Today we will learn how to build phrases in such a way as to emphasize the impact on any animate or inanimate object.
The article contains explanations of the rules and exercises.
Active, Passive Voice in English: Definition
What are active and passive voices? Active and Passive Voice are grammatical forms that determine how the object is related to the action, or how the effect produced is related to the object in the phrase. Present in every language. Known in English as:
- Active Voice.
- Passive Voice.
The active, or so-called active, voice is used most often: the author of the performed act is the subject, and the action itself is the predicate. The noun is active, as it itself makes an impact on someone or something.
Example:
Mike is doing his homework at the moment. – Mike is doing his homework at the moment.
Passive Voice - passive, or so-called passive voice. The noun is used as an object, and the action is used as a predicate, the effect is made on someone or something.
Example:
The homework is being done by Mike at the moment. – Homework is being done by Mike at the moment.
Usage options
The passive voice complicates the perception of the statement too much, so the excessive use of such a grammatical form is not very welcome. However, there are separate options when it is impossible to do without the use of the passive voice:
The author of the act carried out is unknown (the act was carried out anonymously, it is not clear by whom or what the impact was made):
This book was ripped yesterday. – This book was torn yesterday.
The author of the impact is not significant (the person who committed the impact is not important):
The project will be finished by tomorrow. – The project will be finished tomorrow.
The author of the action is already clear (obvious from the context):
The burglar was arrested last month. – The burglar was arrested last month.
We care about the action, not the author (in news headlines and announcements, when we are interested in what happened, not who did it):
The jazz concert will be held on Tuesday. – Jazz concert will be held on Tuesday.
Action can be performed by anyone (in recipes, briefings):
The milk is heated and added to the dough. – The milk is heated and added to the dough.
In documents (in official announcements, abstracts):
This article is meant as an example of a research paper. – This article is presented as an example of a research paper.
Active and Passive Voice:exercises
Task 1. Determine which usage rules are found in the following phrases, connect the sentence number with the letter of the rule. There may be several options, as you can see from the picture.
Passion forms
Let's look at the forms of the Passive Voice next. The passive form of the predicate uses a part of speech denoting the action “to be” (“to be”) in the third person singular or plural of a certain time (for example, “is”, “are”) and the main (semantic) part of speech denoting the impact, in the third form.
The part of speech denoting the action "to be" changes into the appropriate form when the time in which the action is performed changes. The semantic part of speech, denoting the impact, remains unchanged: it is always used as a past participle. In English, this form of the part of speech denoting an action is called Past Participle or Participle II.
Parts of speech denoting the performed action are divided into two types: correct and incorrect. The latter are exceptions to the grammatical rule for the formation of certain temporary forms.
The third form of the correct parts of speech denoting action looks similar to the past tense: at the end - ed is added:
- to love – loved;
- to play – played.
Irregular parts of speech denoting action have a special third form that must be remembered in each particular case. Primarystep, you can use a special table of exceptions. But the most common parts of speech that indicate the action performed, which are quickly remembered, are incorrect:
- to drink – drunk;
- to eat – eaten.
The part of speech denoting the action "to be" in the passive voice goes through the same changes as the predicate in the active voice. Adverbs of time (including adverbs of frequency) are a good clue to determine the timing of the impact.
When constructing questions, the part of speech denoting the action taken is placed before the subject. When asking a question, think first about the effect being carried out, and then about the object or subject on which it is being carried out.
In negatives, the particle "not" follows the auxiliary part of speech denoting the action "to be". Never make the most common mistake of putting the body of speech indicating impact before "not"! In this case, "not" comes before the main verb, it separates the auxiliary and main verbs.
Passion and tenses
As we can see, only the part of speech denoting the action "to be" changes. The body of speech denoting the action does not change.
Another important observation is that not all tenses are present in the passive voice. They must be replaced in the following cases:
Present Perfect Continuous is replaced by PresentPerfect:
He has been cooking this meal since 5 p.m. – This meal has been cooked since 5 p.m.
Translation: He has been preparing this meal since 5:00 pm. – Food was prepared from 17:00.
Past Perfect Continuous is replaced by Past Perfect:
Peter had been doing the research for 3 months. – The research had been done for 3 months.
Translation: Peter did the research for 3 months. – The study was conducted for 3 months.
Future Continuous is replaced by Future Simple:
Tomorrow at 2 o'clock Helen will be cleaning this apartment. – This apartment will be cleaned tomorrow at 2 o’clock.
Translation: Tomorrow at two o'clock Helen will be cleaning this apartment. – This apartment will be cleaned tomorrow at two o'clock.
Future Perfect Continuous is replaced by Future Perfect:
Mike will have been driving the truck for 2 years by next week. – The truck will have been driven for 2 years by next week.
Translation: Mike will be driving a truck for two years by next week. – The truck will be in use for two years by next week.
Task 2. Put the verb "do" in the correct form.
Replacement of collateral
If you want to replace Active Voice - Passive Voice, that is, to convert a phrase in the active voice into a passive form, you need to remember the features of the grammatical structure of voices.
In an active phrase, the subject comes first, the predicate comes second, and the object comes at the end. In the passive voice objecttakes the place of the subject.
Replacing Active Voice - Passive Voice is carried out in several stages:
Determine which noun is the subject and which object:
Someone broke into their apartment yesterday.
Determine at what time the exposure occurs:
In our version - Past Simple.
At the beginning of the phrase, put an object (instead of the subject), use the semantic part of speech denoting the effect in the third form and place the part of speech denoting the action “to be” in the necessary tense form before it:
Their apartment was broken into yesterday.
The presence of two objects increases the number of options for constructing a phrase in the passive voice:
Nick brought Kate a book. – Nick brought Kate a book.
- Kate was brought a book. – A book was brought to Kate.
- A book was brought to Kate. – The book was brought to Kate.
Both options are valid, but it's better to use the form where the subject is an animate pronoun.
Task 3. Which voice is preferable to use in the following cases: Active Voice, Passive Voice?
Prepositions "by" and "with"
Additions are used in combination with these prepositions when it is necessary to mention who the author of the action is and in what ways the influence is carried out.
The preposition "by" indicates the author (animate or inanimate person) who influences the object:
Sherlock Holmeswas created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. – Sherlock Holmes was created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
The preposition "with" indicates in what ways (auxiliary materials or tools) the impact is performed:
The soup is stirred with a spoon. – The soup is stirred with a spoon.
The use of these prepositions is optional, except for questions beginning with "who" (by whom?) and "what" (by what?).
Who was Hercule Poirot created by? – Who created Hercule Poirot?
What was the fire caused by? – What caused the fire?
In formal speech, prepositions are often placed at the beginning of a phrase:
By what was the fire caused? – What caused the fire?
By whom was Hercule Poirot created? – Who created Hercule Poirot?
With what is the soup stirred? – What interferes with the soup?
Task 4. Put the verbs in the correct form Active and Passive Voice.
Modal verbs
How the Passive Voice and modal verbs work - we will analyze further. Modal verbs are never used on their own, but only in combination with a part of speech denoting the effect produced, in an indefinite mood. If they are present in the description of the effect, in the passive voice the part of speech denoting the effect produced is transformed:
modal verb + "be" + Participle II
She might start research in July. (She may start research in July.) – Her research might be started in July.
We should fill inthat form by hand. (We must complete this form by hand.) – That form should be filled in by hand.
If the phrase contains the following parts of speech denoting impact:
- to hear (hear);
- to help (help);
- to make (meaning "to force");
- to see (to see),
after the main and auxiliary verbs there is another one in the indefinite mood (with the particle "to"):
I was made to clean the house. – I was made to clean the house.
Mary will be helped to bake this cake. Mary will help bake this cake.
