Passive Voice — Voz Pasiva
What is passive voice?
- Active: The dog bit the man. (subject = who does the action)
- Passive: The man was bitten by the dog. (subject = who receives the action)
- We use passive when the receiver is more important, or we don't know who did the action.
The importance of the auxiliary "to be"
In the passive voice, the auxiliary BE is essential. It is conjugated according to time (am/is/are, was/were, been, being) and takes the past participle. Without "be" there is no passive.
- The house is built. (present)
- The house was built. (past)
- The house has been built. (present perfect)
- The house will be built. (future)
- The house is being built. (present continuous)
Affirmative, Negative, Interrogative
| Form | Example |
|---|
| Affirmative | The car is made in Japan. |
| Negative | The car isn't made in Japan. / The letter hasn't been sent yet. |
| Interrogative | Is the car made in Japan? / Has the letter been sent? / Was the house built in 2020? |
| Short answers | Yes, it is. / No, it wasn't. / Yes, it has been. |
| Tense | Active | Passive |
|---|
| Present Simple | They make cars in Japan. | Cars are made in Japan. |
| Past Simple | Someone stole my bike. | My bike was stolen. |
| Present Perfect | They have repaired the road. | The road has been repaired. |
| Future Simple | They will build a bridge. | A bridge will be built. |
| Present Continuous | They are building a house. | A house is being built. |
| Past Continuous | They were cleaning the room. | The room was being cleaned. |
"By" — Who did it?
- The book was written by J.K. Rowling.
- The cake was made by my grandmother.
- "by + agent" is only used when it is important to know WHO.
Pattern Summary
| Tense | BE form | + Past Participle |
|---|
| Present Simple | am / is / are | + made, done, sold... |
| Past Simple | was / were | + stolen, built, written... |
| Present Perfect | has/have been | + repaired, seen, finished... |
| Future | will be | + built, opened, sent... |
| Present Continuous | am/is/are being | + built, cleaned, used... |
| Past Continuous | was/were being | + cleaned, repaired, watched... |