Active and Passive Voice Rules

Safalta Expert Published by: Noor Fatima Updated Mon, 24 Oct 2022 07:36 PM IST

Highlights

Here is all you need to know about Active and Passive Voice Rules. Read the article to learn and understand rules for Active and Passive Voice. 

Free Demo Classes

Register here for Free Demo Classes

Please fill the name
Please enter only 10 digit mobile number
Please select course
Please fill the email
Something went wrong!
Download App & Start Learning
Active and Passive Voice Rules: Having a good command of English is important for your education and career. Therefore, you should learn spoken English as well as written English. Learning spoken English is pretty simple. You just need to strengthen your basics like subject-verb agreement, tenses, active and passive voice, and some grammar rules. This blog will help you learn the basics of active and passive voice, which is a crucial section of English grammar.

Source: safalta.com

Understanding active and passive voice tools are important for candidates who are studying in school and those preparing for competitive exams. 

Recommended: Study for your Exams with Safalta School online. We provide Preparation materials for Classes 9-12 that can boost your preparations. 

Table of Content
Active voice
Passive voice
Rules for changing Active voice to Passive voice
Active and passive voice examples
Passive voice: Present tense
Passive voice: Past tense 
Rules for changing Passive voice to Active voice

Access FREE E-BOOKS at SAFALTA. These books are not just free of cost, but they are also packed with ample knowledge and information related to your studies.

Check out FREE MOCK PAPERS. These help you test your own yourself and help you prepare for your exams in a better way.
 

What is an active and passive voice?

When we talk about English grammar, verbs have five different characteristics. These are person, mode, tense, and voice. In this blog, we will discuss the voice. There are two grammatical voices active voice and passive voice. We usually prefer using an active voice in sentences instead of a passive voice; however, both are important in English grammar.

Active voice

When we use active voice in our sentence, there is a subject that is acting up on the verb. In simple language, the subject acts as an active voice. Active voice sentences are direct and clear to understand. Let us take some instances to understand the concept of active voice in a better way.
  • I do my homework.
  • Reena sings the song.
  • Rohan plays football.
The above-discussed three sentences have a basic voice structure that includes a subject, verb, and object. 
 

Passive voice

The passive voice, on the other hand, includes the acting of a subject by the verb. Passive voice is usually formed by combining 'to be' plus the past participle of the world. Performing the same typically demands the use of a preposition. This sounds more complex than it is; however, this helps a person identify the passive voice. 

Passive voices are quieter and weaker than active voices. Let us take some examples.
  • My homework is done by me.
  • The song is sung by Reena.
  • Football is played by Rohan.
If we look over the examples, the structure of the sentence has been reciprocated. In the active voice, the structure was Subject+ Verb+ Object
In the Passive voice, the structure turned to Object+ Verb+ Subject. 

Another thing to notice is the change in the verb. In the passive voice, the verb is added with 'to be' + 'past participle of the verb'. Moreover, the addition of prepositions, usually 'by' is done in passive voice. 

Also read:
Tense Rules
Future Tense Rules
Present Tense Rules
150+ Best and Simple English Speech Topics For Students
What is a bonafide Certificate
Article on Importance of Education
 

Rules for changing Active voice to Passive voice

It is easy to convert an active voice into a passive voice. The following rules may help you-
  • You need to change the structure so that the object in the active voice becomes the subject in the passive voice.
  • You need to use the verb ‘to be' in the same tense as the root verb in the active voice.
  • You need to make use of the past participle of the root verb.
  • You need to make use of the past participle of the root verb.

Active and Passive voice examples

To help you understand better the active and passive voice, we have discussed some active and passive voice examples below-

Active: The chef cooks the food in our house.
Passive: The food is cooked by the chef in our house.

Active: We ate all the food.
Passive: All the food is eaten by us.

Active: Ram made a wall art yesterday.
Passive: The wall art was made by ram yesterday.
 

Passive voice: Present tense

If we have a sentence in the present tense, the use of 'is' or 'are' along with the past participle of the root verb will be done in the passive voice. Passive voice present is generally used for-
  • Expressing beliefs, thoughts, and opinions
  • Discussing processes

Passive voice: Past tense 

If we have a sentence in the past tense, use 'was' or 'were' along with the past participle of the root verb his done in a passive voice. Passive voice past is used for-
  • Talking about events in history
  • Describing crimes and accidents

Rules for changing Passive voice to Active voice

The following rules may help you to change passive voice to active voice-
  • First of all, you will have to identify the agent in 'by the' or who or what is acting. 
  • Once you recognize who is acting, make that agent the subject of the sentence.
  • Now you have to change the verb hey accordingly.
Here are some examples of active and passive voice to provide you with a better understanding-

Passive: The bus is driven by the bus driver. 
Active: The bus driver drives the bus.

Passive: The bell is rung by the peon.
Active: The peon rings the bell.

Passive: The glass was broken by the children.
Active: The children broke the glass.
If you remain able to solve these questions by understanding active and passive voice examples, you are going to ace the English grammar active and passive voice section. Following these simple rules will assist you in improving your spoken English. 

For more help, you can reach out to Safalta school online to get assistance from our experts in your studies.  
 

Give an example of active voice.

The bus driver drives the bus.

Give an example of passive voice.

The bus is driven by the bus driver. 

How to identify a passive voice sentence?

To identify the passive voice in a sentence, look at what happened and who is acting. It is a passive voice if the subject performing the task is after the action or is missing.

Why is the passive voice weaker than the active voice?

Passive voices are quieter and weaker than active voices.

What is Safalta School Online?

Safalta school online is an initiative of Safalta Pvt Ltd to help students score well in their exams by sitting in their homes. We provide online lectures that are very beneficial for the students. 

What are the benefits of Safalta School Online?

The following are offered by Safalta school online-
  • Free e-books and Mock test papers
  • Preparation materials
  • One-to-one interaction with teachers
  • Easy to approach teachers when having a query

Free Demo Classes

Register here for Free Demo Classes

Trending Courses

Professional Certification Programme in Digital Marketing (Batch-5)
Professional Certification Programme in Digital Marketing (Batch-5)

Now at just ₹ 49999 ₹ 9999950% off

Master Certification Digital Marketing Program Batch-10
Master Certification Digital Marketing Program Batch-10

Now at just ₹ 64999 ₹ 12500048% off

Advanced Certification in Digital Marketing Online Programme (Batch-22)
Advanced Certification in Digital Marketing Online Programme (Batch-22)

Now at just ₹ 21999 ₹ 3599939% off

Advance Graphic Designing Course (Batch-9) : 90 Hours of Learning
Advance Graphic Designing Course (Batch-9) : 90 Hours of Learning

Now at just ₹ 16999 ₹ 3599953% off

Flipkart Hot Selling Course in 2024
Flipkart Hot Selling Course in 2024

Now at just ₹ 10000 ₹ 3000067% off

Advanced Certification in Digital Marketing Classroom Programme (Batch-3)
Advanced Certification in Digital Marketing Classroom Programme (Batch-3)

Now at just ₹ 29999 ₹ 9999970% off

Basic Digital Marketing Course (Batch-24): 50 Hours Live+ Recorded Classes!
Basic Digital Marketing Course (Batch-24): 50 Hours Live+ Recorded Classes!

Now at just ₹ 1499 ₹ 999985% off

WhatsApp Business Marketing Course
WhatsApp Business Marketing Course

Now at just ₹ 599 ₹ 159963% off

Advance Excel Course
Advance Excel Course

Now at just ₹ 2499 ₹ 800069% off