In an active sentence, the subject does the action. In a passive sentence, the subject receives it. Use the passive when the result or receiver matters more, or when the person who did it is unknown or unnecessary.
Active
An editor checked the report.
Subject: an editor · object: the report
Passive
The report was checked (by an editor).
The receiver becomes the subject. The by phrase is optional.
Passive pattern: a form of be + past participle. The form of be carries the time and aspect. Only verbs that can take an object normally make this kind of passive.
Active and passive across the forms
| Form | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| Simple present | The team updates the schedule every week. | The schedule is updated every week. |
| Present continuous | The team is updating the schedule now. | The schedule is being updated now. |
| Simple past | The team updated the schedule yesterday. | The schedule was updated yesterday. |
| Past continuous | The team was updating the schedule at noon. | The schedule was being updated at noon. |
| Present perfect | The team has updated the schedule. | The schedule has been updated. |
| Present perfect continuous | The team has been updating the schedule all morning. | The schedule has been being updated all morning. very rare |
| Past perfect | The team had updated the schedule before the meeting. | The schedule had been updated before the meeting. |
| Past perfect continuous | The team had been updating the schedule for hours. | The schedule had been being updated for hours. very rare |
| Simple future | The team will update the schedule tomorrow. | The schedule will be updated tomorrow. |
| Future continuous | The team will be updating the schedule at noon. | The schedule will be being updated at noon. very rare |
| Future perfect | By Friday, the team will have updated the schedule. | By Friday, the schedule will have been updated. |
| Future perfect continuous | By noon, the team will have been updating it for two hours. | By noon, it will have been being updated for two hours. very rare |
Natural usage: The forms marked “very rare” are grammatically possible, but speakers normally choose a clearer active sentence or rephrase the passive. For example, “The schedule has been under revision all morning” is often easier to read than “has been being updated.”
Other useful passive patterns
| Pattern | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| Going to | They are going to announce the winners. | The winners are going to be announced. |
| Used to | People used to send the forms by post. | The forms used to be sent by post. |
| Would regularly | Our guide would greet every visitor. | Every visitor would be greeted by our guide. |
| Future from a past viewpoint | We knew they would send the results. | We knew the results would be sent. |