Imagine you're in a meeting, and your client says, "I was told by Raj that the meeting is postponed." This sentence structure confuses you. Isn't it simpler to say, "Raj told me that the meeting is postponed"? This is a common challenge for non-native English speakers, especially with active and passive voices.
In active voice, the subject does the action: "The dog bit the postman." In passive voice, the object becomes the subject: "The postman was bitten by the dog."
Why does it matter? Mastering both voices helps clear communication, sound natural, and improve professionalism. It's also important for storytelling in presentations or writing.
Our blog breaks these concepts down with simple explanations, exercises, and examples from daily life. With practice, you'll confidently switch between active and passive voices!
What are Active And Passive Voices?
Let's dive straight into the topic and understand these two important concepts in English grammar - active voice and passive voice.
Active Voice
In the active voice, the subject of the sentence performs an action. The sentence structure typically follows a simple pattern: Subject-Verb-Object. Here are some examples:
Rohit hits the cricket ball.
Here, 'Rohit' is the subject, 'hits' is the verb, and 'the cricket ball' is the object.
The students finished their homework.
In this sentence, 'The students' are doing an action - 'finished', and 'their homework' is what they finished.
These sentences are direct, clear, and predominantly used in everyday conversations.
Passive Voice
On the flip side, we have passive voice in which action happens to the subject or when the subject of the sentence is acted upon. Unlike active voice, passive voice generally follows this pattern: Object-Verb-Subject. Let's look at some examples:
The cricket ball was hit by Rohit.
Here, 'The cricket ball' becomes the focus of our sentence. It was acted upon by 'Rohit'.
The homework was finished by the students.
Similarly in this case, 'The homework' is what comes into focus first which was completed by ‘the students’.
This form often adds complexity to your sentences and is frequent in formal writings or when you want to emphasise on results more than who did it.
Let's put these voices side-by-side for better understanding:
Active | Passive | |
1 | Rohit hits the cricket ball. | The cricket ball was hit by Rohit. |
2 | Students finished their homework. | The homework was finished by students. |
To further understand these concepts, here's a quick video from Clapingo on active and passive voice:
Why Do We Need Active and Passive Voice?
Active and passive voice play significant roles in spoken English. They help us in expressing ideas with clarity and finesse. They are like two sides of a coin, each holding equal importance and serving different purposes.
Often, in spoken English, we use the active voice. For instance, "The dog chased the thief". In this sentence, the subject, 'the dog', is performing an action. It helps us speak directly and assertively. It creates a lively conversation and keeps listeners engaged.
However, there are times when we want to focus more on what happened rather than who did it. That's where passive voice comes into play. For example, "The thief was chased by the dog". Here, emphasis shifts from the dog to what happened to the thief. Passive voice is essential when we discuss incidents or experiences where the doer isn't as important as the action itself.
Native speakers of English intuitively switch between active and passive voice depending upon the context. Imagine a situation wherein students are discussing their favourite pet animals; they would likely say, "I own a bicycle" (active voice), instead of "A bicycle is owned by me" (passive voice). The active voice sounds more natural in this case.
Understanding when to use active or passive voice is crucial for non-native English speakers striving for fluency.
How Can I Identify Active And Passive Voice?
How can you identify these voices in sentences? Let's break it down.
Detecting Sentences in Active Voice
Subject Dominance: In an active voice sentence, the subject performs the action. For instance, "The kids (subject) chased (verb) the ball (object)."
Verb Usage: Active sentences generally use transitive verbs, which need a direct object to complete their meaning.
Directness: Active voice conveys information straightforwardly. It makes your writing clear and assertive.
Tense Consistency: The tense of the verb remains consistent throughout the sentence in active voice.
Recognising Sentences in Passive Voice
Object Dominance: In a passive voice sentence, the object becomes the subject of the sentence. For example, "The ball (subject) was chased (verb) by the dog (agent)."
Verb Form: Passive sentences use a form of "be" followed by a past participle verb form.
Preposition Usage: The word "by" often indicates a passive sentence as it introduces the performer of the action.
Action Focus: If a sentence focuses more on an action or its receiver than on who or what initiates it, it's likely in passive voice.
Common Challenges Faced by Indians in Using Active and Passive Voice
The usage of active and passive voice can be a real sticking point for many Indian English learners. Let's dive into some of the common challenges they face.
1. Interchanging Voices:
of the most prevalent mistakes is interchanging these two voices. For instance, you might say, "The cake was eaten by me" instead of the active form, "I ate the cake".
2. Confusion Over Sentence Structure:
The drastic change in sentence structure when switching between active and passive voice often confuses students. For example, in the transformation from "She writes a letter (active)" to "A letter is written by her (passive)", the subject and object swap positions.
3. Tense Maintenance:
Maintaining tense while converting from one voice to another is another common stumbling block. Students often forget to adjust the verb form, leading to errors like "The song was sing by him" instead of "The song was sung by him".
4. Inappropriate Use:
Sometimes, students use passive voice unnecessarily due to overemphasis on its importance in academic writing, leading to clumsy and verbose sentences.
5. Omitting Agent:
In passive voice sentences, it's common for learners to omit 'by' followed by the agent doing the action as in: "A story was told" rather than "A story was told by grandmother".
To illustrate these challenges further, let's consider a scenario:
Imagine you're narrating yesterday's cricket match between India and Australia to a friend. You start saying, "Six balls were bowled by Bumrah in an over", when the correct active form would be: "Bumrah bowled six balls in an over".
Then you add: "Two wickets was taken", confusing tense in passive voice instead of saying: "Two wickets were taken". When your friend asks who won, you reply: "The match was won", leaving out the agent which should be: "The match was won by India".
So next time, before you start speaking or writing, take a moment to think about the appropriate voice to use.
How Can I Switch from Active to Passive Voice and Vice Versa?
Understanding how to switch from active voice to passive voice, and vice versa, can greatly enhance your English communication skills. Let's break down the process step-by-step.
Converting Active Voice to Passive Voice
Imagine a simple sentence in active voice: "The cat (subject) scratched (verb) the wall(object)."
Follow these steps:
Identifying the Subject, Verb, and Object: In this sentence, 'cat' is the subject, 'scratched' is the verb, and 'wall' is the object.
Switching Positions of Subject and Object: In passive voice, swap the positions of subject and object. The sentence now becomes "The wall…"
Adding Auxiliary Verb: Based on the tense of the verb in the active voice sentence ('scratched' being past tense here), add an auxiliary verb ('was' in this case). It now reads "The wall was…"
Adding Past Participle of Verb: Replace the original verb with the past participle form of a verb ('scratched' remains 'scratched'). So it becomes "The wall was scratched..."
Adding Preposition 'by': To complete passive construction, add the preposition ‘by’. The final statement is "The wall was scratched by…"
Bringing in Original Subject: Add the original subject at the end of the sentence. The final sentence reads: "The wall was scratched by the cat."
Converting Passive Voice to Active Voice
Let’s reverse this process using another example: "English (subject) is spoken (verb) by students (agent)."
Identifying Subject, Verb and Agent: In a passive voice sentence, identify the subject ('English'), verb ('is spoken') and agent ('students').
Switching Positions of Subject and Agent: Swap subject and agent to begin the conversion. It now reads "Students…"
Locating Verb in Correct Tense: Identify the correct tense of the verb. 'Is spoken' is present tense, so use ‘speak’. Now, we have "Students speak…"
Bringing in Original Subject: Add the original subject at the end of the sentence. Our active voice sentence becomes: "Students speak English."
Applying Active And Passive Voice in Real-Life Scenarios
Whether you're an aspiring professional, a student, or a busy homemaker, mastering active and passive voices can boost your English lskills. Let's break it down with some real-life scenarios.
Scenario 1: At the Office
Active Voice: "I will prepare the presentation for tomorrow's meeting."
Passive Voice: "The presentation for tomorrow's meeting will be prepared by me."
In the active voice sentence, I, who is doing the action of 'preparing', is the subject. In passive voice, the object (presentation) becomes the focus.
Scenario 2: Homework Time
Active Voice: "Akbar completes his homework every day."
Passive Voice: "The homework is completed by Rohan every day."
Here, Akbar is doing the action (completing homework), hence he is at the beginning in active voice. The emphasis shifts to homework in passive voice.
Scenario 3: A Day in Kitchen
Active Voice: "Sheela bakes a cake for her son's birthday."
Passive Voice: "A cake for her son's birthday is baked by Sheela."
In this example, Sheela is taking action (baking), so she appears upfront in active voice. However, the cake becomes central in passive voice.
While these instances help understand basic sentence structures, mastering these voices requires practice. Opting for active and passive voice exercises can help greatly.
Solving Grammar Puzzles: Active And Passive Voice Exercises
Now that we've covered the essentials of using active and passive voice, let's put your knowledge to the test through some exercises.
Exercise 1: Passive to Active
Transform the following passive sentences into an active voice:
The letter was written by Ravi.
The match was won by our team.
An apple pie will be baked by Meena.
The novel was being read by Simran.
The songs were sung by the choir.
Exercise 2: Active to Passive
Convert the following active sentences into a passive voice:
Rohan walks the dog every morning.
Lata opened the door for her guests.
The students ate all the mangoes at lunchtime.
R K Narayan wrote 'The Guide'.
Lata Mangeshkar sang 'Aye mere watan ke logon'.
Exercise 3: Identifying Tenses in Passive Voice
Identify which tense is used in each of the following passive sentences:
The goldfish has been fed by Priya.
A letter will be written by Ankit next week.
The cake had been baked before guests arrived.
Pooja is being awarded a trophy right now.
Emails are sent daily by Mr.Verma.
Answers:
Exercise 1:
Ravi wrote the letter.
Our team won the match.
Meena will bake an apple pie.
Simran was reading the novel.
The choir sang the songs.
Exercise 2:
The dog is walked every morning by Rohan.
The door for her guests was opened by Lata.
All the mangoes were eaten at lunchtime by the students.
'The Guide' was written by R.K Narayan.
'Aye mere watan ke logon' was sung by Lata Mangeshkar.
Exercise 3:
Present Perfect
Future Simple
Past Perfect
Present Continuous
Present Simple
Leveraging Clapingo for Mastering Active And Passive Voice
Clapingo's coaching sessions make mastering active and passive voice easy. Our native English-speaking tutors will guide you through learning and practising these skills in everyday conversations.
Sessions are tailored to your needs, ensuring focused attention on areas you need help with. Whether it's switching sentence voices or knowing when to use each, our coaches are here for you.
We also offer YouTube tutorials that explain grammar concepts, including active and passive voice, in simple ways. These videos include explanations, examples, and quizzes for self-assessment.
Consistent practice is key, and Clapingo makes it easy with flexible session scheduling. Want to see our tutors in action? Check out these Clapingo sessions on our YouTube channel.
To Recap
Understanding active and passive voice is crucial for improving English communication. Knowing when to use each helps express thoughts accurately.
In active voice, the subject does the action: 'Subject + Verb + Object'. For example, "John ate an apple."
Passive voice flips this: 'Subject + Verb + by + Agent'. So, "The apple was eaten by John."
Mastering these concepts boosts communication skills. Active voice brings clarity and energy to statements, while passive can be tactful for sensitive topics.
English is vast, and mastering it brings personal and professional growth. Keep practising, and if you need help, Clapingo offers personalized coaching in your native language for fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary, and more. Let's learn together!
FAQs
1. What is the main difference between active and passive voice?
In the active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action (e.g., "Ayesha ate an apple"). In contrast, in the passive voice, the subject of the sentence is acted upon by some other agent or by something unnamed (e.g., "The apple was eaten by Ayesha").
2. Does English always require active voice?
Not at all. While many instructors and grammar books recommend using active voice for clarity and directness, both voices have their place and can be used effectively. Passive voice can be purposefully used when you want to put emphasis on the action itself or when it's not crucial who performed it.
3. Can changing from active to passive change my sentence’s meaning?
Switching between active and passive voice doesn't usually change the basic meaning of a sentence. However, it often shifts the focus of attention from one part of the sentence to another, which might alter how your message is perceived.
