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The base of the passive is to be + past participle, where the past participle never changes and "be" indicates a tense. To make passive in a certain English tense, we put the verb "be" into this tense.
| Tense / modals | be | past participle | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infinitive | be | done made built heard employed ... |
The cat doesn't like to be petted. |
| Present simple | am/is/are | You are employed. | |
| Present continuous | am/is/are being | The script is being written. | |
| Present perfect | have/has been | The changes have been made. | |
| Past simple | was/were | I was born on the third of March, 1987. | |
| Past continuous | was/were being | The room was being cleaned when we entered. | |
| Past perfect | had been | The house had been renovated before it was sold. | |
| Future simple | will be | The task will be completed tomorrow. | |
| Modal verbs (must, can, should, might и др.) |
be have been |
He must be stopped. The note might have been left by the neighbour. |
We make question sentences in the passive voice in the same way as with multiple verbs. But no matter how many verbs there are in the sentence, the first word goes before the subject and all others go after the subject.
Examples of questions
Are you paid well? (Present Simple)
Have the changes been made? (Present Perfect)
Why was the room being cleaned? (Past Continuous)
When will the task be completed? (Future Simple)
How long has the script been being written? (Present Perfect Continuous)
We can use passive voice with other verbs including modals:
modal + be + past participle
modal + have been + past participle
Examples of active and passive voice with modals
You must finish the work within two hours. → The work must be finished within two hours.
No one must see me. → I mustn't be seen.
We should cancel the meeting. → The meeting should be cancelled.
I can hear the sound. → The sound can be heard.
I might have left the umbrella at work yesterday. → The umbrella might have been left at work yesterday.
I could have sold my car for five thousand pounds. → My car could have been sold for five thousand pounds.