Active and passive: who does what to whom
In an active sentence the subject does the action. In a passive sentence the subject has the action done to it. Year 6 children are expected to spot both and to change one into the other.
Quick answer
- Key terms
- active, passive, subject, object
- Key idea
- Same meaning, different focus.
- Year
- Year 6 (and in the test every year).
How the two forms work
| Form | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Active | subject + verb + object | The cat chased the mouse. |
| Passive | object becomes subject + was/were + past participle (+ by the doer) | The mouse was chased by the cat. |
Changing active to passive
- Find the object: the mouse.
- Move it to the front.
- Add was or were and the past participle: was chased.
- Add by and the original subject, or leave them out: The mouse was chased.
Why use the passive?
Writers use the passive to put the focus on what happened rather than who did it, or when the doer is unknown or unimportant: The window was broken. News reports and science write-ups use it often. Too much passive, though, makes writing feel heavy.
Quick quiz
7 questions. Answer them all, then check your score.
Questions
Can a passive sentence leave out the doer?
Yes. The by phrase is optional. The window was broken is a complete passive sentence.
Related
Spelling lists and grammar terminology: Department for Education, National curriculum in England: English programmes of study, Appendices 1 and 2 (Crown copyright 2013), reproduced under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example sentences, tips, explanations and questions are by Litlings.