Voice

Voice is a grammatical category that applies to the verb in a sentence. It shows the relationship between the doer of an action (subject) and the receiver of that action (object).

There are two types of voice:
1. Active voice
2. Passive voice

The active voice, at its most fundamental level, highlights the person or agency who performs an action, or the "actor." The passive voice highlights the action's recipient or, in rare occasions, the action itself.
Examples,
• The cat caught the mouse.
• The mouse was caught by the cat.

Basic rules to change active voice into passive voice:
• Change the places of subject and object.
• Use the helping verb according to the tense.
• Use third form of the verb.
• Add ‘by’ if necessary.
• If the subject is a pronoun change it into the objective case.

Important points:
• ‘Being’ is used in continuous tense.
• ‘Been’ is used in perfect tense.
• Future continuous and modal continuous tenses cannot be changed into passive voice.
• If ‘be or its forms’ is used as a main verb in a sentence, the sentence cannot be changed into passive voice.

Imperative sentences: Imperative sentences are used to convey an order, request, advice, suggestion, etc.

While converting these sentences into passive voice, we use ‘you are ordered/ requested/ advised, etc.’

Examples,
• Shut the door. (Active voice)
• You are ordered to shut the door. (Passive voice)

We can also change the voice of an imperative sentence (with an object) in the following manner.
• Shut the door. (Active voice)

In the above given sentence we have an object i.e. door.
• Let the door be shut. (Passive voice)

Exercise

Change the voice of the following sentences

1. The gatekeeper stopped him.
a. He stopped the gatekeeper.
b. The gatekeeper was stopped by him.
c. He was stopped by the gatekeeper.
d. He is stopped by the gatekeeper.

2. He is eating an ice cream.
a. An ice cream is eaten by him.
b. An ice cream is being eaten by him.
c. An ice cream is been eaten by him.
d. An ice cream was eaten by him.

3. He had finished the race.
a. The race had been finished by him.
b. The race was finished by him.
c. The race is being finished by him.
d. The race had being finished by him.

4. He was very happy when I met him.
a. When I met him, he was very happy.
b. When I met him, I felt very happy.
c. When he met me, he was very happy.
d. Can’t change the voice.

5. Help the poor.
a. The poor is helped.
b. You are advised to help the poor.
c. You are advised to helped the poor.
d. The poor was helped.

6. The manager has taken the cheque.
a. The cheque was taken by the manager.
b. The cheque had been taken by the manager.
c. The cheque has been taken by the manager.
d. The cheque was being taken by the manager.

7. He was interviewing a popular actor.
a. A popular actor was being interviewed by him.
b. A popular actor is been interviewed by him.
c. A popular actor is interviewed by him.
d. A popular actor is being interviewed by him.

8. The police are investigating the case.
a. The case is investigated by the police.
b. The case was investigated by the police.
c. The case was being investigated by the police.
d. The case is being investigated by the police.

9. She teaches us English.
a. We are taught English by her.
b. We are being taught English by her.
c. We have been taught English by her.
d. We had been taught English by her.

10. He has dug a hole in the ground.
a. A hole in the ground is dug by him.
b. A hole in the ground was dug by him.
c. A hole in the ground has been dug by him.
d. A hole had been dug by him in the ground.

Answers

1. C
2. B
3. A
4. D
5. B
6. C
7. A
8. D
9. A
10. C