Active & Passive Voice
🔒 Log in to trackReverse conversions: passive to active
🔒 Log in to trackTo go back from passive to active, move the doer to the front and rebuild the tense. Read the first helping verb, not the participle, to find the tense. If no doer is given, use they. The old subject leaves in the object case.
The reverse run
The method mirrors the forward one. Move the doer to the front, rebuild the tense, and move the old subject behind the verb.
| Passive | Active |
|---|---|
| The letter was written by Sita. | Sita wrote the letter. |
| The road is being repaired. | They are repairing the road. |
| The work had been finished. | She had finished the work. |
| The results will be declared. | The board will declare the results. |
| The kite was being flown by the boy. | The boy was flying the kite. |
Read the first helping verb
The participle never tells you the tense. Every passive row ends in V3. The first helping verb shows the tense.
| Passive | Active tense | Example |
|---|---|---|
| was/were + V3 | simple past | was written becomes wrote |
| is/are being + V3 | present continuous | is being written becomes is writing |
| was/were being + V3 | past continuous | was being written becomes was writing |
| has/have been + V3 | present perfect | has been written becomes has written |
| had been + V3 | past perfect | had been written becomes had written |
| will be + V3 | simple future | will be written becomes will write |
| will have been + V3 | future perfect | will have been written becomes will have written |
| modal + be + V3 | modal + V1 | must be obeyed becomes must obey |
Rule: Being means continuous. If the passive has being, the active must have V-ing.
Find the doer
- A by-phrase gives the new subject. By Sita becomes Sita. Keep the noun. Change only its place.
- No by-phrase? Use they (or people). The thief was arrested last night becomes They arrested the thief last night.
- Do not reverse the roles. The window was broken by the cricketer becomes The cricketer broke the window. It never becomes The window broke the cricketer.
The old subject leaves in the object case
The old subject moves behind the verb, so a pronoun takes the object form.
- She was praised by the teacher. becomes The teacher praised her.
- He was helped by his friends. becomes His friends helped him.
Watch: An option that ends praised she or helped he is wrong at once. Check the last word first.
Continuous passives return to V-ing
Was being + V3 is past continuous. The active must use was/were + V-ing.
The path was being cleared by volunteers. becomes The volunteers were clearing the path.
Two decoys are common. One returns the simple past (cleared) and loses the ongoing sense. The other changes the tense to present perfect. Reject both.
Let and requested go back
- Let the door be shut. becomes Shut the door.
- You are requested to post this letter. becomes Please post this letter.
The frame word tells you the tone: requested means please, advised means advice, warned means danger.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
Tense recovery from the first helping verb
A passive sentence with a by-phrase. The active options differ only in tense.
Ignore the participle and read the first helping verb.
Map it: had been to had + V3, has been to has + V3, was being to was/were + V-ing, will be to will + V1.
Move the by-phrase noun to the subject slot.
Put the old subject after the verb.
Every passive row ends in V3, so only the helping verb shows the tense.
Select the active form: The walls had been whitewashed by the masons.
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Had been + V3 is past perfect.
The doer is the masons.
Past perfect active: had + V3.
The masons had whitewashed the walls.
Missing doer: supply they
The passive has no by-phrase. The right option starts with They and keeps the tense.
Check that there is no by-phrase.
Put they in front of the rebuilt verb.
Move the passive subject to the object slot.
Passives often hide a vague doer. They is the usual stand-in.
Select the active form: The results will be declared on Monday.
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Will be + V3 is simple future.
There is no doer, so use they.
Active: will + V1.
They will declare the results on Monday.
Object-case pronoun at the end
The passive subject is a pronoun (he, she, they, we). The options end with the pronoun in both cases.
Move the by-phrase noun to the front and rebuild the tense.
The old subject pronoun leaves in the object case: him, her, them, us.
Scan the last word of each option first.
This is the mirror of the forward pronoun swap.
Select the active form: She was praised by the teacher.
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Was praised is simple past.
The teacher is the doer.
She becomes her in the object slot.
The teacher praised her.
Continuous passive returns to V-ing
The passive has is/are/was/were being + V3. One option is a plain past and another is a perfect. Only the V-ing option is right.
Spot being: the active must have V-ing.
Match the helping verb to the tense and to the doer's number.
Keep the rest of the sentence.
Dropping the continuous in the active changes the meaning.
Select the active form: The path was being cleared by the volunteers.
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Was being + V3 is past continuous.
The doer the volunteers is plural: were + V-ing.
The old subject the path moves after the verb.
The volunteers were clearing the path.
Let and requested frames go back
The passive starts with Let ... be or You are requested / advised / warned to. The active options are orders or requests.
Let ... be + V3 goes back to a bare order.
Requested to goes back to please.
Keep the object and the rest of the sentence.
The frame words are only the passive form of an order or request.
Select the active form: You are requested to post this letter.
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Requested to means the sentence is a polite request.
Use please.
Keep the verb and the object.
Please post this letter.
Shortcuts that save time
Read only the first helping verb. Was means past. Is means present. Has or had means perfect. Will means future. Is being and was being mean continuous.
Select the active form: The walls had been whitewashed by the masons.
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Had been + V3 is past perfect.
The doer is the masons.
Past perfect active: had + V3.
The masons had whitewashed the walls.
The by-phrase gives the new subject. No by-phrase means they, people or someone.
The last pronoun must be in the object case: praised him, not praised he. Many options fail exactly here.
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Taking was being chased back to chased.
Keep it continuous: were chasing.
Leaving the old subject in the subject slot: The principal was praised him.
Move it behind the verb in the object case.
Ending with a subject pronoun: praised he.
Use the object pronoun: praised him.
Changing the tense on the way back: was written becomes has written.
Read the first helping verb. Was means simple past: wrote.
Reversing the roles: The window broke the cricketer.
The by-phrase noun is the doer: The cricketer broke the window.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
The doer becomes the subject. If there is no doer, use they.
Read the first helping verb: was, is being, has been, had been, will be, modal be.
The old subject leaves in the object case: praised her, helped him.
being in the passive means V-ing in the active.
modal + be + V3 goes back to modal + V1.
requested means please. Let ... be ... means a bare order.
Practice: 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 6 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.