Active x Passive

First of all, let's talk about the difference between Active and Passive Voice:

Active voice = the subject is acting, doing something

Passive vocie = the subject is “receiving” an action; someone or something does something to the subject

example:

Journalists write articles. - Active voice

“Journalists” is the subject here; Who writes? Journalists.

“articles” is the object here – What do journalist write? Artciles.

So when turning Active Voice into Passive – the subject and the object change places.

Articles are written by journalists. - Passive Voice

“Articles” is the subject here. What is written? Articles.

“Journalists” is the object here. By whom are they written? By Journalists.

(1) FORM:

1.1

We form the passive using the Object (I, you , he, somebody or something etc) + form of the verb “BE” (depending on the tense) + past participle. That is, we just change the form of the verb 'be' according to the tense and we add the past participle.

Notice how the verb 'be' changes in the different tenses followed by the past participle:

PRESENT:

He does the job. - Active, Present Simple

The job is done by him. - Passive, Present Simple

The jury is making a decision. - Active, Present Progressive

A decision is being made by the jury. - Passive, Present Progressive

My father has painted this picture. - Active, Present Perfect

This picture has been painted by my father. - Passive, Present Perfect.

PAST:

He did the job. - Active, Past Simple

The job was done by him. - Passive, Past Simple

The jury was making a decision. - Active, Past Progressive

A decision was being made by the jury. - Passive, Past Progressive

My father had painted this picture. - Active, Past Perfect

This picture had been painted by my father. - Passive, Past Perfect.

FUTURE:

He will do the job. - Active, Future Simple

The job will be done by him. - Passive, Future Simple

My father will have painted this picture. - Active, Future Perfect

This picture will have been painted by my father. - Passive, Future Perfect.

 

NOTE:

You cannot construct passive sentences in the Present Perfect Progressive, Future Progressive and Past Perfect Progressive:

The contract had been being revised.

1.2

SPECIAL FORMS:

Just like we change the verb 'to be' according to the tense, it can also take all the other possible verb forms:

INFINITIVE – 'to do something' is changed to 'something to be done'

You are to refuse the deal. - The deal is to be refused.

You have to refuse the deal. - The deal has to be refused.

PRESENT PARTICIPLE – 'doing something' is changed to 'being done'

He likes others challenging him. - He likes being challenged by others.

PERFECT -ING FORM – 'having done something' is changed to 'something having been done'

Having addressed the issue, they went on with the schedule for the meeting. - The issue having been addressed, they went on with the schedule for the meeting.

MODALS + be + past participle – 'should not have done something' is changed to 'should not have been done'

I'm sorry, we should not have left you alone. - I'm sorry, you should not have been left alone.
(2) USAGE:

The Passive Voice is often used in formal or scientific texts. We use it in formal talks, essays etc to make our speech more official or sophisticated.

We use the passive to construct sentences in which

2. 1

(a) the agent (the person or thing performing an action) is known, unimportant or obvious.)The candidate's resume was examined, and he was called in for an interview.(It is obvious that a prospective employer performed this action.)All customer complaints must be dealt with immediately.(It doesn't matter who deals with them as long as they are dealt with.)
(b) the agent must not be mentioned (often to avoid being impolite, or to avoid mentioning who is responsible for the action). Perhaps the report should be studied in more detail. (more polite than saying 'you should study the report in more detail') These invoices should have been sent yesterday. (avoids mentioning who should have sent them.)

2.2

Although the passive allows us to omit the agent, sometimes we construct a passive sentence because we want to use a more formal style and not for any of the reason stated above. In such cases, we might want to mention the agent. This is mostly done by using the word by.

The machinery was serviced by a team of experienced technicians.

2.3.

When the agent is not a person or thing that acts, but rather a means through which something is done, we use the word with.

The door was opened with a crowbar.

2.4.

In relative clauses, the relative pronoun and 'BE' can be omitted.

Candidates who are selected for a second interview will be tested on their writing skills.

Candidates selected for a second interview will be tested on their writing skills.

The Agreement, which is signed by both parties, is not to be broken.

The Agreement, signed by both parties, is not to be broken.

2.5.

Adverbs in passive sentences are usually inserted between the “BE” and the Past Participle.

They were heavily penalized.

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Past Perfect Forms

Positive	Negative	Question
I had finished. You had finished. We had finished. They had finished. He had finished. She had finished. It had finished.	I had not finished. You had not finished. We had not finished. They had not finished. He had not finished. She had not finished. It had not finished.	Had I finished? Had you finished? Had we finished? Had they finished? Had he finished? Had she finished? Had it finished?

Past Perfect Simple and Continuous

Past Perfect

FORM

[had + past participle]

Examples:

• You had studied English before you moved to New York.
• Had you studied English before you moved to New York?
• You had not studied English before you moved to New York.

USE 1 Completed Action Before Something in the Past

The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past. It can also show that something happened before a specific time in the past.

Examples:

• I had never seen such a beautiful beach before I went to Kauai.
• I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
• Tony knew Istanbul so well because he had visited the city several times.
• Had Susan ever studied Thai before she moved to Thailand?
• She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
• Kristine had never been to an opera before last night.
• We were not able to get a hotel room because we had not booked in advance.
• A: Had you ever visited the U.S. before your trip in 2006?
  B: Yes, I had been to the U.S. once before.

USE 2 Duration Before Something in the Past (Non-Continuous Verbs)

With Non-Continuous Verbs and some non-continuous uses of Mixed Verbs, we use the Past Perfect to show that something started in the past and continued up until another action in the past.

Examples:

• We had had that car for ten years before it broke down.
• By the time Alex finished his studies, he had been in London for over eight years.
• They felt bad about selling the house because they had owned it for more than forty years.

Although the above use of Past Perfect is normally limited to Non-Continuous Verbs and non-continuous uses of Mixed Verbs, the words "live," "work," "teach," and "study" are sometimes used in this way even though they are NOT Non-Continuous Verbs.

IMPORTANT Specific Times with the Past Perfect

Unlike with the Present Perfect, it is possible to use specific time words or phrases with the Past Perfect. Although this is possible, it is usually not necessary.

Example:

• She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.

MOREOVER

If the Past Perfect action did occur at a specific time, the Simple Past can be used instead of the Past Perfect when "before" or "after" is used in the sentence. The words "before" and "after" actually tell you what happens first, so the Past Perfect is optional. For this reason, both sentences below are correct.

Examples:

• She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.
• She visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in with them in 1996.

HOWEVER

If the Past Perfect is not referring to an action at a specific time, Past Perfect is not optional. Compare the examples below. Here Past Perfect is referring to a lack of experience rather than an action at a specific time. For this reason, Simple Past cannot be used.

Examples:

• She never saw a bear before she moved to Alaska. Not Correct
• She had never seen a bear before she moved to Alaska. Correct

ADVERB PLACEMENT

The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

Examples:

• You had previously studied English before you moved to New York.
• Had you previously studied English before you moved to New York?

ACTIVE / PASSIVE

Examples:

• George had repaired many cars before he received his mechanic's license. Active
• Many cars had been repaired by George before he received his mechanic's license. Passive

Adjectives

An opinion adjective explains what you think about something (other people
Opinion may not agree with you).
Examples: silly, beautiful, horrible, difficult
A size adjective, of course, tells you how big or small something is.
Size
Examples: large, tiny, enormous, little
An age adjective tells you how young or old something or someone is.
Age
Examples: ancient, new, young, old
A shape adjective describes the shape of something.
Shape
Examples: square, round, flat, rectangular
A colour adjective, of course, describes the colour of something.
Colour
Examples: blue, pink, reddish, grey
An origin adjective describes where something comes from.
Origin
Examples: French, lunar, American, eastern, Greek
A material adjective describes what something is made from.
Material
Examples: wooden, metal, cotton, paper
A purpose adjective describes what something is used for. These adjectives
Purpose often end with “-ing”.
Examples: sleeping (as in “sleeping bag”), roasting (as in “roasting tin”)