before the verb in passive voice.
Examples:
Active: He helped me solve the puzzle.
Passive: I was helped by him to solve the puzzle.
Rule 28: Passive Voice with Adjectives Followed by Infinitives
If an adjective is followed by an infinitive (to + verb) in active voice, the infinitive remains unchanged in the passive form. Only the part before the adjective takes the passive form.
Examples:
Active: I found the task difficult to complete.
Passive: The task was found difficult to complete by me.
Active: We considered the project easy to manage.
Passive: The project was considered easy to manage by us.
Rule 29: Passive Voice with Factitive Verbs
Verbs like call, choose, elect, make, name, nominate, select are factitive verbs. In passive voice, the factitive object never becomes the subject.
Examples:
Active: They made her the leader.
Passive: She was made the leader by them.
Active: The committee elected him president.
Passive: He was elected president by the committee.
Active: The club selected her captain.
Passive: She was selected captain by the club.
Rule 30: Passive Voice with Quasi-Passive Verbs
Verbs like count, feel, look, sell, smell, taste, read, sound, write can take complements in active voice. In passive voice, they follow this structure:
Structure:
Active: Subject + Quasi-passive verb + Complement (adjective)
Passive: Subject remains unchanged + is/was + complement + when (it is/was) + past participle (V3)
Examples:
Active: This metal feels rough.
Passive: This metal is rough when it is felt.
Active: The soup tastes salty.
Passive: The soup is salty when it is tasted.
Active: Coffee smells strong.
Passive: Coffee is strong when it is smelt.
Active: These books sell fast.
Passive: These books are fast when they are sold.
Rule 31: Passive Voice for Complex and Compound Sentences
If both parts of a complex/compound sentence contain transitive verbs, both must be converted into passive voice.
There are two methods to transform these sentences into passive voice:
1️⃣ First Method: Treat the second clause as a fact (using “it”).
2️⃣ Second Method: Change the voice of the second part first and use it as the subject.
Examples (First Method):
Active: We know that Albert Einstein developed the theory of relativity.
Passive: It is known to us that the theory of relativity was developed by Albert Einstein.
Active: I know that she completed the project.
Passive: It is known to me that the project was completed by her.
Active: People say that the sun rises in the east.
Passive: It is said that the sun rises in the east.
Examples (Second Method):
Active: We know that Thomas Edison invented the light bulb.
Passive: That the light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison is known to us.
Active: I know how she solved the problem.
Passive: It is known to me how the problem was solved by her.
Active: They know what he discovered.
Passive: What he discovered is known to them.
Active: Do it as I instruct.
Passive: Let it be done as I instruct.
Active: The teacher knew what the books contained.
Passive: What the books contained was known to the teacher.
Active: I know that he fixed the machine.
Passive: It is known to me that the machine was fixed by him.
Active: Scientists know that the earth revolves around the sun.
Passive: It is known that the earth revolves around the sun.
Active: I cannot rely on what you suggest.
Passive: What is suggested by you cannot be relied upon by me.
Read More: Pronouns Definitions, Types, Examples & Uses
Mastering Rules of Changing Voice: Active to Passive is crucial for improving your English proficiency, especially for those preparing for job exams and academic assessments. By following the structured rules and examples provided in this article, you can confidently convert active sentences into passive ones. At BD JOBZ PREPARATION, we are committed to helping you with quality learning materials to boost your English grammar skills. Keep practicing, and stay connected with us for more helpful guides!
