Passive Voice 1

You are being replaced by a machine. 2

Form Different tenses of be (is, was, is being, have been, …) + past participle of the main verb. This article was written by a well-known journalist. 3

Form English is spoken here. I wasn’t invited, but I went. * PP = Past participle Passive Tense Structure Present Simple am/are/is + PP* English is spoken here. I wasn’t invited, but I went. You’ll be told soon. Past Simple was/were + PP Will future will be + PP 4

Structure Passive: This church was built in 1275. Active: They built this church in 1275. Subject Object 5

Structure Passive: German is spoken in Germany. Active: Germans speak German. Subject Object 6

Use We use the passive voice: when the agent is unknown; My car was stolen last night. (I don’t know who stole my car) to emphasise the action rather than the agent; The factory was painted during the war. (We are interested in the factory.) when the agent is generally understood; The thief was arrested (by the police). When we don’t want to say who the agent is/was. A mistake was made. (Active voice: I made a mistake.) 7

Use The passive voice is usually used in: Newspapers (/ news); Formal notices; Scientific or technical writing. 8