 Passive voice examples, present and past, from EspressoEnglish.net. In the active voice, the subject of the sentence does the action. For example, John painted the house last week. John is the subject, painted is the verb, and the house is the object. In the passive voice, the subject of the sentence receives the action. For example, the house was painted last week. The house is the subject, and was painted is the verb. Notice that the object in the active sentence becomes the subject in the passive sentence. The passive voice is used when we do not know who did the action. For example, the documents were stolen. We don't know who stole the documents. The passive voice is also used when the receiver of the action is more important than the doer. For example, the pyramids were built nearly 5,000 years ago by the ancient Egyptians. We want to keep the focus on the pyramids. To change the active voice into the passive voice, make the object of the active sentence into the subject of the passive sentence. Use the verb to be in the same tense as the main verb of the active sentence, and use the past participle of the main verb of the active sentence. Let's look at some examples. Active People drink champagne on New Year's Eve. Passive Champagne is drunk on New Year's Eve. Active Chefs use these machines to mix the ingredients. Passive These machines are used to mix the ingredients. Active They renovated the restaurant in 2004. Passive The restaurant was renovated in 2004. Active The teachers informed the students that the class had been cancelled. Passive The students were informed that the class had been cancelled. To form the passive voice in the present tense, use is or are plus the past participle. We often use the present tense passive for processes. For example, first the apples are picked, then they are cleaned, and finally they are packed and shipped to the market. We also use the present tense passive voice for general thoughts, opinions and beliefs. For example, New York is considered the most diverse city in the U.S. It is believed that Amelia Earhart's plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean. Hungarian is seen as one of the world's most difficult languages to learn. Skin cancers are thought to be caused by excessive exposure to the sun. To form the passive voice in the past tense, use was or were plus the past participle. We often use the passive voice in the past tense for events in history. For example, George Washington was elected president in 1788. As well as crimes and accidents. For example, two people were killed in a drive-by shooting on Friday night. Ten children were injured when part of the school roof collapsed. As well as in many other situations when the person who did the action is unknown or unimportant. If you want to master the details of English grammar, join my advanced English grammar course. It includes 45 detailed lessons with teacher feedback on your writing. Click on the link in the video for more information.