Today we are looking at the difference between active and passive tense. As always, there are two very important aspects to learn: 1. how we FORM the active and passive tense and 2. when we USE the active and passive tense.
ACTIVE TENSE
In order to understand passive tense, it is very important to understand the active tense and how to identify the subject and the direct object (if there is one) in the sentence. Let’s have a quick review.
Form
- It follows the pattern of Subject + Verb (+ Direct Object)
- The children sang a song.
- IDENTIFYING THE SUBJECT
- The subject answers the question – Who or what did the action?
- The dogs barked all night long.
- In this case, it is the dogs who are doing the action. They are the subject.
- The subject answers the question – Who or what did the action?
- IDENTIFYING THE DIRECT OBJECT
- If there is a Direct Object, it answers the question, what received the action of the verb?
- Carol invited her friends to the party.
- In this case, ‘her friends‘ received the action of being invited, so ‘her friends‘ are the direct object.
- In the example: The dogs barked all night long, here is no direct object since nothing received the action of barking.
- If there is a Direct Object, it answers the question, what received the action of the verb?
Use
- The active tense is what we mostly use.
- Use the active tense to highlight who or what is performing an action.
PASSIVE TENSE
Here we will see how and when we use the passive tense in English.
Form
- The passive tense follows the pattern: Direct object + verb to be + past participle (+ by + subject).
- The song was sung by the children.
- IDENTIFYING THE SUBJECT
- Just as we saw with the active tense, the subject answers the question – Who or what did the action?
- The game was developed by online users.
- Who developed the game? the online users – so they are the subject.
- The subject tends to follow the verb in a passive tense or it may not appear at all.
- The game was already played.
- If we ask the question – Who played the game? There is no answer, so there is no subject in this sentence.
- Just as we saw with the active tense, the subject answers the question – Who or what did the action?
- IDENTIFYING THE DIRECT OBJECT
- Direct Objects answer the question – what received the action?
- The game was developed by online users.
- What was developed? The game, so it is the direct object.
- Notice the direct object begins the sentence in a passive tense.
- Direct Objects answer the question – what received the action?
Use
It is important to note that in English the passive tense is more formal than the active tense. In your language this may not be the case, so WHEN we use the passive tense is important. There are several reasons why we would use it.
- Use the passive tense when the subject is not known
- She was robbed yesterday. (we do not know who did it)
- The car was hit on the side of the road. (we don’t know who hit the car)
- Also use the passive tense when the subject is obvious
- It was so beuatifully performed. (We just watched a performance, so we know who performed).
- Use the passive tense when you do not want to say who is responsible for something.
- The house was just bought this morning. (I am not allowed to tell you who bought the house)
- I was told he would not be attending the event. (I do not want to or I can’t tell you who told me this information)
- Lastly, use the passive tense when you want to put emphasis on who or what was affected by the action.
- Millions of people were displaced by the fire.
- Home were evacuated all night long.
- The clothes were made in Spain.
- In all of these examples, the direct objects are the focus of the sentence.
COMMON MISTAKES
There are several things to take into consideration when using the passive tense.
- Use the correct form of the verb ‘to be’
- Also use the correct form of the past participle of the verb (this is the third column)
- Know what the subject and direct object is and present them correctly
- Don’t overuse the passive tense. Remember this is a formal tense, so it may seen out of place in common language use.
English Grammar
Not that you have seen the difference between Active and Passive Tense, take a look at our other Grammar focused posts:
Grammar Hammer: Present Perfect
Grammar Hammer: Stop + infinitive or gerund
