In short: Active voice describes a sentence where the subject performs the action, such as 'The chef prepared the meal.' Passive voice describes a sentence where the subject receives the action, such as 'The meal was prepared by the chef.' Use passive voice when the action or receiver matters more than the doer.
In English grammar, voice shows whether the subject of a sentence carries out an action or receives it. When the subject acts directly, the verb is in the active voice. When the subject is acted upon, the verb is in the passive voice. Understanding this grammatical relationship helps students express ideas with precision, adapt to different writing styles, and handle sentence transformations with confidence.
From Class 5 through Class 12, examinations set by CBSE, ICSE, and Cambridge boards test voice transformations regularly. Beyond scoring marks in school tests, knowing how both voices work enables learners to write energetic narrative essays, objective science reports, and clear formal letters.
What voice means in English grammar
Voice indicates whether the subject of a sentence performs an action or receives it. In the active sentence 'Kabir painted the wall', the subject Kabir acts as the doer. Active voice places focus on the person performing the action.
In the passive sentence 'The wall was painted by Kabir', the wall becomes the grammatical subject. The wall receives the action rather than performing it. Passive voice shifts attention to the person or thing affected.
| Voice | Sentence structure | Example | Primary focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active voice | Subject (doer) + Verb + Object | Ananya designed the science exhibit. | The doer (Ananya) |
| Passive voice | Object + Helping verb + V3 + by + Agent | The science exhibit was designed by Ananya. | The result (the exhibit) |
| Agentless passive | Object + Helping verb + V3 | The pavement was repaired yesterday. | The action completed |
The five core steps of voice transformation
Voice transformation follows five reliable steps in school examinations. Memorising this sequence prevents errors during timed tests.
First, identify the subject, verb, and object in the active sentence. Second, move the direct object to the subject position. Third, check the active verb tense and insert the matching form of 'be' plus the past participle (V3). Fourth, place the original subject after 'by', or omit it if unnecessary. Fifth, convert subject pronouns into objective pronouns.
| Active pronoun | Passive pronoun | Active example | Passive example |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | me | I solved the puzzle. | The puzzle was solved by me. |
| We | us | We collected the books. | The books were collected by us. |
| He | him | He composed the song. | The song was composed by him. |
| She | her | She baked the biscuits. | The biscuits were baked by her. |
| They | them | They planted fifteen trees. | Fifteen trees were planted by them. |
Tense rules for transforming active to passive
Tense never changes during voice transformation. Present remains present, past remains past, and future remains future. Only eight English tenses convert into passive constructions in standard usage.
Adjust the helping verb 'be' to match the active tense while keeping the main verb in its past participle form. The four perfect continuous tenses and future continuous are avoided because repeated auxiliary forms sound awkward.
- Present perfect continuous, past perfect continuous, and future perfect continuous do not have natural passive forms.
- Future continuous (will be being) is avoided in standard modern English.
| Tense | Active formula and example | Passive formula and example |
|---|---|---|
| Simple present | V1 (s/es) | Tanya cleans the room. | is/am/are + V3 | The room is cleaned by Tanya. |
| Present continuous | is/am/are + V-ing | Rohit is building a desk. | is/am/are + being + V3 | A desk is being built by Rohit. |
| Present perfect | has/have + V3 | The clerk has filed the notes. | has/have + been + V3 | The notes have been filed by the clerk. |
| Simple past | V2 | Ayaan wrote a story. | was/were + V3 | A story was written by Ayaan. |
| Past continuous | was/were + V-ing | The mason was fixing the wall. | was/were + being + V3 | The wall was being fixed by the mason. |
| Past perfect | had + V3 | Mother had washed the shirts. | had + been + V3 | The shirts had been washed by Mother. |
| Simple future | will + V1 | The council will open the park. | will be + V3 | The park will be opened by the council. |
| Future perfect | will have + V3 | By noon, he will have sent it. | will have been + V3 | By noon, it will have been sent by him. |
Modal verbs in passive voice constructions
Modal verbs express obligation, ability, permission, and necessity. Words like 'can', 'could', 'may', 'must', and 'should' follow uniform transformation patterns.
For simple modal verbs, use 'modal + be + past participle'. For past modal forms expressing completed or unfulfilled actions, insert 'been' into the structure: 'modal + have been + past participle'.
| Modal | Active example | Passive formula | Passive example |
|---|---|---|---|
| can | Rohan can solve this riddle. | modal + be + V3 | This riddle can be solved by Rohan. |
| must | Students must wear blazers. | modal + be + V3 | Blazers must be worn by students. |
| should | Citizens should protect parks. | modal + be + V3 | Parks should be protected by citizens. |
| should have | They should have cleared the path. | modal + have been + V3 | The path should have been cleared by them. |
Why intransitive verbs cannot become passive
To convert a sentence into the passive voice, the verb must be transitive, meaning it carries action over to a direct object. Intransitive verbs do not take objects.
Verbs like 'sleep', 'arrive', and 'happen' cannot become passive because they lack objects. In 'The train arrived at Jaipur on time', 'at Jaipur' is a prepositional phrase, not an object. When a verb takes two objects, such as 'award' or 'lend', either object can become the passive subject.
| Active sentence | Passive option 1 (person first) | Passive option 2 (thing first) |
|---|---|---|
| The teacher gave Mohit a certificate. | Mohit was given a certificate by the teacher. | A certificate was given to Mohit by the teacher. |
| Grandfather told the boys a story. | The boys were told a story by Grandfather. | A story was told to the boys by Grandfather. |
| Mr Sharma lent Vikram a camera. | Vikram was lent a camera by Mr Sharma. | A camera was lent to Vikram by Mr Sharma. |
Converting questions from active to passive
When transforming interrogative sentences, preserve question word order. The helping verb must stay in front of the subject, and the sentence must conclude with a question mark.
Replace 'do', 'does', or 'did' with the matching form of 'be'. Keep 'wh-' question words at the start. 'Who' changes to 'by whom', while 'whom' changes to 'who'.
| Question type | Active question | Rule | Passive question |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does / Do | Does the boy deliver papers? | is/are + object + V3 | Are papers delivered by the boy? |
| Did | Did Pradeep write the poem? | was/were + object + V3 | Was the poem written by Pradeep? |
| Who | Who broke the glass cup? | By whom + was/were + object + V3 | By whom was the glass cup broken? |
| Whom | Whom did the club choose? | Who + was/were + V3 + by | Who was chosen by the club? |
Imperative sentences and special prepositional verbs
Imperative sentences express commands, advice, and requests. Commands take 'Let + object + be + V3', advice takes 'Object + should be + V3', and requests use 'You are requested to + V1'.
Never omit prepositions in phrasal verbs like 'laugh at'. Additionally, some verbs take fixed prepositions instead of 'by', such as 'known to' and 'pleased with'.
| Pattern | Active sentence | Rule to apply | Correct passive |
|---|---|---|---|
| Command | Switch off the fan. | Let + object + be + V3 | Let the fan be switched off. |
| Moral advice | Respect your teachers. | Object + should be + V3 | Your teachers should be respected. |
| Request | Please pass the salt. | You are requested to + V1 | You are requested to pass the salt. |
| Phrasal verb | They laughed at the clown. | Retain preposition 'at' | The clown was laughed at by them. |
| Fixed preposition | Everyone knows Dr Sen. | Use 'known to', not 'by' | Dr Sen is known to everyone. |
Common mistakes
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Active: She sings a melody. Passive: A melody was sung by her. | Active: She sings a melody. Passive: A melody is sung by her. | Voice transformation never changes the tense. Present simple must stay present simple, not shift into past tense. |
| The bus ran over the fence. Passive: The fence was run by the bus. | The fence was run over by the bus. | The preposition in a phrasal verb belongs to the verb unit. Dropping 'over' creates an ungrammatical sentence. |
| The teacher is known by all students. | The teacher is known to all students. | The participle 'known' pairs with the preposition 'to', not 'by', to express familiarity. |
| An accident was happened near the school gate. | An accident happened near the school gate. | The verb 'happen' is intransitive and cannot take an object. Only transitive verbs form passives. |
| Active: They are painting the room. Passive: The room is painted by them. | Active: They are painting the room. Passive: The room is being painted by them. | Continuous tenses require 'being' before the past participle. Omitting 'being' turns a continuous action into simple present. |
| The cup was won by he. | The cup was won by him. | The preposition 'by' requires an objective pronoun ('him') rather than a subjective pronoun ('he'). |
| Did the letter was posted by Rohit? | Was the letter posted by Rohit? | In past simple questions, 'did' is replaced by 'was' or 'were'. Using both creates a double auxiliary error. |
Exam tips
- Lock the tense before writing: Identify the tense of the active verb first so that you do not shift time periods as students often do in reported speech.
- Ask what or whom to find the object: Ask the verb 'what' or 'whom' to locate the exact noun phrase that moves to the start of the passive clause.
- Check agreement with the new subject: Ensure the auxiliary verb matches the incoming subject in number. For example, 'He marks papers' becomes 'Papers are marked', not 'is marked'.
- Keep question word order in questions: When converting questions, place the auxiliary verb before the subject and always end with a question mark.
- Keep phrasal verb prepositions intact: Never drop prepositions like 'at', 'into', or 'after' when converting phrasal verbs to the passive voice.
Practice questions
Try each one, then open the answer.
- Change into passive voice: The headmistress addressed the morning assembly.
Answer
The morning assembly was addressed by the headmistress. (Simple past 'addressed' becomes 'was addressed'.) - Change into active voice: The stray dog was fed by the kind shopkeeper.
Answer
The kind shopkeeper fed the stray dog. (Passive 'was fed by' converts to simple past 'fed'.) - Change into passive voice: The gardener is trimming the rose bushes.
Answer
The rose bushes are being trimmed by the gardener. (Present continuous requires 'are being' plus past participle 'trimmed'.) - Change into passive voice: The scholars have discovered an ancient inscription.
Answer
An ancient inscription has been discovered by the scholars. (Present perfect changes to 'has been discovered'.) - Change into passive voice: Did the detective solve the mystery?
Answer
Was the mystery solved by the detective? (The auxiliary 'did' is replaced by 'was' before the subject.) - Change into passive voice: Who designed the science project?
Answer
By whom was the science project designed? ('Who' converts to 'by whom', followed by 'was'.) - Change into passive voice: Fasten your seatbelts before takeoff.
Answer
Let your seatbelts be fastened before takeoff. (Commands take 'Let + object + be + past participle'.) - Change into passive voice: Please submit your exercise books by Friday.
Answer
You are requested to submit your exercise books by Friday. (Requests with 'please' convert to 'You are requested to'.) - Provide two passive versions: The teacher awarded Mohit a certificate.
Answer
Version 1: Mohit was awarded a certificate by the teacher. Version 2: A certificate was awarded to Mohit by the teacher. (Ditransitive verbs allow either object to become the subject.) - Identify and correct the grammatical error: The grandmother was looked by a devoted nurse.
Answer
The sentence drops the preposition from 'look after'. The correct passive form is: 'The grandmother was looked after by a devoted nurse.'
Questions students ask
How can I tell if a sentence is written in the active or passive voice?
Why can certain English sentences never be converted into the passive voice?
Does the grammatical tense change when converting between active and passive voice?
When is it appropriate to use passive voice instead of active voice?
What is the correct passive voice for the question 'Who wrote this book'?
Keep practising
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Written by the Reportcards English team, reviewed by Dr. Vishruti Arora. Updated 4 November 2026.