Passive Voice
| Present simple |
| Active | DO |
| Passive | BE +
DONE |
- The house is built by workers.
- I'm not often invited to parties.
- How is this word pronounced.
| Past simple |
| Active | DID |
| Passive | WAS/WERE +
DONE |
- The house was built in 1935.
- How much money was stolen in the robbery?
- I was born
| Future simple |
| Active | WILL +
DO |
| Passive | WILL BE +
DONE |
- The house will be built in the future.
- The room will be cleaned later.
- I want to be left alone.
| Present
continuous |
| Active | BE +
DOING |
| Passive | BE + BEING +
DONE |
- No, thank you. I'm being served.
| Past continuous |
| Active | WAS/WERE +
DOING |
| Passive | WAS/WERE + BEING +
DONE |
- There was somebody walking behind us. We were being
followed.
| Present Perfect |
| Active | HAVE +
DONE |
| Passive | HAVE + BEEN +
DONE |
- Have you ever been bitten by a dog?
- The concert has been cancelled.
| Past Perfect |
| Active | HAD +
DONE |
| Passive | HAD BEEN +
DONE |
- The vegetables didn't taste very good. They had been
cooked too long.
- The car was three years old but hadn't been used very much.
| Future Perfect |
| Active | WILL HAVE +
DONE |
| Passive | WILL HAVE + BENN +
DONE |
Passive voice with a modal auxilary
FORM
MODAL + BE + PAST
PARTICIPLE
| Present |
I can be helped |
| Future |
I could be helped |
| Past |
I could have been helped |
| Present |
I may be helped |
| Future |
I might be helped |
|
Past
|
I might have been helped |
Present
Future |
He must be helped
He has to be
helped |
| Past |
He had to be helped |
EXAMPLES:
She is being punished.
They have been sent
away.
Get
We can use get instead of be in the
passive.
- I don't often get invited to parties.
- I'm surprised Liz didn't get offered the job.
We also get in the following expressions.
- get married, get divorced
- get dressed
- get lost
- get changed
