Passive Sentences: What They Are and How To Use Them

Do you know what passive sentences are? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on a passive voice, including its definition, usage, example sentences, and more!

Your writing, at its best

Compose bold, clear, mistake-free, writing with Grammarly's AI-powered writing assistant

Start writing

What are passive sentences?

According to EF, passive sentences, also known as passive voice, are sentences in which the subject of the sentence is acted upon by the verb. In an active sentence, also known as the active voice, the subject of a sentence is the doer of the action of the verb, and is not structured as the recipient of the action. Grammar checkers will look for passive voice in essays and flag them as a grammatical error in English grammar because they can cause confusion. Instructors of lessons in English advise students to avoid passive voice and instead opt for a clear tone. When using the verb’s past participle as the conjugated form, the clarity of your writing suffers and you make the reader work harder to understand the meaning of the sentence with the use of passive voice. Instead, opt for using the appropriate conjugated form of regular verbs and irregular verbs such as the present progressive, past progressive, and others to not make your sentence sound wordy. 

What are examples of passive voice?

Passive voice can be used in many different contexts in the English language. Trying to use a word or grammatical technique in a sentence is one of the best ways to memorize what it is, but you can also try making flashcards or quizzes that test your knowledge. Try using this term of the day in a sentence today! Below are a couple of examples of passive voices that can help get you started incorporating this tool into your everyday use.  Take a look at these passive voice examples from EF, Your Dictionary and Ginger and see how many you can identify the passive voice in!

  •  The repairs of the waste materials were performed by Shelley.
  •  The obstacle course was run by me in record time.
  •  The entire stretch of highway was paved by the crew.
  •  The entire house was painted by Tom.
  •  At dinner, six shrimp were eaten by Harry.
  •  The savannah is roamed by beautiful giraffes.
  •  My car has been stolen!
  •  The insulin was given to the man with diabetes.
  •  The film stars were spoken to by Spielberg.
  •  The poodles are being groomed by the stylist.
  •  All the reservations are being made by the wedding planner.
  •  The metal beams were corroded by the saltwater.
  •  The staff are required by the company to watch a safety video every year.
  •  The house was remodeled by the homeowners to help it sell.
  •  A Hard Day’s Night was written by The Beatles.
  •  Instructions will be given to you by the director.
  •  The flat tire was changed by Sue.
  •  That piece is really enjoyed by the choir.
  •  The treaty is being signed by the two kings.
  •  The lab reports were completed in alternative ways.
  •  The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo Da Vinci.
  •  The people in politics are to be elected next week.
  •  We are to be going to the zoo for my birthday tomorrow.
  •  Every year thousands of people are killed on our roads.
  •  Every night, the office is vacuumed and dusted by the cleaning crew.
  •   The novel was read by Mom in one day.
  •  The comet was viewed by the science class.
  •  Money was generously donated to the homeless shelter by Larry.
  •  The mass of gases was studied by the visitors.
  •  The students’ questions are always answered by the teacher.
  •  All the cookies have been eaten.
  •  I noticed that a window had been left open.
  •  The whole suburb was destroyed by a forest fire.
  •  A movie is going to be watched by us tonight.
  •  He was pulled over and given a ticket by a police officer.
  •  The Grand Canyon is visited by thousands of tourists every year.
  •  The baby was carried by the kangaroo in her pouch.
  •  The house will be cleaned by me every Saturday.
  •  Two dozen cookies will be baked by Susan for the bake sale.

What are other literary techniques and devices?

There are many different literary and grammatical techniques and devices that you might see when you are reading prose or poetry. It is important to recognize these terms because they are always used for some purpose. Knowing these devices can help readers understand the author’s deeper meaning and why they are using such a device. Take a look at the below list of grammatical devices from OED and see how many you know! Then try researching ones that are unfamiliar to you. 

  • present participle
  •  quasi-
  •  subjunctive
  •  appositive
  •  morpheme
  •  inflection | inflected | inflectional
  •  comparative
  •  mood
  •  imperative (imper.)
  •  nominative
  •  past tense
  •  abstract
  •  non-finite
  •  passive
  •  sentence adverb |sentence adverbial
  •  conjunction (conj.)
  •  copular verb | copula
  •  common noun
  •  interrogative
  •  special use
  •  reflexive
  •  mass noun
  •  definite article
  •  non-referential
  •  possessive pronoun
  •  case
  •  phrase (phr.)
  •  article
  •  number
  •  cognate object
  •  causative
  •  present tense
  •  declarative
  •  personal pronoun
  •  main clause
  •  plural
  •  base form
  •  tense
  •  collective noun
  •  cataphoric
  •  gerund
  •  interjection
  •  prepositional object
  •  direct object
  •  subjective
  •  agent noun
  •  proper noun | proper name
  •  part of speech
  •  simple
  •  possessive
  •  periphrasis | periphrastic
  •  perfect
  •  zero
  •  complementary
  •  main verb
  •  element
  •  postmodify | postmodifier
  •  subject
  •  passive infinitive
  •  count noun
  •  impersonal (impers.)
  •  intensifier
  •  indefinite
  •  determiner
  •  progressive
  •  positive
  •  active
  •  intransitive
  •  apposition
  •  object | direct object | indirect object
  •  parenthetical | parenthetically
  •  direct question
  •  absolute (absol.)
  •  compound | compounding
  •  to-infinitive
  •  modify | modifier
  •  direct speech
  •  indirect question
  •  optative
  •  vocative
  •  combination
  •  predicative
  •  dative
  •  pronoun (pron.)
  •  unmarked genitive
  •  auxiliary verb | auxiliary
  •  pro-form
  •  objective
  •  head
  •  person
  •  conditional
  •  concrete
  •  double object
  •  complement
  •  noun phrase
  •  instrumental
  •  participial adjective
  •  indirect object
  •  construed (const., constr.)
  •  stem
  •  masculine
  •  premodify | premodifier
  •  possessive adjective
  •  adjective
  •  transitive
  •  prefix
  •  indicative
  •  past participle
  •  indirect speech
  •  agree | agreement
  •  combining form (comb. form)
  •  participle | past participle | present participle
  •  third-person
  •  verbal noun
  •  singular
  •  parasynthetic
  •  verb (v.)
  •  prepositional passive
  •  filler
  •  construction
  •  protasis
  •  indirect passive
  •  neuter
  •  nominal relative | nominal relative clause
  •  phrasal verb
  •  adverbial | adverbially
  •  relative
  •  prepositional phrase
  •  superlative
  •  anticipatory
  •  noun (n.)
  •  second person
  •  ellipsis | elliptical
  •  anaphoric
  •  adverb (adv.)
  •  modal verb | modal auxiliary verb | modal auxiliary
  •  antecedent
  •  that-clause
  •  feminine
  •  bare infinitive
  •  similative
  •  finite
  •  clause
  •  collocation | collocate
  •  demonstrative
  •  attributive
  •  gender
  •  apodosis and protasis
  •  subordinate clause
  •  locative
  •  first person
  •  genitive
  •  pleonasm | pleonastic
  •  accusative
  •  infinitive
  •  preposition (prep.)
  •  dual
  •  exclamation mark

Overall, passive voice is a sentence structure in which the subject of the sentence is acted upon by the verb.

Sources:

  1. Glossary of grammatical terms | OED 
  2. Passive voice | EF   
  3. Examples of Active and Passive Voice | Your Dictionary 
  4. Passive Voice – Definition, Examples & Exercises | Ginger
mm

Kevin Miller is a growth marketer with an extensive background in Search Engine Optimization, paid acquisition and email marketing. He is also an online editor and writer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He studied at Georgetown University, worked at Google and became infatuated with English Grammar and for years has been diving into the language, demystifying the do's and don'ts for all who share the same passion! He can be found online here.

Recent Posts

Gentrification Meaning

Gentrification Meaning: Here’s What It Means and How To Use It

Blasphemy Meaning

Blasphemy Meaning: Here’s What It Means and How To Use It

AOC Meaning: Here’s What It Means and How To Use It

Understanding how angel numbers work is important if you’re into numerology. Here is what the number 333 means in love!

333 Angel Number Meaning In Love Meaning: Here’s What It Means and How To Use It