Passive and Active Voice

Name : Sintia Wulandari
NPM : 17216064
Class : 1EA25
Passive and Active Voice

•Use the active voice
Generally, try  to use the active vice whenever possible. Passive voice sentences often use more words, can be vague, and can lead to a tangle of prepositional phrases.

•Active vs. passive voice
In a sentence written in the active voice, the subject of sentence performs the action. In a sentence written in the passive voice the subject receives the action.

•Converting sentences to active voice
Here are some tips and strategies fo converting sentences from the passive to the active voice.
Look for a “by” phrase (e.g., “by the dog” in the last example above). If you find one, the sentence may be in the passive voice. Rewrite the sentence so that the subject buried in the “by” clause is closer to the beginning of the sentence.
If the subject of the sentence is somewhat anonymous, see if you can use a general term, such as “researchers,” or “the study,” o “experts in this field.”

•When to use passive voice
There are sometimes good reasons to use the passive voice.
To emphasize the action rather than the actor

To keep the subject and focus consistent throughout a passage

To be tactful by not naming the actor

To describe a condition in which the actor is unknown or unimportant

To create an authoritative tone

•Functions of the passive voice
The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an action rather than the person or object that performs the action. In other words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject of the sentence.
Examples :
1.The passive voice is used frequently. (=we are interested in the passive voice,  not in who uses it.)
2.The house was built in 1654. (= we are interested in the house, not in who built it.)
3.The road is being repaired. (= we are interested in this road, not in the people who are doig the repairs.)

Sometime we use the passive voice because we don’t know or do not want to express who perfomed the action.
Examples :
1.I noticed that a window had been left open.
2.Every year thousands of people are killed on our roads.
3.All the cookies have been eaten.
4.My car has been stolen!

The passive voice is often used in formal texts. Switching to the active voice will make your writing clearer and easier to read.
PassiveActive
A great deal of meaning is conveyed by a few well-chosen words.A few well-chosen words convey a great deal of meaning.
Our planet is wrapped in mass of gases.A mass of gases wrap around our planet.
Waste materials are disposed of in a variety of ways.The city disposes of waste materials in a variety of ways.

If we want to say who or what performs the action while using the passive voice, we use the preposition by. When we know who performed the action and are interested in him, it is always better to switch to the active voice instead.

PassiveActive
“A Hard Day’s Night” was written by the Beatles.The Beatles wrote “A  Hard Day’s Night”.
The movie ET was directed by Spielberg. Spielberg directed the movie ET.
This house was built by my father.My father built this house.

•Forming The Passive Voice
The passive voice in English composed of two elements :
the appropriate form of the verb ‘to be’ + past participle.

AffirmativeNegativeInterrogativeNegative Interrogative
The house was built in 1899.The house wasn’t built in 1899.Was the house built in 1899?Wasn’t the hous uilt in 1899?
These houses were built in 1899.These houses weren’t built in 1899.Were these houses built in 1899?Weren’t these houses built in 1899?

•To Clean, Passive Voice
Subject + to be (conjugated) + past participle + rest of contence
Simple present
The house is cleaned every day.
Present continuous
The house is being cleaned at the moment.
Simple past
The house was cleaned yesterday.
Past continuous
The house was being cleaned last week.
Present perfect
The house had been cleaned befoe they arrived.
Past perfect
The house had ben cleaned before they arrived.
Future
The house will be cleaned next week.
Future continuous
The house will be being cleaned tomorrow.
Present conditional
The house would be cleaned if they had visitors.
Past conditional
The house would have been cleaned if it had been dirty.
Inifinitive
The house must be cleaned before we arrive.

•Passive Voice with Infinitives
The infinitive passive voice is used after modal verbs and other most verbs normally followed by an infinitive.
Examples :
1.You have to be tested on your English grammar.
2.John might be promoted next year.
3.She wants to be invited to the party.
4.I expect to be surprised on my birthday.
5.You may be disappointed.

•Passive Voice with Gerunds
Gerunds are used after prepositions and verbs normally followed by a gerund.
Examples :
1.I remember being taught to drive.
2.The children are excited about being taken to the zoo.
3.The children are excited to be taken to the zoo.
4.Most film stars hate being interviewed.
5.Most film stars hate to be interviewed.
6.Poodles like to be pampered.
7.Poodles like being pampered.

•Using “to be born”
“to be born” is an passive form and is most commonly used in the past tense. However, in some cases, the present or future tense is appropriate.
Examples :
1.I was born in 1976.
2.Where were you born?
3.Around 100 babies are born in this hospital every week.
4.We don’t know on exactly which day the baby will be born.

Sometimes the passive is formed using the verb to get or to have instead of the verb to be. A separate page deals with these alternative ways to form the passive voice.

Transitive verbs have both active and passive forms :
ActivePassive
The hunter killed the lion.The lion was killed by the hunter.
Someone has cleaned the windows.The windows have been cleaned.

The passive forms are made up of the verb be with a past participle :
        bepast participle
Englishis spoken all over the world
The windowshave beencleaned
Lunchwas being served
The workwill befinishedsoon
They might have beeninvited to the party

We sometimes use the verb get to form the passive :
Be careful with the glass. It might get broken.
Peter got hurt in a crash.

If we want to show the person or thing doing the action we use by :
She was attacked by a dangerous dog.
The money was stolen by her husband.
We can use the indirect object as the subject of a passive verb :
ActivePassive
I gave him a book for his birthday.He was given a book for his birthday.
Someone sent her a cheque for a thousand euros.  She was sent a cheque for a thousand euros.

We can use phrasal verbs in the passive :
ActivePassive
They called off the meeting.The meeting was called off.
His grandmother looked after him.He was looked after by his grandmother.
They will send him away to school.He will be sent away to school.

Some verbs very frequently used in the passive are followed by the to-infinitive:
be supposed tobe expected tobe asked to
be scheduled tobe allowed tobe told to

Source :
http://www.ef.com/english-resources/english-grammar/passive-voice/
http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/CCS_activevoice.html
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/english-grammar/verbs/active-and-passive-voice