The passive Flashcards
form the passive
-to be + past participle
-the tense of the verb ‘to be’ changes to give different tenses in the passive
-passive sentences move focus from the subject to the object of active tenses
exmp. the passive
They are building a new bridge.
The new bridge is being built.
when do we use passive
-when we prefer not to mention who or what does the action (it’s not known, it’s obvious we don’t want to say it)
-so that we can start a sentence with the most important or most logical information
- in more formal, informal or scientific writing ; notices, announcements (Customers are required to refrain from smoking.)
- ‘by and the agent’ ar omited if the agent is not important or unknown or obvious
exmp. by and the agent
Her car is being repaired.
it isn’t important by who the car is fixed
