Voice

English Grammar Voice: Complete Guide to Active and Passive Voice with Examples | Online Learning

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Learn English Grammar Voice with simple rules, active and passive voice formulas, examples, uses, and tips to improve your English writing and speaking.

English Grammar Voice: Complete Guide to Active and Passive Voice

English grammar is the foundation of effective communication. One of the most important grammar topics every English learner should master is Voice. Understanding Active Voice and Passive Voice helps you write more clearly, speak confidently, and improve your performance in school, competitive exams, and professional communication.

In this comprehensive guide, you will learn the definition of voice, its types, rules, sentence structures, examples, common mistakes, and practical tips.

What is Voice in English Grammar?

Voice is the form of a verb that shows whether the subject performs the action or receives the action.

There are two types of voice in English grammar:

• Active Voice
• Passive Voice

Both forms express the same idea but focus on different parts of the sentence.

Types of Voice

1. Active Voice

In Active Voice, the subject performs the action.

Structure

Subject + Verb + Object

Examples

• John writes a letter.
• She teaches English.
• The teacher explains the lesson.
• They cleaned the classroom.
• We are watching a movie.

In these sentences, the subjects perform the actions.

2. Passive Voice

In Passive Voice, the subject receives the action.

Structure

Object + Helping Verb + Past Participle (V3) + by + Subject

Examples

• A letter is written by John.
• English is taught by her.
• The lesson is explained by the teacher.
• The classroom was cleaned by them.
• A movie is being watched by us.

The focus is on the object rather than the person performing the action.

Why is Voice Important?

Learning voice is essential because it helps you:

• Improve grammar accuracy.
• Write professional emails.
• Write academic essays.
• Understand English books easily.
• Score better in exams.
• Speak more naturally.
• Improve communication skills.

Difference Between Active and Passive Voice

Active Voice	Passive Voice
Subject performs the action.	Subject receives the action.
More direct and natural.	More formal and objective.
Common in daily conversation.	Common in reports and official writing.
Focus on the doer.	Focus on the action or receiver.

Formula of Active Voice

The basic formula is:

Subject + Verb + Object

Examples

• She sings a song.
• Rahul drives a car.
• They play football.
• My mother cooks dinner.

Formula of Passive Voice

The standard formula is:

Object + Helping Verb + Past Participle (V3) + by + Subject

Examples

• A song is sung by her.
• A car is driven by Rahul.
• Football is played by them.
• Dinner is cooked by my mother.

Rules for Changing Active Voice into Passive Voice

Follow these important rules:

Rule 1: Identify Subject, Verb, and Object

Example:

She writes a letter.

• Subject = She
• Verb = writes
• Object = a letter

Passive:

A letter is written by her.

Rule 2: Change the Object into the Subject

Active:

The boy kicked the ball.

Passive:

The ball was kicked by the boy.

Rule 3: Use the Correct Helping Verb

Choose the helping verb according to the tense.

Examples:

• is
• am
• are
• was
• were
• has been
• have been
• had been
• will be
• can be

Rule 4: Always Use the Third Form (V3)

Examples

• write → written
• eat → eaten
• make → made
• speak → spoken
• drive → driven
• buy → bought

Rule 5: Use "by" Before the Doer (Optional)

Sometimes the doer is unnecessary.

Example:

The window was broken.

No need to mention who broke it.

Active and Passive Voice in Different Tenses

Simple Present

Active:

She writes a letter.

Passive:

A letter is written by her.

Present Continuous

Active:

She is writing a letter.

Passive:

A letter is being written by her.

Present Perfect

Active:

She has written a letter.

Passive:

A letter has been written by her.

Simple Past

Active:

She wrote a letter.

Passive:

A letter was written by her.

Past Continuous

Active:

She was writing a letter.

Passive:

A letter was being written by her.

Past Perfect

Active:

She had written a letter.

Passive:

A letter had been written by her.

Simple Future

Active:

She will write a letter.

Passive:

A letter will be written by her.

Future Perfect

Active:

She will have written a letter.

Passive:

A letter will have been written by her.

Modal Verbs

Active:

She can solve the problem.

Passive:

The problem can be solved by her.

Examples of Active and Passive Voice

Active Voice	Passive Voice
He reads a book.	A book is read by him.
They built a house.	A house was built by them.
We watch television.	Television is watched by us.
She prepared dinner.	Dinner was prepared by her.
The police caught the thief.	The thief was caught by the police.
The company launched a product.	A product was launched by the company.
The chef cooked the meal.	The meal was cooked by the chef.
Students completed the assignment.	The assignment was completed by students.

When Should You Use Active Voice?

Use Active Voice when:

• Writing blogs.
• Speaking English.
• Story writing.
• Personal emails.
• Conversations.
• Marketing content.
• Social media posts.

Active Voice makes your writing simple and engaging.

When Should You Use Passive Voice?

Passive Voice is useful when:

• The doer is unknown.
• The action is more important.
• Writing scientific reports.
• Writing news articles.
• Writing official documents.
• Writing formal letters.

Example:

"The documents were submitted yesterday."

The action is more important than the person.

Common Mistakes in Voice

Incorrect

A letter is wrote by him.

Correct

A letter is written by him.

Incorrect

The homework has completed.

Correct

The homework has been completed.

Incorrect

The food cooked by my mother.

Correct

The food was cooked by my mother.

Tips to Master Active and Passive Voice

• Learn all English tenses first.
• Memorize the third form of common verbs.
• Practice sentence transformation daily.
• Read English newspapers and books.
• Write short paragraphs in both voices.
• Solve grammar exercises regularly.
• Listen to English conversations.
• Review your mistakes and correct them.

Practice Exercise

Convert these Active Voice sentences into Passive Voice.

1. She writes a poem.
2. They cleaned the classroom.
3. We will finish the project.
4. The teacher praised the student.
5. He has completed the homework.

Answers

1. A poem is written by her.
2. The classroom was cleaned by them.
3. The project will be finished by us.
4. The student was praised by the teacher.
5. The homework has been completed by him.