The Passive Voice
The Passive Voice :
VERBS
A Verb is a word used to assert or affirm as “John strikes the table.”
Explanation : To assert or affirm means to speak or say something of a person or thing. The verb declares that something is or something is done.
Note : The teacher should pause here and use every expedient to teach the scholar to distinguish the Verb from the other words in a sentence, particularly from the Noun and the Adjective. When the scholar has learned to distinguish these three parts of speech, the Noun, the Adjective and the Verb, he has really laid the foundation of Grammar. The rest of the superstructure is comparatively easy.
Exercises :
Suppose I say, “John walks.” what do I assert or affirm of John?
Answer : That he walks. What part of speech is WALKS? What is a verb?
In the following sentences, which words are verbs and why?
1. The man rode on a horse.
2. The girl spoke to me.
3. Clouds move over the earth.
4. The man eats his dinner.
5. The boy went to school early.
6. The slate fell and broke.
7. Water runs down hill.
8. I heard a loud noise.
Note : That which the verb asserts or affirms is generally some action. Sometimes, however, that which the verb asserts or affirms is not exactly action, but rather a state of being as…..
Henry is here. Charles resembles his father.
In the following sentences, which words are verbs and why?
1. William looks sick.
2. Charles is here.
3. The horse was in the field.
4. The fish are in the lake.
5. John was in the boat.
6. The boys were in the barn.
7. The girls arc in the parlor.
8. The horses wore in the stable.
A verb is necessary to make a finished sentence, that is, a sentence in which something is asserted or affirmed. In the following sentence, supply some word which will complete the sentence and make it affirm something.
Susan _________ into the house.
What part of speech is the word _____________? What is a verb?
Supply a verb in each of the following sentences:.
1. The rain __________ upon the earth.
2. I ________ you there.
3. They ________ him in the field.
4. The cows ________ in the meadow.
5. Birds ________ in the air.
6. The boys ________ in school.
7. Summer ________ hotter than winter.
8. The horse _______ the wagon.
Attributes of Verbs
Verbs have the attributes of VOICE, MOOD, TENSE, NUMBER and PERSON.
Certain parts of the verb also are called PARTICIPLES.
Voice
Voice is that attribute of the verb which denotes whether the subject or nominative of the verb acts or is acted upon.
Verbs have two voices : the Active Voice and the Passive Voice.
The Active Voice is that form of the verb which denotes that the subject or nominative acts or does the thing mentioned as…..John strikes the table.
The Passive Voice is that form of the verb which denotes that the subject or nominative is acted upon as……The table is struck by John.
Explanation : Take the sentence…..John strikes the table. The subject or nominative of the verb is John who performs the action. It is of him that the assertion is made. But suppose the same action to be expressed thus …. The table is struck by John. Here, the subject or nominative of the verb is changed. It is of the table that the assertion is now made. In the first form of the sentence, the subject of the verb acts and in the second form, the subject is acted upon. That attribute of a verb by which it thus denotes whether the subject of the affirmation acts or is acted upon is called VOICE.
In forming the Passive Voice of a verb and in forming some of the Moods and Tenses, certain other words are used in connection with the verb and make a part of it. Thus in the sentence……The table is struck….IS must be taken with struck. The verb is not struck by itself nor IS by itself, but IS STRUCK taken together.
Exercise : Select all the verbs in the following sentences and state which are in the Active Voice and which in the Passive Voice.
1. Mary studies her lessons.
2. The lessons were studied by Mary.
3. Henry caught a fish in the lake.
4. The squirrel was caught in the trap.
5. The sheep were watched by the shepherd.
6. The soldiers marched to the fort.
7. The fish were caught in a net.
8. The army is commanded by the general.
Give (or write) three sentences containing a verb in the Active Voice and three containing a verb in the Passive Voice.
The Passive Voice :
Elementary English Grammar Index
Related Links : The Passive Voice