Understanding Active and Passive Voice
Active voice emphasizes the subject performing the action, while passive voice highlights the action being performed on the subject. For example, "The cat chased the mouse" (active) becomes "The mouse was chased by the cat" (passive).
Steps to Change Active Voice to Passive Voice
1. Identify the Subject, Verb, and Object
- In the sentence "The chef cooked the meal":
- Subject: The chef
- Verb: cooked
- Object: the meal
2. Swap the Subject and Object
- In passive voice, the object becomes the new subject.
- New Subject: The meal
3. Change the Verb Form
- The verb needs to be changed to its past participle form.
- "cooked" becomes "was cooked".
4. Add the Original Subject (Optional)
- Use the preposition "by" to include the original subject.
- Complete sentence: "The meal was cooked by the chef."
5. Adjust the Tense if Necessary
- Ensure the verb tense remains consistent with the original sentence.
Examples of Conversion
- Active Voice: "The teacher explains the lesson."
- Passive Voice: "The lesson is explained by the teacher."
- Active Voice: "The dog bit the man."
- Passive Voice: "The man was bitten by the dog."
Key Points to Remember
- Always identify the subject, verb, and object first.
- The focus in passive voice is on the action rather than the doer.
- Not all sentences are suitable for passive voice, particularly intransitive verbs (verbs without an object).
By following these steps, you can effectively convert sentences from active to passive voice.