Mastering the Passive Voice: Form, Function, and Every Advanced Form You Need to Know

When you first learn English, you are taught to write directly: “The chef cooked the meal.” This is the active voice. But as you advance, you realize that native speakers and professional writers constantly flip this structure on its head.

The passive voice isn’t just a grammar rule to memorize—it is a powerful tool used to shift focus, sound more professional, and control the flow of your writing.

Let’s break down exactly how the passive voice works, explore its advanced forms, and look at practical examples you can use right away.

Why Use the Passive Voice?

The primary reason to use the passive voice is to change the focus of your sentence. By moving the object to the front, you tell the reader what is most important.

Active (Focus on the person): Aliya Monier directed the film.
Passive (Focus on the artwork): The film was directed by Aliya Monier.

Beyond shifting focus, we typically use the passive voice in three main scenarios:

The “Doer” is Unknown or Obvious: You don’t know who did it, or it’s too obvious to mention.
- My car was stolen last night. (We don’t know the thief).
- The thief was arrested. (Obviously by the police).
To Be Diplomatic or Tactful: When you want to highlight an error without pointing fingers or blaming someone directly.
- The invoice wasn’t paid. (Polite) vs. You didn’t pay the invoice. (Accusatory).
Formal, Academic, or Scientific Writing: Where the process or result matters far more than the individual researcher.
- The liquid was heated to 100°C.

1. The Standard Passive (`Be` + Past Participle)

The most common way to build a passive sentence is by combining a form of the verb to be with the past participle (V3) of the main verb.

Formula: Subject + Form of “To Be” + Past Participle (+ by + Agent)

The “doer” of the action is called the agent. Most of the time, we drop the agent completely. However, if the agent adds vital context or a surprise element, we introduce them using the preposition by.

The new smoke alarm was installed yesterday. (Agent omitted—unimportant).
The new smoke alarm was installed yesterday by the company director herself. (Agent included—surprising/important context).

Passive Voice Across Different Tenses

Tense	Active Voice	Passive Voice
Present Simple	They clean the office daily.	The office is cleaned daily.
Past Simple	The team launched the app.	The app was launched.
Present Continuous	They are repairing the road.	The road is being repaired.
Past Continuous	She was baking a cake.	A cake was being baked.
Present Perfect	Someone has found your keys.	Your keys have been found.
Past Perfect	They had finalized the deal.	The deal had been finalized.

2. Passive Voice with Modal Verbs

You can easily combine the passive voice with modal verbs like can, must, should, may, and could to express permission, obligation, or possibility.

Formula: Subject + Modal Verb + Be + Past Participle

Can: A high-quality podcast can be made with minimal resources.
Must: The traffic accident must be reported to the police immediately.
Should: New laws should be created to regulate electric scooters in urban areas.

3. The Informal Passive: Using `Get`

In casual, spoken English, native speakers frequently substitute the verb be with get. This structure is almost always used for unexpected, accidental, or negative events.

My bicycle got stolen last night. (= was stolen)
He got promoted after months of hard work. (= was promoted)
Be careful you don’t get caught in the rain. (= are caught)

⚠️ Grammar Tip: Avoid using the “Get Passive” in academic essays, business emails, or formal presentations. Stick to the standard “Be Passive” in those settings!

4. The Imperson-al Passive (Advanced)

If you are preparing for advanced English exams like Cambridge C1/C2 or IELTS, mastering the impersonal passive is essential.

We use this structure with reporting verbs—such as allege, believe, claim, consider, estimate, expect, know, report, say, think, understand—to talk about what an unspecified group of people or society in general believes.

There are two distinct structures you can use to build an impersonal passive sentence:

Form A: The `It` Construction

This is the easier of the two forms. You start the sentence with an empty “It”.

Formula: It + Be + Past Participle + (that) + Subject + Verb

It is estimated that millions of people visit the historical site every year.
It is believed that the ancient stone walls date from the third century BCE.
It was reported that the storm caused severe damage to the coast.

Form B: The Infinitive Construction

This form is more complex because it pulls the real subject to the front of the sentence and changes the trailing verb into an infinitive form.

Formula: Subject + Be + Past Participle + Infinitive

Depending on when the action takes place, you must choose the correct type of infinitive:

1. Simple Infinitive (For present or future states)

Millions of people are estimated to visit the site this year.
The walls are believed to date from the third century BCE.

2. Perfect Infinitive (For actions that happened in the past)

The historical walls are believed to have been built in the third century BCE.
The suspect is reported to have fled the country last night.

3. Continuous Infinitive (For actions currently in progress)

Mosquitoes are reported to be transmitting the virus across the region.
The company is thought to be developing a brand-new operating system.

Summary Cheat Sheet

Basic Shift: Focus moves from the doer to the receiver of the action.
Formal Tone: Use Be + V3 (The report was submitted).
Informal Tone: Use Get + V3 (The computer got broken).
Reporting News/Rumors: Use the Impersonal Passive (It is alleged that… or He is said to…).