Active and Passive Voice: Examples and Usage

Active and Passive Voice

Normal Sentences

• My father gets a good salary.
  A good salary is gotten by my father.
• The boss lent me one of his books.
  I was lent one of his books by the boss.
• He did not pay the bill.
  The bill wasn't paid.
• My neighbor is going to buy a new car.
  A new car is going to be bought by my neighbor.
• I had lost my umbrella when it began to rain.
  My umbrella had been lost when it began to rain.
• Alice was looking for her pencils.
  Her pencils were being looked for by Alice.
• I will hang a picture on the wall.
  A picture will be hung on the wall.
• Susan has not answered your letters.
  Your letters haven't been answered by Susan.
• Amy Winehouse broke an expensive picture at the hotel.
  An expensive picture was broken at the hotel by Amy Winehouse.
• Tom's mother keeps the yogurt in the refrigerator.
  The yogurt is kept in the refrigerator by Tom's mother.
• Mrs. Thompson has the best garden in the town.
  The best garden in the town is had by Mrs. Thompson.
• We will send the parcel immediately.
  The parcel will be sent immediately.
• The waiter brought a bottle of beer.
  A bottle of beer was brought by the waiter.
• The truck was carrying a bag full of money.
  A bag full of money was being carried by the truck.
• The students had read the text in class.
  The text had been read in class by the students.
• We were enjoying our dinner at the restaurant.
  Our dinner was being enjoyed at the restaurant.
• Sally has accepted the invitation for my birthday party.
  The invitation for my birthday party has been accepted by Sally.
• He repeated the question several times.
  The question was repeated several times.

Impersonal Sentences

• A lot of children think Santa Claus is real.
  Santa Claus is thought by a lot of children to be real.
• The bodyguards assume that the fight was a trap.
  The fight is assumed to have been a trap by bodyguards.
• The police proved that the thieves stole the money.
  The thieves were proved by the police to have stolen the money.
• Politicians believe that global warming is dangerous.
  Global warming is believed by the politicians to be dangerous.
• The company reported that the new models will be totally made in Madrid.
  The new models were reported by the company to be totally made in Madrid.
• NASA confirms that the space shuttle fell into the Pacific Ocean.
  The space shuttle is confirmed by NASA to have fallen into the Pacific Ocean.
• The country expects that the workers finish the stadium before the World Cup.
  The workers are expected by the country to finish the stadium before the World Cup.
• They assume that the security system failed.
  The security system is assumed to have failed.