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1. Passive Voice

Sentences are passive when the subject does not perform the action. Instead, the subject receives an action or is the result of an action. The person or thing that performed the action may be unimportant or unknown in a passive sentence.

The passive voice is formed with a form of be and the past participle of the main verb. For example:
Dinner is served from 5:00 to 8:00.
many people were injured by the tornado last night.
The letter was mailed by Nick.

Passive sentences focus on the noun that is the receiver or result of an action rather than the noun that is performing the action (the agent). In fact passive sentence very often do not mention the agent at all. For example:
Super computers were developed in order to solve complex problems.
The mail is delivered at noon.

Passive sentences are used to make sentence sound more impersonal. For example:
Passengers are requested to remain seated.
An errors was made in this months payroll.

Overview

Tense or Model Passive Sentence
Simple Present The TOEFL exam is given every six months
Simple past The TOEFL exam was given last month
Simple Future The TOEFL exam will be given every year
Present Continuous The TOEFL exam is being given every year
Present perfect The TOEFL exam has been given every year since 1950
Past perfect The TOEFL exam had been given before the Vietnam War occurred
Simple Modal The TOEFL exam should be given to every Foreign student
Past Modal The TOEFL exam should have been given to all entering US colleges.


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