Active & Passive Voice
Choose whether to focus on the doer or the action — and see how be + past participle transforms the same event across four different tenses.
Same event. Different focus.
One scenario — editors and a report — across four tenses and three voices. Watch how the subject swaps from doer to receiver when you go passive, and see when to include or drop by the editors.
Got the pattern? Jump to the practice →
The rules — with examples
How to form the passive across four tenses, when to use it, and whether to include the agent.
The passive across four tenses
| Tense | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| Present simple | They check the report. | The report is checked. |
| Past simple | They checked the report. | The report was checked. |
| Present perfect | They have approved it. | It has been approved. |
| Future (will) | They will publish it. | It will be published. |
Three reasons to use the passive
Include or drop the agent?
The novel was written by Kafka.
The new law was signed by the president.
Why? The identity of the doer is specific and adds value to the sentence.
The windows are cleaned every Friday.
The stolen car was found near the river.
Why? Who did it is unknown, obvious, or irrelevant to the meaning.
Passive verb forms at a glance
Practise & score yourself
Ten questions — five multiple choice, five gap-fill. Instant scoring and a short explanation for every answer.
The one rule to remember
To form any passive, take the object, make it the subject, and use the right tense of be + past participle. Choose the passive when the action or its result matters more than the doer — and only add by + agent when who did it is actually important.