THE PASSIVE VOICE

Norma Brichs

USES

• To talk about processes.

• We don’t know who did the action.

• When it’s not important to mention who did the action.

• When we want to avoid to mention who did the action or it’s too obvious.

FORM

AFFIRMATIVE

Present

The game is created here.Films are made in Holywood.

Past Simple

The game was created here.The films were made in Holywood.

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

FORM

NEGATIVE

Present

The game isn’t created here.Films aren’t made in Holywood.

Past Simple

The game wasn’t created here.The films weren’t made in Holywood.

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

FORM

QUESTIONS AND SHORT ANSWERS

Present

Is the computer game created here? Yes, it is. / No, it isn’t.Are the films made in Holywood? Yes, they are. / No, they aren’t.

Past Simple

Was the game created here? Yes, it was. /No, it wasn’t.Were the films made in Holywood? Yes they were. / No, they weren’t.

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

ACTIVE vs PASSIVE

Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa.

The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci.

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

subject verb object

subject verb by agent

Past participle

Draw

Sing

Find

Lose

Drive

Think

Write

Build

draw drew drawn

sing sang sung

find found found

lose lost lost

drive drove driven

think thought thought

write wrote written

build built built

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

Let’s practise! Put these sentences into the passive.

El Greco did not paint Las Meninas.

Las Meninas weren’t painted by El Greco.

Velázquez painted Las Meninas in 1656.

Las Meninas were painted by Velázquez in 1656.

Lennon and McCartney wrote the song Yesterday.

Yesterday was written by Lennon and McCartney.

SUBJECT + TO BE + PAST PARTICIPLE

Verdi composed La Traviata.

La Traviata was composed by Verdi.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet.

Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare.

Norman Foster designed the Millenium Bridge of London.

The Millenium Bridge of London was designed by Norman Foster.

Mel Gibson directed Million Dollar Baby.

Million Dollar Baby was directed by Mel Gibson.

Steve Dikto draw Spiderman in 1962.

Spiderman was drawn by Dikto in 1962

A lot of people visit Tate Gallery in London.

Tate Gallery in London is visited by a lot of people.

Warner Brothers created Taz, Bugs Bunny and Coyote.

Taz, Bugs Bunny and Coyote were created by Warner Brothers.

Shakira sings Waka Waka

Waka Waka is sung by Shakira.

And now make the negatives:

The Internet was invented by my dad.

The Internet wasn’t invented by my dad.

Sunflowers were painted by Leonardo da Vinci.

Sunflowers weren’t painted by Leonardo da Vinci. They were painted by Van Gogh.

The first Beatles songs were recorded in the 1980s.

The first Beatles songs weren’t recorded in the 1980s. They were recorded in the 1960s.

Can you make the questions in the passive form?

Are Seat cars made in Spain?

Yes, Seat cars are made in Spain.

Was Mario Vargas Llosa given the Nobel prize?

Yes, he was. Mario Vargas Llosa was given the Nobel Prize in 2010.

Is English spoken in Australia?

Yes, it is. English is spoken in Australia.