Passive Voice for Dummies

Hey there!

So, let's talk about the term "Passive Voice." It might sound a bit complicated at first, but don't worry, we'll break it down for you!

When we talk about "Voice" in English grammar, we're talking about how the subject of a sentence relates to the action happening in the sentence. In the "Passive Voice," the subject of the sentence is the one receiving the action rather than performing the action. It's kind of like being on the receiving end of something instead of being the one who does it.

Imagine you and your friend are playing catch. Normally, when you're playing catch, you throw the ball to your friend, right? That's the active voice, where you are the one performing the action of throwing the ball. However, in the passive voice, you would be the one catching the ball instead of throwing it. So the focus shifts from you throwing the ball to you receiving the ball. Make sense so far?

Now, let's see how this translates into sentences. In the active voice, we usually have a sentence structure like this: subject + verb + object. For example, "I wash the dishes." Here, "I" is the subject, "wash" is the verb, and "the dishes" is the object. The subject, in this case, is doing the action.

In the passive voice, however, the sentence structure changes a bit. It becomes object + verb + subject. Using the previous example, the passive voice would be "The dishes are washed by me." Here, "the dishes" is now the subject, "are washed" is the verb, and "by me" is used to show who is performing the action (in this case, "me" or "I"). Notice how the focus shifts from the person doing the action (in the active voice) to the person receiving the action (in the passive voice).

Using the passive voice can be helpful when the doer of the action is not important or is unknown, or when we want to emphasize the receiver of the action instead. It's like changing the perspective of a sentence to highlight different things.

Remember, sometimes the passive voice can make sentences a bit wordy or less direct, so we usually prefer to use the active voice for clearer communication. But it's still good to know and understand the passive voice, as you'll likely come across it in your reading and writing.

So, to summarize, the passive voice is when the subject of a sentence receives the action rather than performing it. It's like shifting the focus from the doer to the receiver of the action. It's just another way of expressing things, and while it's not always necessary, it's important to understand it.

I hope this explanation helps you understand what the "Passive Voice" means. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask! Keep up the great work, and you'll master grammar in no time!

Your friendly teacher :)