Grammar Drops: Passive Voice in English

Grammar Drops: Passive Voice in English

This is a Portuguese-English video

By Sergio Viula

Mastering the passive voice is essential for clear and natural English. It allows us to shift the focus from who does the action to what happens. This structure is common in news, reports, instructions, and formal writing. In this post, we’ll explore how to use the passive voice across different tenses, including modal verbs and conditional structures. You’ll also see how the same verb can change form depending on the tense, making it easier to understand the patterns and build your own sentences confidently.

The passive voice is used when the focus is on the action or the receiver of the action, not on who performs it.

👉 The cake was eaten. (We don’t know or don’t care who ate it.)
👉 The rules must be followed. (The focus is on the rules, not on who follows them.)

Structure:

Subject + verb to be (in the correct tense) + past participle

 
1. Passive Voice by Tense (Summary)

We’ll use the same verb — clean — to make the comparison clearer.

Focus on the highlighted part, which is the passive structure.

Present Simple: 

The house is cleaned every day. → is cleaned (singular)  

The houses are cleaned every day. → are cleaned (plural)

Present Continuous: 

The house is being cleaned right now. → is being cleaned (singular) 

The houses are being cleaned right now. → are being cleaned (plural)

Present Perfect: 

The house has been cleaned already. → has been cleaned (singular)  

The houses have been cleaned every day. → are cleaned (plural)

Past Simple: 

The house was cleaned yesterday. → was cleaned (singular) 

The houses were cleaned yesterday. → are cleaned (plural)

Past Continuous: 

The house was being cleaned when I arrived. → was being cleaned (singular)  

The houses were being cleaned when I arrived. → were being cleaned (plural)

Past Perfect: 

The house had been cleaned before the guests came. → had been cleaned

Future Simple (will): 

The house will be cleaned tomorrow. → will be cleaned

Future Simple (going to): 

The house is going to be cleaned soon. → is going to be cleaned (singular) / The houses are going to be cleaned soon. → are going to be cleaned (plural)

Future Perfect: 

The house will have been cleaned by noon. → will have been cleaned

Modal – Can: 

The house can be cleaned easily. → can be cleaned

Modal – Should: 

The house should be cleaned regularly. → should be cleaned

Modal – Must: 

The house must be cleaned before the party. → must be cleaned

Would (Simple Conditional): 

The house would be cleaned if they had time. → would be cleaned

Would (Perfect Conditional): 

The house would have been cleaned if they had known. → would have been cleaned

2. Passive Voice in Context

Using “the house” makes it easy to see how the verb tense affects the structure of the passive voice. 

 

Present Tenses

Present Simple: 

The house is cleaned every day by a cleaning service. (singular)

The houses are cleaned every day by a cleaning service. (plural)

Present Continuous: 

The house is being cleaned right now because the guests are coming soon. (singular)

The houses are being cleaned right now because the guests are coming soon. (plural)

Present Perfect: 

The house has been cleaned already, so we can relax. (singular)

The houses have been cleaned already, so we can relax. (plural)

 
Past Tenses

Past Simple: 

The house was cleaned yesterday afternoon. (singular)

The houses were cleaned yesterday afternoon. (plural)

Past Continuous: 

The house was being cleaned when the storm started. (singular)

The houses were being cleaned when the storm started. (plural)

Past Perfect: 

The house had been cleaned before the guests arrived. (no difference between plural and singular in the verb form)

 
Future Tenses

Future Simple (will): 

The house will be cleaned tomorrow morning. (no difference between plural and singular in the verb form)

Future Simple (going to): 

The house is going to be cleaned after lunch. (singular)

The houses are going to be cleaned after lunch. (plural)

Future Perfect: 

The house will have been cleaned by 2 p.m. (no difference between plural and singular in the verb form)

 
Modal Verbs

(no difference between plural and singular in the verb form)

Can: The house can be cleaned in just one hour.

Should: The house should be cleaned regularly to avoid allergies.

Must: The house must be cleaned before the event.

Would (Simple Conditional): The house would be cleaned if they had more time.

Would (Perfect Conditional): The house would have been cleaned if they had known about the visit earlier.

 
3. Passive Voice in Conditionals

First Conditional – Active: If they clean the house, the guests will be happy.

First Conditional – Passive: If the house is cleaned, the guests will be happy.

Second Conditional – Active: If they had more time, they would clean the house.

Second Conditional – Passive: If they had more time, the house would be cleaned.

Third Conditional – Active: If they had known, they would have cleaned the house.
Third Conditional – Passive: If they had known, the house would have been cleaned.

Structures:

First Conditional → if + is/are + past participle → will + base verb

Second Conditional → if + were + past participle → would + base verb

Third Conditional → if + had been + past participle → would have + past participle

 
4. “Would” in Passive Voice

Would has two main uses in the passive:

Simple Conditional (present or future meaning)
The house would be cleaned if they had time.
(They don’t have time now — it’s hypothetical.)


Perfect Conditional (past meaning)
The house would have been cleaned if they had known.
(They didn’t know — so it didn’t happen.)

 
Use “would + be + past participle” for present/future unreal situations, and “would have + been + past participle” for past unreal situations.

 
5. Why Use Passive Voice?

When the doer is unknown: The window was broken.

When the doer is not important: The street was repaired.

To sound more formal or objective: The report will be submitted tomorrow.

 
6. Grammar Drops Tip

Start by mastering the structure with one simple verb — like clean — then apply it to other verbs.
For example: build → is built, is being built, was built, would have been built, etc.

Your turn: Transform your own active sentences into passive voice in at least three different tenses.

Grammar Drops — making grammar simple and clear!