Voice
2.1 Active Voice: When the person who is doing the work (verb) is situated at the place of subject and has an effect on the object in a sentence then the verb is said to be in Active voice.
Example: Mukesh eats a mango.
Here, the person who is doing the work (eat that is a verb) is situated on the place of subject and the effect of verb (eats) is on the object (mango).
2.2 Passive Voice: It is just opposite of Active voice in which Subject of active voice becomes object and object of active voice becomes subject of Passive voice without changing the actual meaning of the sentence.
Example: A mango is eaten by Mukesh.
3.1 Method to Change Active Voice to Passive Voice: To change verb of any active voice into passive, there are three rules that are required to be followed essentially –
(i) The Object of Active becomes Subject of the Passive.
When a sentence has two objects then the main object is written as subject in Passive. To determine the main object a question is asked from the verb and the answer of the verb is the main object of the sentence.
Example: Mukesh gave me a book. Here, there are two objects – ‘me’ & ‘a book’. If a question is asked to verb what was given, the answer is ‘a book’. Hence, the main object is ‘a book’ and the same will become the subject of Passive.
(ii) Verb of Active voice changes into Past participle form of verb (Verb3) in Passive.
(iii) Before (verb)3, any form of ‘to be verb’ (is, am, are, was, were, be, been, being etc.) is necessarily added and ‘by’ used before the object of Passive.
3.2 Method to use ‘to be verb’: It depends on category of tense of the sentence. It is used as per nature of the tense.
(a) Simple Present or Present Indefinite tense: Subject + is/am/are + (verb)3 + by + Object
Example: Mukesh eats a mango – A mango is eaten by Mukesh.
(b) Present Imperfect or Present Continuous or Present Progressive tense:
Subject + is/am/are + being + (verb)3 + by + Object.
Example: Mukesh is eating a mango – A mango is being eaten by Mukesh.
(c) Present Perfect tense: Subject + has/have + been + (verb)3 + by + object
Example: Mukesh has eaten a mango – A mango has been eaten by Mukesh.
(d) Present Perfect Continuous: Subject + has/have + been + being + (verb)3 + for/since + by + object.
Example: Mukesh has been eating a mango for 1 hour – A mango has been being eaten by Mukesh for 1 hour.
(e) Simple Past or Past Indefinite: Subject + was/were + (verb)3 + by + object.
Example: Mukesh ate a mango – A mango was eaten by Mukesh.
(f) Past Imperfect or Past continuous or Past Progressive:
Subject + was/were + being + (verb)3 + by + object.
Example: Mukesh was eating a mango – A mango was being eaten by Mukesh.
(g) Past Perfect: Subject + had + been + (verb)3 + by + object.
Example: Mukesh had eaten a mango – A mango had been eaten by Mukesh.
(h) Past Perfect Continuous: Subject + had + been + being + (verb)3 + for/since + by + object.
Example: Mukesh had been eaten a mango for 1 hour – A mango had been being eaten for 1 hour by Mukesh.
(i) Simple Future or Future Indefinite: Subject + shall/will + be + (verb)3 + by + object
Example: Mukesh will eat a mango – A mango will be eaten by Mukesh.
(j) Future Imperfect or Future Continuous or Future Progressive: N.A.
(k) Future Perfect: Subject + shall have, will have + been + (verb)3 + by + object
Example Mukesh will has eaten a mango – A mango will have been eaten by Mukesh.
(l) Future Perfect Continuous: Subject + shall have/will have + been + being + (verb)3 + for/since + by + object.
Example: Mukesh will have been eaten a mango for 1 hour – A mango will have been being eaten for 1 hour by Mukesh.
4.1 Special rule to change from Active voice to Passive voice: In the above para 3.2, it was discussed how to change Active voice to Passive voice in terms of category of tense. Now, it is essential to discuss the process to change from Active Voice to Passive voice in terms of category of ‘sentence’. Following method is used to change active to passive for sentences –
(a) Imperative sentence expressing ‘order’: – Let + Subject + be + (verb)3
Example: Open the door – Let the door be opened.
(b) Imperative sentence expressing ‘advice’: – Subject + should be + (verb)3
Example: Help the poor – the poor should be helped.
(c) Imperative sentence expressing ‘request’: – Your are requested to + active sentence. Please/kindly is removed from the sentence in passive.
Example: Kindly read this letter – You are requested to read this letter.
Requesting sentences are coming with – please/kindly etc.
(d) Interrogative sentence: By whom + Subject + to be verb (is/am/are/was/were/has/have/had etc.) + (verb)3
Example: Who wrote the Ramayana – By whom the Ramayana was written.