Active Voice versus Passive Voice
Introduction
A Voice is an important factor in English Grammar. A voice may be Active or Passive. We use these voices unknowingly in our daily life. Every sentence, we speak, includes either of the voice. Mostly, the active voice is used in oral communication and the passive voice is used in written communication especially in newspapers, articles, etc.
13. 1. Definition of the Voice
The term ‘voice’ is a grammatical category which applies to verbs. In English, ‘voice’ refers to the form of a verb takes to indicate whether the subject of the verb performs or receives the action. When a sentence is written in the active voice, the subject performs the action; in the passive voice, the subject receives the action (something has been done to the subject).
§ Voice is a grammatical category which makes it possible to view the action of a sentence in either of two ways, without change in the facts reported.” English has two grammatically marked voices: active and passive.
§ Voice is a grammatical category that applies to the verb in a sentence. It shows the relationship between the doer of an action (subject) and the receiver of that action (object).
§ The action remains the same, but the focus changes depending upon the context.
§ There are two types of voices in English- active voice and passive voice.
1. Active Voice
The sentences in which the subject performs the action and the object receives the action are said to be in Active Voice as in: The teacher explains the lesson. In the above example, the simple subject is “teacher” and “explains” is the verb. So it reveals clearly that he subject / the doer / an agent performs the action which is received by the object/receiver. In the Active sentences, the importance or priority is given to only the subject. It gives the question ‘who did the action’ rather than ‘what happened’. Active voice is ideal when you want to connect with the reader. Active voice engages the reader more effectively than passive voice thanks to its language being a bit stronger. In short, sentences with active voice have an overt subject and verb, which means readers get to see “what or who” is doing “what.” An active verb style leaves no doubt about who did what.
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When the subject of a sentence is the doer or actor, the Verb is in the Active Voice. It is so because the subject is active.
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2. Passive Voice
If the importance or priority is given to only the verb “action” of a sentence, then it is said to be in Passive Voice. In Passive voice, ‘what happened’ is more important than ‘who did the action?’ in the following example: The lesson is explained by the teacher. “lesson” is the simple subject and “is explained” is the verb. In effect, the object of the active sentence becomes the subject in the passive sentence. In short, sentences in passive voice can fall under two categories. We either don’t see a subject, or see it straggling behind the verb because more emphasis is placed on the object of the action rather than the subject. A passive verb style can leave the reader wondering who did what.
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When the subject of a sentence is acted upon, the verb is in Active Voice. It is so because the subject is passive.
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In both the examples above, the reader knows that the subject is a teacher in the sense that they communicate the same idea. Although both sentences have the same basic components, their structure makes them different from each other. Active sentences are about what people (or things) do, while passive sentences are about what happens to people (or things). While changing a sentence from Active Voice to Passive Voice, several changes must take place as indicated in this next title.
13. 2. The Steps of the Passive Voice
The passive form is formulated through the steps mentioned in the table below; note that the example sentence is “The teacher explains the lesson.”
|
Steps |
➔ |
Rule |
Example |
|
Step 1 |
➔ |
Only those verbs which have an object can be passivized. Such verbs are called Transitive verbs i.e. verbs with objects. So a sentence in active voice should have the following parts if it is to be passivized. Subject (Doer) + Verb + Object (Receiver) it is again stated that when the verb is changed from the Active Voice to the Passive Voice, the Object of the Transitive verb becomes prominent. |
In this step the verb explains must be transitive and needs its object lesson become the object lesson will become more prominent in the passive sentence. |
|
Step 2 |
➔ |
The object of the active voice becomes the subject of the passive voice. In short, we need to invert the order of the subject and the object of an active sentence. |
the object “the lesson” takes the place of the subject “the teacher” |
|
Step 3 |
➔ |
We add to be automatically and put it in the same tense of the main active verb. |
“to” be becomes “is” |
|
Step 4 |
➔ |
Then, we add the main verb of the active voice and put it in its past participle form. |
“explains” become “explained” |
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Step 5 |
➔ |
Then, the subject of the active voice becomes the object of the passive voice. The subject of the active sentence may or may not be present in passive voice according to its importance. |
“the teacher” is replaced by the “lesson” |
|
Step 6 |
➔ |
When the “agent” is mentioned it is often preceded by “by” and placed at the end of the clause. |
The lesson is mentioned consequently we add “by” before the teacher. |
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step 7 |
➔ |
When the “agent” is not mentioned we do not add by as well as the agent. Here when the subject of the active sentence is a pronoun or not mentioned a tall. |
We do not mention neither by nor the teacher. |
Students must note that we do not change the tense of the verb; we only change the form of the verb as indicated in the steps 4 and 5 before. Furthermore, the verb in the passive voice always consists of more than one part as follows: “some form of to be + a past participle of the main active verb”. See the examples below:
· We keep the butter here. = The butter is kept here.
· They broke the window. =The window was broken.
· People have seen wolves in the street. = Wolves have been seen in the street.
· They are repairing the bridge. = The bridge is being repaired.
· You must shut these doors. = These doors must be shut.
· They should to have told him. = He should to have been told.
· The teacher wants someone to take photographs. = The teacher wants photographs to be taken.
Diagrammatically the process of changing the active sentence into passive sentence can be represented as follows. Example sentence is “The leader inspires the young generations.”
§ Step 1: The verb “inspires” must be transitive and have its object “the young generations”.
§ Step 2: The object “the young generations” becomes the subject of the passive sentence
§ Step 3: We add automatically the helping verb “be” and put it in the tense of the verb “inspires” which is the simple present tense. Here exactly “be” becomes “are”. It should be noted that the verb “are” is conjugated according to the new generations but not according to the leader.
§ Step 4: We follow immediately the helping verb “be” with the past participle of the verb “inspires” which is “inspired”.
§ Step 5: Since the subject of the active voice is mentioned and it is important we follow the verb with the word “by”.
§ Step 6: Then, the subject of the active voice “the leader” becomes the object of the passive voice.
§ Step 7: This step is not applied because the subject of the active sentence is mentioned.
Ø Finally the final passive sentence is as follows: “The young generations are inspired by the leader.”
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Grammar Point In order to change an active voice sentence to a passive voice one, we must make the object of the active sentence into the subject of the passive sentence. Also the verb ‘to be’ must be used in the same tense as the main verb of the active voice sentence. The past participle of the main verb in the active sentence must be used in the passive voice sentence. |
4. Transitive versus Intransitive Verbs
Only transitive verbs, which take a direct object, can be used in the passive voice – the direct object becomes the subject and the receiver of the action; the original subject is introduced in a prepositional phrase with by, or even omitted altogether. Consequently, intransitive verbs (verbs which do not take objects) cannot be used to form passive sentences. Some examples of common intransitive verbs are as follows: “come, die, go, happen, itch, occur, rain, rise, walk ………………………………..” Consider the following examples:
· Active Voice: Thieves stole paintings from the Gardner Museum.
· Passive: Paintings from the Gardner Museum were stolen [by thieves]. (correct)
· Active Voice: James Levine conducted the symphony
· Passive Voice: The symphony was conducted [by James Levine]. (correct)
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Active Voice |
➔ |
Passive Voice |
|
Ann came to the session. |
➔ |
Ann was come to the session. (incorrect) |
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The dog died in the street. |
➔ |
The dog was died in the street. (incorrect) |
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We went to the forest. |
➔ |
We were gone to the forest. (incorrect) |
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My hand itches. |
➔ |
My hand is itched. (incorrect) |
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The incident occurred yesterday. |
➔ |
The incident was occurred yesterday. (incorrect) |
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It rained this day. |
➔ |
It was rained this day. (incorrect) |
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Food prices are increasing again. |
➔ |
Food prices are being increased again. (incorrect) |
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Stephan walked to the store by himself |
➔ |
Stephan was walked to the store by himself. (incorrect) |
It should be noted that there are a couple measure verbs that also cannot be used in the passive voice. Consider the following examples:
· This ring costs a lot of effort.
· A lot of effort was cost by this ring. (incorrect)
· This cake weighs a lot.
· A lot was weighed by this cake. (incorrect)
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Important Note: The Agent is not mentioned in a passive voice when: § If we don’t know who has done what we are talking about. See the example below: Our car was stolen last night. (We don’t know who stole the car) § If we are not interested in who has done what we are talking about or it is not important to mention it. He has been taken to the hospital. (The speaker interest is that he has been taken to the hospital and not who has taken him.) § If it is easy to understand who did something without it being mentioned. The murderer was arrested last night. (It is not necessary to mention that he has been arrested by the police because it is self-evident.) § If the subject of the active voice sentence is something like somebody, people, they, you, etc. Someone broke the window. The window was broken.
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3. Active Verbs and their Passive Equivalents “to keep”
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N |
Tense |
Active Voice |
Passive Voice |
|
1 |
Simple present |
Keeps keep |
is kept are kept |
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2 |
Present continuous |
am keeping is keeping are keeping |
is being kept is being kept are being kept |
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3 |
kept |
was kept were kept |
|
|
4 |
was keeping were keeping |
was being kept were being kept |
|
|
5 |
Present perfect |
have kept has kept |
has been kept have been kept |
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6 |
present perfect continuous |
have been keeping has been keeping |
……………………….. ……………….not found |
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7 |
Past perfect |
had kept |
had been kept |
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8 |
Past Perfect Continuous |
had been keeping |
……………..not found |
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9 |
Future |
will keep shall keep |
will be kept shall be kept |
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10 |
Future perfect |
will have kept |
will have been kept |
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11 |
Future Continuous |
will be keeping |
……………..not found |
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12 |
Future Perfect Continuous |
will have been keeping |
……………………….. ……………….not found |
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13 |
Conditional |
would keep |
would be kept |
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14 |
Perfect conditional |
would have kept |
would have been kept |
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15 |
Present infinitive |
to keep |
to be kept |
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16 |
Perfect infinitive |
to have kept |
to have been kept |
|
17 |
Present participle |
keeping |
being kept |
|
18 |
Perfect participle |
having kept |
having been kept |
|
19 |
With modal auxiliaries |
must keep should keep ought to keep |
must be kept should be kept ought to be kept |
Students of English are usually taught how to form a passive sentence in the following way: they are to place the object at the beginning of the sentence, then use auxiliary “be” plus a past participle followed by an optional agent prefaced with by, as indicated in the following examples:
· The student keeps the idea. ➔ The idea is kept by the student.
· The student was keeping the idea. ➔ The idea is being kept by the student.
· The student kept the idea. ➔The idea was kept by the student.
· The student was keeping the idea. ➔ The idea was being kept by the student.
· The student has kept the idea. ➔ The idea has been kept by the student.
· The student has been keeping the idea. = ………………..not found
· The student had kept the idea. ➔ The idea had been kept by the student.
· The student had been keeping the idea. = ………………………..not found
· The student will keep the idea. ➔ The idea will be kept by the student.
· The student will have kept the idea. ➔ The idea will have been kept by the student.
· The student will be keeping the idea. = ………………………not found
· The student will have been keeping the idea. ………………………….not found
· The student would keep the idea. = The idea would be kept by the student.
· The student would have kept the idea. = The idea would have been kept by the student.
· The student must keep the idea. = The idea must be kept by the student.
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Important reminder: four active tenses without passive voice Students must remember that in English language there are four active tenses which couldn’t be in passive voice. § Present perfect continuous § Past perfect continuous § Future perfect continuous § Future continuous Students must note that because to an awkward construction, the previous are not used in the passive voice. Instead, an adverb may be used to show continuing action as in this example: “We have been repeatedly scolded for being late.”
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Important Note: Passive Voice in Other Verb Forms In situations where you would normally use the plain form (e.g., an infinitival), form the passive voice using the plain form of “be” and a past participle. Examples: § Active Infinitival (To): You need to heat the water to 100 degrees before being added to the mixture. § Passive Infinitival (To): The water needs to be heated to 100 degrees before being added to the mixture. § Active Infinitival (Bare): You must heat the water to 100 degrees before being added to the mixture. § Passive Infinitival (Bare): The water must be heated to 100 degrees before being added to the mixture. |
13. 5. Passive Voice with two Objects
When there is an object and an indirect object in the active voice sentence. Rewriting an active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on. Consider the examples below:
· Active sentence: The postman gave me a letter.
· Passive sentence 1: I was given a letter by the postman.
· Passive sentence 2: A letter was given to me by the postman.
· Active sentence: He told them the truth.
· Passive sentence 1: They were told the truth.
· Passive sentence 2: the truth was told to them.)
3. Comparaison between Active Voice versus Passive Voice
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Active voice |
Passive voice |
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Focuses on the subject: the subject is performing the action |
Focus is on the action: the subject does not act but is acted upon More emphasis is placed on the object. |
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Active style sentences are short and clear. |
Passive style sentence are wordy and long. |
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Subject is known |
§ Subject is unknown |
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Active voice and verbs are direct, forceful and economical. |
Passive voice and verbs are indirect, less forceful, weak and long. |
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Unambiguous and easy to understand. Most style guides recommend active voice. |
§ Ambiguous, unclear and needs some focus Most style guides recommend avoiding passive voice. |
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direct, crisp and to the point |
§ Indirect and polite with firmness |
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The subject is important. |
§ The subject is unimportant and obvious. |
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Useful in delegating responsibilities, giving orders to an individual or to a small group. |
Useful for general announcements. For example, in airports, railway station. |
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Secure to keep the sentence from being complicated and wordy. |
§ Risk of sounding boastful, complicated and wordy |
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Using active voice makes meaning clear for the readers/listeners |
Using the passive voice makes the meaning firm and polite. |
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Sentences in active voice tend to be shorter. Many readers prefer the concise nature of active voice. |
Sentences in passive voice tend to be longer. Many readers prefer short, simple and precise sentences. |
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When writing academic papers, you should use active voice instead of passive voice |
Passive voice should be avoided in most academic papers; however, some writing in the sciences requires passive voice. |
6. The Main Uses of the Passive Voice
Although active voice is generally preferred in academic writing, most formal and informal conversations, students must have attention to the appropriate choice of the voice since generally the passive voice exists for a reason, and is acceptable or even recommended under certain conditions.
§ When it is not necessary to mention the doer of the action as it is obvious, unknown, uninteresting, and unimportant who he or she is. See the examples below:
· The rubbish hasn’t been collected.
· The streets are swept every day.
· The decision was made.
§ When we don’t know, or do not know exactly, or have forgotten who did the action or we want to be tactful by not naming the actor “The subject is not known.) It should be noted that writers are advised to choose the active voice because active sentences are usually more direct, emphatic, and concise than the passive ones. But if a writer does not know the doer of an act or if the doer is not important, the passive voice is a logical choice. See the examples below:
· The minister was murdered.
· My car has been moved.
· You’ll be met at the station.
· I’ve been told that …
§ When the subject of the active sentence would be the indefinite pronoun “one”. See the examples below:
· One sees this sort of advertisement everywhere would be usually expressed:
· This sort of advertisement is seen everywhere.
§ Passive voice allows people to evade responsibility for their actions. See the examples below:
· Mistakes were made.
· Your package has been lost.
· It has been decided that you no longer.
· Have a job here.
§ When we are more interested in the action than the person who does it. (In case we know the doer we would use the active voice.) See the examples below:
· The house next door has been bought.
· The car has been moved away.
§ The passive may be used to avoid an awkward or ungrammatical sentence “complex subject”. This is usually done by avoiding a change of subject: See the examples below:
· When he arrived home a detective arrested him. It would be better expressed:
· When he arrived home he was arrested.
· When their mother was ill neighbors looked after the children. It would be better expressed:
· When their mother was ill the children were looked after by neighbors.
· Timber companies which look for easy money fell most trees. It would be better expressed:
· Most trees are felled by timber companies which look for easy money.
§ The passive is sometimes preferred for psychological reasons. A speaker may use it to disclaim responsibility for disagreeable announcements: See the examples below:
· Employer: Overtime rates are being reduced.
· The active will, of course, be used for agreeable announcements:
· I am going to increase overtime rates.
§ When you want a statement to seem more objective and less subjective. In academic writing, though, it’s always better to tell the reader who did or said something. See the examples below:
· A diet rich in soluble fiber has been proven to lower cholesterol.
· Tinker has proven that a diet rich in soluble fiber lowers cholesterol.
§ The speaker may know who performed the action but wish to avoid giving the name. (Tom, who suspects Bill of opening his letters, may say tactfully: See the examples below:
· This letter has been opened! Instead of you’ve opened this letter!
§ The passive voice is not grammatically incorrect, but rather it is a stylistic choice. Many writers use the passive voice in formal texts to shift the emphasis in a sentence, to explain step-by-step processes, in technical writing, or to compliment writing strategies. Passive voice is useful in legal and scientific writing, where it is not necessary to know the performer of the action. It is used in this sense to emphasize the objectivity of the experimenter and emphasize the results of the experiment. See the examples below:
· Carbon dioxide is absorbed and oxygen is released by the plant during the day. At night, the process is reversed.
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Important reminder Even the passive voice is acceptable and recommended under certain conditions, most of the time; however, avoiding passive voice is a good idea and a key tool for effective writing. Consequently, it is advisable to use active voice whenever possible because it helps to keep your writing clear, concise, and explicit. Consider the following examples:
1. Unclear: The city was razed. 2. Clearer: The city was razed by Vikings. (still passive) 3. Clear and concise: Vikings razed the city.
1. Unclear: A new president was elected. 2. Clearer: A new president was elected by the citizens of Algeria. (still passive) 3. Clear and concise: Algerian's citizens elected a new president.
1. Unclear: Smoking is considered dangerous. 2. Clearer: Smoking is considered dangerous by the United Nations. (still passive) 3. Clear, concise, explicit: In 2020, the United Nations wrote an open report declaring smoking as dangerous because of its direct effect on the lungs. |
7. The Shift of Pronouns from Active to Passive
While conversion of Active voice sentence to Passive voice sentence, the pronoun used in the sentence also changes in the following manner.
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Active Voice Pronoun |
➔ |
Passive Voice Pronoun |
|
I we they she he it you |
➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ ➔ |
me us them her him it you or him |
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Important Reminder: Formula to recognize Passive Voice: In passive voice, the sentences will have some version of a “be” verb (am, are, is, was, were) plus a past participle of the main active voice. In short, students must pay attention that the tense of the passive statement is exactly the same tense of the active statement. We change only the form or the voice of the verb from active to passive or vice versa. See the examples below: · The student wrote an essay. Past active · The essay was written by the student. Past passive To identify passive voice, look for these signs: § Some form of the verb to be: am, are, is, was, were, etc. § A verb phrase, like was won. § A past participial form of the verb, like broken or watched. § The use of the word “by” is often a sign that you have written a passive construction. § For the more egregious cases of passive voice in which no actor is identified, look for forms of the verbs “be” followed by a past participle.
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2. Passive Voice of Imperatives: request, order, advice, suggestion, prohibition
§ If the verb in the active voice expresses imperatives, orders, requests, advices …… etc. the word “Let” is usually placed at the beginning of the passive voice sentence and be verb is placed before the past participle of the main verb. The imperative sentence in the passive voice has the following structure: Let + object + be + past participle. See the examples below:
· Pick up the box. Active Voice
· Let the box be picked up. Passive Voice
· Bring it home. Active Voice
· Let it be brought home. Passive Voice
· Do it at once. Active Voice
· Let it be done once again. Passive Voice
§ If the imperative sentence begins with “please” in active voice, the expression “you are requested to” is used in the passive voice sentence. In such cases, an intransitive verb may also be changed into passive with, “you are requested to”. Another form of the passive is with “should” and “be”. See the examples below:
· Be patient, please! Active Voice
· You are requested to be patient. Passive Voice
· Be in the queue. Active Voice
· You are requested to be in the queue. Passive Voice
· Please do not smoke. Active Voice
· You are requested not to smoke. Passive Voice
§ When the active voice begins with do not, the passive voice has the following structure: Let not + object + be + past participle
· Don’t let the door open. Active Voice
· Let not the door be opened. Passive Voice
· Do not beat the dog. Active Voice
· Let the dog not be beaten. Passive Voice
· Let me do it. Active Voice
· Let it be done by me. Passive Voice Or
· Let me be allowed to do it. Passive Voice
· Don’t touch it. Active Voice
· Let it not be touched. Passive Voice
§ The passive form has to begin with you, when the object of the verb in the active voice is not given. See the example below:
· Work hard. (No object) Active Passive
· You are advised to work hard. Passive Voice
· Please lend me some money. Active Passive
· You are requested to lend me some money. Passive Voice
· Kindly do this work. Active Passive
· You are requested to do this work. Passive Voice
· Get me a glass of water. Active Passive
· You are ordered to get me a glass of water. Passive Voice
· You ought to respect your parents. Active Passive
· Your parents ought to be respected by you. Passive Voice
· You should learn your lessons. Active Passive
· Your lessons should be learned by you. Passive Voice
3. Passive Voice of Interrogative Sentence
§ “Do” verbs: The do-verb is used for interrogative and negative sentences. To change an interrogative sentence with ‘do’ from active voice form into passive voice form, use – Is/are/am +object of the active verb + past participle form of the verb + by + subject of the passive verb. See the example below:
· Do you speak French? Active Voice
· Is French spoken by you? Passive Voice
· Does she speak French? Active Voice
· Is French spoken by her? Passive Voice
· Did you speak in French with her? Active Voice
· Were you invited by Alice? Passive Voice
· Don’t you speak French? Active Voice
· Isn’t French spoken by you? Passive Voice
· I don’t speak French. Active Voice
· French is not spoken by me. Passive Voice
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Important Note § If the interrogative sentence begins with the auxiliary “Do”, the process of changing is convenient by changing it into assertive statement, then into passive assertive statement and then into passive interrogative. For instance: · Example sentence: Active interrogative: Do you see the car? · Step 1: assertive active sentence: you see the car. · Step 2: assertive passive sentence: the car is seen by you. · Step 3: interrogative passive sentence: is he car seen by you? |
§ Interrogatives: Wh- questions and how In wh- questions and how, the sentence is directly changed into passive voice. Except for, who changes to by whom in the passive; (by) whom changes to who in the passive.
· Which book do you want? Active Voice
· Which book is wanted by you? Passive Voice
· Who taught you English? Active Voice
· By whom were you taught English. Passive Voice
4. Passive Constructions with “be” , “get” and “have”
We have been discussing constructions created with the “be” verb, but passive can also be created using get or have. “Someone stole Ann’s car” can be turned into the passive constructions:
· Passive construction 1: “Ann’s car was stolen.”
· Passive construction 2: “Ann’s car got stolen.”
· Passive construction 3: “Ann had her car stolen.”
Form the above three different constructions of the passive voice, we can conclude that:
§ Be passive construction – most common in academic writing (and speech).
§ Get passive construction – while much rarer than the BE-passive, has been increasing dramatically in frequency in written English over the last few decades. It is seldom used in academic writing and seen as quite informal.
§ Have passive construction – need to make distinction between experiential have and causative have:
· Experiential: Ann had her reservation cancelled (it was cancelled by someone else and happened to her)
· Causative: Ann had her reservation cancelled (she arranged for it to be cancelled).
Summary
Students must remember that the usage of one voice over the other is a matter of clarity and style, not a matter of being grammatically correct. Use passive voice when you want to focus on an object, the doer within the sentence is either unknown or insignificant, and when you want to shift the focus away from the doer. Active voice will be used in the opposite situations as listed for passive voice. When writing or revising, make sure the passive voice is being used for one of the functions above and that the passive construction is the best way to express this idea in the correct form (be + past participle). When used appropriately, balancing the active and passive voices creates sentence variety, clarity, and correct tone.
Exercise 1
Instruction: Identify the verbs in the following sentences by underlining them. Then decide if the verb is in the active or passive voice.
1. I was frightened by the storm.
2. My car ran out of gas on the Resources Road.
3. I might have forgotten to add your name to the list.
4. The child was struck by a stray bullet.
5. My heart was broken.
6. Stephen King has written many best sellers.
7. The strike vote is being called for next Monday.
8. That document was written in Halifax in 1774.
9. Our MLA will be voted into office again in the next election.
10. Local workers will be hired to build the new mall.
11. The audience will be arriving in the next hour.
12. Sandra’s writing is improving daily.
13. We have been searching for answers to our questions.
14. After the elections, the votes were recounted several times.
15. I have just been thinking about you.
Exercise 2
Instruction: Change the following ACTIVE VOICE sentences into PASSIVE VOICE, but only if possible. Omit the by-phrase wherever possible. Do NOT change the verb tense.
16. The student copied the new vocabulary terms into her notebook.
17. The salesperson talked Sung Ho into buying a new car.
18. The chef seasoned the bubbling pot of pho with star anise.
19. The sous chef chopped the onions and grated the ginger.
20. The crow ate all of the cherries on her tree.
21. This year, monkeys have bitten several tourists in Phuket.
22. It rains a lot during the monsoon season.
23. The sun rises at seven o’clock in winter.
24. Her parents taught her to be punctual.
25. The scholar diligently checked all of his references.
Exercise 3
Complete the sentences below with the correct active or passive form of the verb in brackets.
26. At last night's ceremony, they….…….. the award to an unknown actress. (give)
27. The survivors …… by a cruise ship that …....to be near them. (rescue, happen)
28. Two hours after the accident the doctor ………….. him dead. (declare)
29. I remember ……………..……. to the circus by my father. (be take)
30. The weather ………..………… in the next few days. (not improve)
31. Coffee …………….…… before you ………………….. it. (must roast, sell)
32. The bridge ………..…….at the moment so it ………….. (repair, cannot use)
33. The police …………………… the victim a picture of the suspect. (show)
34. The new staff members …………….……… all the help they need. (give)
35. That door …………………. for ages. (not open)
36. A few days ago, a judge …...… him to appear before court next month. (order)
37. The Times ………….……… such a shocking letter before. (never publish)
38. They …….…. on what to do when the headmaster ………. in. (instruct, come)
39. The vandals …… bottles into windows and .…….. a few cars. (throw, destroy)
40. The new team mates ……………. more time to get accustomed to the practice sessions. (should give)
41. After dad ………….…… me to the zoo, he ……..……… me some new clothes at the department store. (take, buy)
42. I …………. to the party last Thursday because I………...... (not go, not invite)
43. I ……...…. so surprised by such an outstanding performance before. (never be)
44. When we ...…..out of the cinema, the bus …….. to take us home. (come, wait)
45. All the papers ……………………… in by next Friday. (must hand)