The difference between the passive voice and active voice lies in the focus and structure of a sentence. In the active voice, the subject performs the action directly, making the sentence clearer and more straightforward—for example, "The chef cooks the meal." On the other hand, in the passive voice, the subject receives the action, and the performer of the action may be less important or omitted—for example, "The meal is cooked by the chef." The passive voice is often used when the doer is unknown, not relevant, or when the focus is on the action or result itself.
Tense changes in active to passive voice involve adjusting the verb forms to match the original tense while shifting the focus from the subject to the object. The verb "to be" is used in the appropriate tense, followed by the past participle of the main verb. Whether dealing with present, past, future, or perfect tenses, the structure changes to ensure that the time reference remains consistent, while the emphasis moves to the receiver of the action.
| Tense | Active voice structure | Passive voice structure | Sentence in active voice | Sentence in passive voice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present simple | Subject + verb + object | Object + am/is/are + past participle + (by + subject) | The gardener mows the lawn every week. | The lawn is mowed by the gardener every week. |
| Present continuous | Subject + am/is/are + verb-ing + object | Object + am/is/are + being + past participle + (by + subject) | The gardener is mowing the lawn. | The lawn is being mowed by the gardener. |
| Past simple | Subject + verb (past) + object | Object + was/were + past participle + (by + subject) | Robert painted the wall. | The wall was painted by Robert. |
| Past continuous | Subject + was/were + verb-ing + object | Object + was/were + being + past participle + (by + subject) | A contractor was building the house. | The house was being built by a contractor. |
| Future simple | Subject + will + base verb + object | Object + will + be + past participle + (by + subject) | The courier will deliver the package tomorrow. | The package will be delivered by the courier tomorrow. |
| Be going to | Subject + am/is/are + going to + base verb + object | Object + am/is/are + going to + be + past participle + (by + subject) | The courier is going to deliver the package tomorrow. | The package is going to be delivered by the courier tomorrow. |
| Present perfect | Subject + has/have + past participle + object | Object + has/have + been + past participle + (by + subject) | The courier has delivered the package. | The package has been delivered by the courier. |
| Past perfect | Subject + had + past participle + object | Object + had + been + past participle + (by + subject) | A contractor had constructed the building. | The building had been constructed by a contractor. |
| Future perfect | Subject + will + have + past participle + object | Object + will + have + been + past participle + (by + subject) | The chef will have baked the cake by the party time. | The cake will have been baked by the chef by the party time. |
| Modals | Subject + modal verb + base verb + object | Object + modal verb + be + past participle + (by + subject) | You should repair the fridge. | The fridge should be repaired. |
There are situations when the passive voice is the better option. Here are some situations:
👉 The dog was chased by the cat
makes the dog, and what happened to it, the main focus. An active version, 👉 The cat chased the dog
, puts more emphasis on the cat.
👉 The TV was broken
, if it’s not important (or known) who broke the TV, this passive sentence is appropriate. But, if it’s relevant who broke it, an active sentence like 👉 John broke the TV
would be better.
This can sometimes be tricky to decide. Imagine the two sentences:
A new park was opened in the city yesterday,
The mayor opened a new park in the city yesterday.
The first sentence might be more suitable for a local news report where the main interest is the new park. The second might be more suitable for a political news piece where the mayor’s actions are under scrutiny.
