Overview
Changing active to passive involves three steps: (1) the object of the active sentence becomes the subject, (2) the verb changes to be + past participle, (3) the original subject becomes the agent (by + noun) or is omitted. Example: The chef cooked the meal → The meal was cooked (by the chef).
3-Step Process
- step 1Move the object → subject position.
- step 2Change verb to be + past participle.
- step 3Put original subject after 'by' — or omit it.
- activeThe chef cooked the meal.
- passiveThe meal was cooked (by the chef).
Tense Changes
- pres. simplewrites → is written
- past simplewrote → was written
- pres. perfecthas written → has been written
- futurewill write → will be written
- pres. cont.is writing → is being written
Common Mistakes
- ❌ The report was wrote → ✅ was written
- ❌ It is being write → ✅ is being written
- ❌ Keep 'by' when agent is obvious/unknown — omit it.
- ❌ The meal cooked → ✅ The meal was cooked.
When to use
Basic Transformation
She wrote the email → The email was written by her.
Dropping the Agent
The bridge was built in 1850.
News Reporting
Three people were injured in the accident.
Academic Writing
The data were collected over six months.