Inglea 1

Activity # 42
PASSIVE VOICE.
Use
We use the Passive voice to emphasize the action rather than who or what is responsible for it.

Formation
The passive voice is formed with the verb be in theappropriate form and the past participle of the verb of the sentence. The person who causes or carries out the action is called an agent and is preceded by the preposition by.

Note.
We usually omitthe agent:
• When the action interests us more than the agent.
• When we don’t know the agent.
• When it is easy to figure out who the agent is.
The glass fell out! (by someone we do not know)The lamp is turned on. (by someone we do not know).




John drives a carA car was drives by John
Verbs with two objects
Some verbs (give, offer, send, etc) usually take two objects in the active voice, the direct thing) and the indirect (person):
Thesent John some letters.
The passive voice can be formed in two ways:
•Indirect object as subject + verb be +past participle + direct object.
John was sent some letters.
•Direct object assubject + verb be + past participle +to +indirect object.
Some letters were sent to John.
PASSIVE VOICE II
•We form the progressive tenses in the passive voice with the appropriate form of the verb be+being+ the past participle of the main verb.
•The verbs make, see, hear, etc. are followed by a bare infinitive in the active voice but in the passive voice they are followed by a full infinitive.
Mymom made me wash the clothes of my family.
I was made to wash the clothes of my family.
•Verbs like believe, consider know, expect, report, say, think, understand, etc. wich are followed by athat-clause in the active voice, form the passive voice in two different ways.
People think that drunks are a problem in society.
It is thought that drunks are a problem in society.
Drunks are...