Interchange of Active and Passive Voice

3. Interchange of Active and Passive Voice

74. A sentence in the Active form can be changed into the Passive form, and vice versa :-

Active. Brutus stabbed Caesar.

Passive. -- Caesar was stabbed by Brutus.

Active. -- The people will make him President.

Passive. -- He will be made President by the people.

Active. -- Who taught you grammar?

Passive. -- By whom were you taught grammar?/Who were you taught grammar by? --

By whom was grammar taught to you ?

Active. -- The Governor gave him a reward.

Passive. -- He was given a reward by the Governor.

A reward was given him by the Governor.

Active. -- The Romans expected to conquer Carthage.

Passive. -- It was expected by the Romans that they would conquer Carthage.

Active. -- One should keep one's, promises.

Passive. -- Promises should be kept.

Active. -- I know her.

Passive. -- She is known to me.

Active. -- My captors were taking me to prison.

Passive. -- I was being taken to prison by my captors.

Active. -- His behaviour vexes me sometimes.

Passive. -- I am sometimes vexed at his behaviour.

Active. -- It is time to shut up the shop.

Passive. -- It is time for the shop to be shut up.

Active. -- The audience loudly cheered the Mayor's speech.

Passive. -- The Mayor's speech was loudly cheered.

Note:- Whenever it is evident who the agent (i.e., doer of the action) is, it is unnecessary

to mention him in the passive form, and this omission gives a neater turn to the sentence.

Thus in the last example the agent is not mentioned in the passive form because only

those who heard the speech could have cheered it.

Passive. -- My pocket has been picked.

Active. -- Someone has picked my pocket.

Passive. -- Our army has been defeated.

Active. -- The enemy has defeated our army.

Passive. -- I shall be obliged to go.

Active. -- Circumstances will oblige me to go.

Note:- The Active Voice is used when the agent, or actor, is to be made prominent; the Passive, when the thing acted upon is to be made prominent. Hence

the Passive Voice may be used when the agent is unknown, or when we do not care to

name the agent ; as, "The ship was wrecked."

Exercise 61.

Change the following sentences into the Passive form. (Omit the agent where possible.)

1. Premchand wrote this novel.

2. We admire the brave.

3. I bought the baby a doll.

4. They know me.

5. He invited me to his house yesterday.

6. They enjoy bathing.

7. I opened the door.

8. 1 read the book long ago.

9. Pakistan expected to win the match.

10. The master appointed him monitor.

11. Who taught you such tricks as these?

12. Brutus accused Caesar of ambition.

13. The boy is climbing the cliff.

14. He taught me to read Persian.

15. One expects better behaviour from a college student.

16. They showed a video of The Titanic'.

17. You must endure what you cannot cure.

18. The King reviewed the troops in the maidan.

19. The curator of the museum showed us some ancient coins.

20. They have pulled down the old house.

21. The rules forbid passengers to cross the railway line.

22. He made his wife do the work.

23. Nature teaches beasts to know their friends.

24. All desire wealth and some acquire it.

25. Lincoln emancipated four million African slaves.

26. We expect good news.

27. They propose to build a dam for irrigation purposes.

28. I offered him a chair.

29. The French surrendered Quebec to the English in 1759.

30. He showed me the greatest respect.

31. Alas ! we shall hear his voice no more.

32. Shall I ever forget those happy days ?

33. Do you not understand my meaning ?

34. We must listen to his words.