Form Active and Passive Voice

Help Questions

8th Grade Writing › Form Active and Passive Voice

Questions 1 - 10
1

Convert this sentence to passive voice. The agent is unknown, so you may omit it: "Someone stole my backpack after practice."

My backpack stole someone after practice.

Someone was stolen my backpack after practice.

My backpack was stealing after practice.

My backpack was stolen after practice.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"Someone stole my backpack" (someone=subject performs stealing). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"My backpack was stolen" (backpack=subject receives stealing, formed with be+past participle "was stolen," original subject can be omitted when unknown). Converting "Someone stole my backpack after practice" to passive with unknown agent: (1) move object "my backpack" to subject position, (2) change verb "stole" to be+past participle "was stolen" (past tense maintained), (3) omit the agent "someone" since it's unknown, resulting in "My backpack was stolen after practice." Choice A correctly converts to passive voice with "My backpack" as subject receiving action "was stolen" and appropriately omits the unknown agent. Choice B fails by making the backpack perform the action illogically, choice C uses incorrect continuous form "was stealing" instead of passive "was stolen," and choice D has incorrect word order "Someone was stolen my backpack." Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: passive voice is particularly useful when actor is unknown ("My bike was stolen") or unimportant, allowing focus on what happened rather than who did it.

2

Identify the voice of this sentence: "The dog chased the squirrel across the yard."

Passive voice

Active voice

Passive voice because it uses a past-tense verb

Active voice because it contains the word "by"

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The dog chased the squirrel" (dog=subject performs chasing). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The squirrel was chased by the dog" (squirrel=subject receives chasing, formed with be+past participle "was chased," original subject becomes "by" agent). The sentence "The dog chased the squirrel across the yard" shows active voice structure: (1) subject "the dog" performs the action, (2) verb uses simple past form "chased" without helping verb "be," (3) object "the squirrel" receives the action directly. Choice B correctly identifies this as active voice because the subject "dog" performs the action of chasing. Choices C and D show common misconceptions—past tense doesn't determine voice (both active and passive can use past tense), and the word "by" can appear in active sentences without indicating passive voice. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

3

Which sentence correctly converts this passive sentence to active voice, keeping the future tense? "The new policy will be announced by the principal tomorrow."

The new policy will be announced tomorrow by the principal will.

The principal will announce the new policy tomorrow.

The new policy will announce the principal tomorrow.

The principal will be announced the new policy tomorrow.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The principal will announce the policy" (principal=subject performs announcing). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The new policy will be announced by the principal" (policy=subject receives announcing, formed with be+past participle "will be announced," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The new policy will be announced by the principal tomorrow" from passive to active in future tense: (1) move "by" agent "the principal" to subject position, (2) change verb "will be announced" to active future form "will announce," (3) move original subject "the new policy" to object position, resulting in "The principal will announce the new policy tomorrow." Choice C correctly converts to active voice with "The principal" as subject performing future action "will announce" on object "the new policy." Choice A fails by keeping passive subject "the new policy" in subject position, choice B maintains passive structure with incorrect form "will be announced the new policy," and choice D has garbled word order "by the principal will." Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

4

Convert this sentence to passive voice, keeping the past tense: "The science teacher measured the temperature during the lab."

The science teacher was measured the temperature during the lab.

The temperature is measured by the science teacher during the lab.

The temperature measured by the science teacher during the lab.

The temperature was measured by the science teacher during the lab.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The science teacher measured the temperature" (science teacher=subject performs measuring). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The temperature was measured by the science teacher" (temperature=subject receives measuring, formed with be+past participle "was measured," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The science teacher measured the temperature" to passive: (1) move object "the temperature" to subject position, (2) change verb "measured" to be+past participle "was measured" (past tense maintained), (3) add original subject as "by the science teacher," resulting in "The temperature was measured by the science teacher during the lab." Choice B correctly converts to passive voice by making "the temperature" the subject receiving the action "was measured" and including the agent "by the science teacher." Choice A fails by keeping active voice structure with incorrect "was measured" after the subject, choice C reverses tense using present "is measured" when original was past "measured," and choice D doesn't include the helping verb "was," creating an incomplete passive construction. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

5

Convert this sentence to passive voice, keeping the present tense: "The chef prepares the meal every evening."

The meal was prepared by the chef every evening.

The meal is prepared by the chef every evening.

The meal prepares by the chef every evening.

The chef is prepared by the meal every evening.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The chef prepares the meal" (chef=subject performs preparing in present tense). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The meal is prepared by the chef" (meal=subject receives preparing, formed with be+past participle "is prepared," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The chef prepares the meal every evening" to passive in present tense: (1) move object "the meal" to subject position, (2) change verb "prepares" to present passive "is prepared" (maintaining present tense with "is" + past participle), (3) add original subject as "by the chef," resulting in "The meal is prepared by the chef every evening." Choice A correctly converts to passive voice maintaining present tense with "is prepared" and the time marker "every evening" indicates habitual present action. Choice B reverses tense using past "was prepared" when original was present "prepares," choice C illogically reverses the subject-object relationship, and choice D fails to include the helping verb "is," creating an incomplete passive construction. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Tense must be maintained: present "makes" → "is made," past "made" → "was made," present perfect "has made" → "has been made."

6

Convert this sentence to active voice, keeping the past tense: "The final shot was made by Jordan at the buzzer."

Jordan make the final shot at the buzzer.

The final shot made Jordan at the buzzer.

Jordan made the final shot at the buzzer.

Jordan was made the final shot at the buzzer.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"Jordan made the final shot" (Jordan=subject performs making). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The final shot was made by Jordan" (shot=subject receives making, formed with be+past participle "was made," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The final shot was made by Jordan at the buzzer" from passive to active in past tense: (1) move "by" agent "Jordan" to subject position, (2) change verb "was made" to active past form "made," (3) move original subject "the final shot" to object position, resulting in "Jordan made the final shot at the buzzer." Choice C correctly converts to active voice with "Jordan" as subject performing past action "made" on object "the final shot." Choice A maintains passive structure with incorrect "was made" after subject, choice B illogically makes the shot perform the action on Jordan, and choice D uses incorrect present tense "make" when original was past "was made." Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

7

In this passive sentence, what is the subject and what action does it receive? "The results were analyzed by the researchers."

Subject: the researchers; action received: were analyzed

Subject: analyzed; action received: the results

Subject: the results; action received: were analyzed

Subject: were; action received: researchers

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The researchers analyzed the results" (researchers=subject performs analyzing). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The results were analyzed by the researchers" (results=subject receives analyzing, formed with be+past participle "were analyzed," original subject becomes "by" agent). In the passive sentence "The results were analyzed by the researchers," identifying components: (1) subject is "the results"—what the sentence is about, (2) action received is "were analyzed"—the be+past participle construction showing what happens to the subject, (3) agent performing action is "the researchers" in the "by" phrase. Choice B correctly identifies "the results" as the subject receiving the action "were analyzed." Choice A incorrectly identifies "the researchers" as subject when it's actually the agent in the "by" phrase, choice C confuses grammatical terms treating "analyzed" as subject, and choice D misidentifies "were" as subject rather than part of the passive verb construction. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). In passive voice, the grammatical subject receives rather than performs the action, which is key to understanding passive construction.

8

Which sentence correctly converts this active sentence to passive voice in the present perfect tense? "The editor has corrected the article."

The article has corrected by the editor.

The article has been corrected by the editor.

The article was corrected by the editor.

The editor has been corrected by the article.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The editor has corrected the article" (editor=subject performs correcting in present perfect tense). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The article has been corrected by the editor" (article=subject receives correcting, formed with be+past participle "has been corrected," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The editor has corrected the article" to passive in present perfect: (1) move object "the article" to subject position, (2) change verb "has corrected" to present perfect passive "has been corrected" (maintaining present perfect tense with "has been" + past participle), (3) add original subject as "by the editor," resulting in "The article has been corrected by the editor." Choice B correctly converts to passive voice maintaining present perfect tense with "has been corrected." Choice A fails to include the helping verb "been," creating an incomplete passive construction "has corrected," choice C reverses tense using simple past "was corrected" when original was present perfect "has corrected," and choice D illogically reverses the subject-object relationship. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Tense must be maintained: present "makes" → "is made," past "made" → "was made," present perfect "has made" → "has been made."

9

Is this sentence written in active or passive voice? "The ancient city was discovered by archaeologists in 1922."

Both active and passive

Active voice

Passive voice

Neither active nor passive

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"Archaeologists discovered the ancient city" (archaeologists=subject performs discovering). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The ancient city was discovered by archaeologists" (ancient city=subject receives discovering, formed with be+past participle "was discovered," original subject becomes "by" agent). The sentence "The ancient city was discovered by archaeologists in 1922" shows passive voice structure: (1) subject "the ancient city" receives the action rather than performs it, (2) verb uses be+past participle form "was discovered," (3) the actor appears in a "by" phrase "by archaeologists." Choice B correctly identifies this as passive voice because the subject "ancient city" receives the action of being discovered. The sentence would be active if written "Archaeologists discovered the ancient city in 1922" with archaeologists performing the discovering action. Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

10

Convert this sentence to active voice, keeping the past tense: "The championship trophy was lifted by the captain."

The captain lifted the championship trophy.

The captain was lifted by the championship trophy.

The championship trophy was lifting by the captain.

The championship trophy lifted the captain.

Explanation

This question tests forming and using verbs in active voice (subject performs action) and passive voice (subject receives action) while maintaining tense and meaning. Active voice: subject does the action—"The captain lifted the trophy" (captain=subject performs lifting). Passive voice: subject receives the action—"The championship trophy was lifted by the captain" (trophy=subject receives lifting, formed with be+past participle "was lifted," original subject becomes "by" agent). Converting "The championship trophy was lifted by the captain" from passive to active: (1) move "by" agent "the captain" to subject position, (2) change verb "was lifted" to active form "lifted" (past tense maintained), (3) move original subject "the championship trophy" to object position, resulting in "The captain lifted the championship trophy." Choice A correctly converts to active voice with "The captain" as subject performing the action "lifted" on object "the championship trophy." Choice B fails by reversing the logical relationship making the trophy perform the action, choice C doesn't swap subject and object keeping passive structure, and choice D maintains passive voice with incorrect form "was lifting by." Identifying voice: active has subject performing action (look for regular verb forms like "threw," "wrote," "discovered"), passive has subject receiving action (look for be+past participle like "was thrown," "is written," "had been discovered" plus optional "by" phrase). Usage: active voice creates direct, clear writing emphasizing who does action (preferred in most writing); passive voice emphasizes action or recipient rather than actor (useful when actor unknown "My bike was stolen," or when focusing on what happened "The experiment was conducted over three months").

Page 1 of 2