Passive Forms

The passive voice allows you to focus on the action or the recipient of the action, rather than the doer. Mastering the passive enables you to write and speak formally, objectively, and with variety.

In this lesson, you’ll
(1) review passive formation across tenses,
(2) learn formal passive reporting patterns, and
(3) extend to causatives, two-object passives, and selected advanced uses.

1. Basics of the Passive

Use

• To emphasize what happened, not who did it.
• To make language formal, objective, or impersonal.
• Common in processes, scientific writing, and official reports.

Formation

Object of the active sentence → subject in the passive + be (agreeing with the new subject in the correct tense) + past participle (+ by + agent if needed)

Only verbs that take an object can usually be made passive (e.g., make, build, give). Intransitive verbs like arrive, happen, occur do not form a normal passive (An accident occurred → not An accident was occurred).

Examples

• The report was written by the manager.
• The cookies were baked yesterday.
• A new bridge is being built in the city center.

Notes

The agent (“by…”) is optional if unknown or unimportant.

The documents were signed yesterday. ✓
The documents were signed by the CEO. ✓

2. Passive in Different Tenses

Present simple

is/are + past participle

• The files are checked every day.

Past simple

was/were + past participle

• The decision was announced yesterday.

Future simple

will be + past participle

• The results will be published next week.

Present continuous

am/is/are being + past participle

• The room is being cleaned now.

Past continuous

was/were being + past participle

• The house was being renovated when I visited.

Present perfect

has/have been + past participle

• The project has been completed successfully.

Past perfect

had been + past participle

• The documents had been prepared before the meeting.

Future perfect

will have been + past participle

• By next Monday, all applications will have been processed.

Modals

modal + be + past participle (present/future) / modal + have been + past participle (past)

• The problem should be solved quickly.
• The figures must be verified.
• The figures must have been verified.

Meaning note: must be verified often = obligation/requirement; must have been verified often = logical deduction about the past. Advanced: might be being monitored / could have been being monitored exist but are rare—prefer rephrasing in formal writing.

Tips

• Perfect forms emphasize completion or result.
• Continuous passive emphasizes ongoing action.
• Modals express necessity, probability, or obligation formally.

3. Passive with Reporting Verbs

Used to make reported speech or statements more formal.

Examples

• Active: The manager said, “We will review the proposal.”
• Passive (it-clause): It was said that the proposal would be reviewed.
• Passive (raised subject): The proposal was said to be reviewed. (more formal/marked)
• More natural complement: The proposal was said to be under review.

Notes

Be careful to distinguish:

• be + past participle: passive event OR resulting state (context decides). Some participles are adjectival (state) as well as passive (event). A clue is whether an agent/by-phrase or an action-time fits naturally. Compare: The door was closed at 6 p.m. (someone closed it: event) vs The door was closed all day (state). If you can add a by-phrase naturally (by the guard), it is more likely an eventive passive.
• passive reporting verb + to-infinitive / perfect infinitive: distance/impersonal reporting. He is reported to have resigned.
• be + to-infinitive can also express official arrangement/instruction. The President is to visit tomorrow.

Also note two core passive reporting structures (same meaning):

• It is believed that the new rules apply to all staff.
• The new rules are believed to apply to all staff.

And for past meaning:

• It is reported that he has resigned.
• He is reported to have resigned.

4. Causative Passive

The causative passive is used when someone arranges for another person to do something. The focus is on the action being done, not on who does it.

Structure

have / get + object + past participle

Examples (Past tense)

• I had my car repaired yesterday.
• She got her house painted last week.

Examples (Present tense)

• I have my car repaired every year.
• She gets her house painted regularly.

Causative meaning = I arrange/pay for it: I have my car repaired every year (as part of a service plan).
Ordinary passive = the car receives the action, agent unknown: My car is repaired every year.

Examples (Future tense)

• I will have my car repaired tomorrow.
• She will get her house painted next month.

Notes

“Get” is slightly less formal than “have” and is more common in spoken English. Remember, in causative passive, the focus is on the action performed on the object, not on who performs it.

5. Passive with Two Objects

Some verbs take two objects, and both can appear in the passive.

Examples

• Active: The teacher gave the students homework.
• Passive 1: Homework was given to the students.
• Passive 2: The students were given homework.

Notes

Use the form that emphasizes either the thing or the person.

6. Passive within Advanced Structures

These are not new passive forms; they are structures where passive is commonly used for focus and formality.

In the examples below, notice that the passive inside the structure still follows the same tense/modal patterns from Sections 1–2 (e.g., had been signed, is considered, would have been delayed).

A. Clefts and fronting

• Example: It was the manager who was praised for the project.
• Focuses on emphasis.

B. Passive with gerunds

• Example: Being promoted is considered a great achievement.
• Useful for formal, academic, and professional writing, where an objective or impersonal tone is required.

C. Passive in conditionals

• Example: If the documents had been signed earlier, the project would have started on time.
• Combines perfect tenses and passive to express hypothetical outcomes.

7. Key Points and Takeaways

• The passive emphasizes the action or recipient, not the doer.
• Use the passive in all tenses, modals, perfect/continuous forms, and reporting structures.
• It is essential for formal writing, academic texts, and professional communication.
• Mastery allows you to write objectively, emphasize results, and add stylistic variety.