Active and passive voice

Which sentence is in passive voice?

• Witnesses last saw the suspect outside the newsagent on Park Road.

• The suspect was last seen by witnesses outside the newsagent on Park Road.

Which sentence is in the passive voice?

• By this time tomorrow, the theatre downtown will have been demolished.

• By this time tomorrow, a wrecking ball will have demolished the theatre downtown.

Is this sentence in active voice or passive voice?

The farmer was alone in the undulating field of wheat.

• Active

• Passive

Is this sentence in active voice or passive voice?

Mark Twain is remembered for his dry humour and sharp wit.

• Active

• Passive

Is this sentence in active voice or passive voice?

J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter books have been translated into more than sixty-five languages.

• Active

• Passive

Is this sentence in active voice or passive voice?

Ten to fifteen percent of adults have suffered at some point from a sleep problem called insomnia.

• Active

• Passive

Is this sentence in active voice or passive voice?

The film Star Wars introduced audiences to the characters Darth Vader, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker.

• Active

• Passive

Choose the best way of continuing this sentence:

'My nephew is an artist.'

• He has just painted another picture.

• Another picture has just been painted by him.

Choose the best way of continuing this sentence:

'The new Star Wars film is marvellous.'

• They are showing it at our local cinema.

• It is being shown at our local cinema.

The passive voice is used when...

• We want to move important information to the back

• It is obvious who performed the action or we do not want to use a general subject

• We want to mention the name of the person who performs the action