Definition: a group of verb forms expressing a particular attitude. English has the three major moods: 1. Indicative mood, expressing factual statements, 2. The imperative mood, expressing commands, and 3. The subjunctive mood, expressing possibilities and wishes.
Definition: The verbs indicating existence or truth: showing, suggesting, or pointing out that something exists or is true.
Example: Let us go for a walk. Cat eats meat. Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan.
Definition: The verbs expressing command, request or suggestion are called imperative mood.
Example: Let us go. Walk slowly. Give me a glass of water.
Definition: a grammatical mood that expresses doubts, wishes, and possibilities or something contrary to the fact. The verb “were” is in the subjunctive in the phrase as if I were you I beat him. I wish I knew. May God bless you. She was talking as if she were weeping.
When to Use the Active Voice Generally the active voice will produce a more concise and more powerful sentence than the passive. An active construction immediately identifies the sentence’s subject so readers can quickly understand and visualize who is doing what.
Because of its clarity, the active voice is almost always the best choice in documents that are intended primarily to communicate information, such as business letters and memos.
In other words, in active sentence the doer performs the action good or bad.
Example: He eats an apple. We read a story book. She will lock the door.
Note: In these sentences the doer performs all actions.
When to Use the Passive Voice
When to Use the Passive Voice Using the passive voice is not always a mistake, however. Inserting an occasional passive sentence into a document lends some variety to your sentence construction.
A passive construction is also frequently used when the subject of a sentence is obvious or unimportant.
Example: Ali was arrested after fingerprints were discovered on the pistol.
In this sentence, the subject is unstated. A reader, though, would have no problem assuming that the police arrested Ali and discovered his fingerprints. In this sentence, the receiver of the action (Ali) is more significant than the actor (the police), so a passive construction places emphasis on the proper person.
If the role of the officers was of crucial importance, the sentence would be more forceful if stated in the active voice.
The police arrested George after they discovered his fingerprints on the knife.
In other words, in passive voice the doer disappears.
Example: My watch was stolen. He was arrested.
Note: In both sentences who stole the watch none knows, and who arrested the thief, none knows.
What is Voice?
Voice is the property of a verb that indicates the relationship between action the verb describes and its subject. In the active voice, the subject performs the action. In the passive voice, the subject receives it.
Active: Aisha eats the strawberry pie.
Passive: The strawberry pie is eaten by Aisha.
Generally, the active voice creates a more concise and immediate sentence than the passive. It is therefore preferred for most writings.
Do not shift from one voice to another within a sentence.
Incorrect: Aisha pled for mercy, even though her guilt was admitted.
Correct: Aisha pled for mercy, even though she admitted her guilt.
Avoid cluttering a sentence with a string of passive verbs.
Awkward: The event was planned to be held on Thursday.
Better: They planned to hold the event on Thursday.
Among the twelve tenses, seven tenses are converted into passive forms.
Tenses Active Form Passive Form
| Simple Present | arrests | is arrested |
| Present Continuous | is arresting | is being arrested |
| Simple Past | arrested | was arrested |
| Past Continuous | was arresting | was being arrested |
| Present Perfect | has arrested | has been arrested |
| Past Perfect | had arrested | had been arrested |
| Future Tense | will arrest | will be arrested |
Conditional Tense
| Conditional | would arrest | would be arrested |
Perfect Conditional
| Perfect Conditional | would have arrested | would have been arrested |
Present Infinitive
| Present Infinitive | to arrest | to be arrested |
Perfect Infinitive
| Perfect Infinitive | to have arrested | to have been arrested |
Present Participle/Gerund
| Present Participle/Gerund | arresting | being arrested |
Note: In all form of passive voice after the verb the agent may be mentioned but add by me, by her, by them…is entirely wrong in English grammar.
Example: The rubbish is collected every day. The utensils are cleaned daily.
Example: He was murdered last night. I have been told that…
Example: He is suspecting of selling stolen good. (People suspect him of…)
Example: One sees this sort of add everywhere would usually be expressed.
Example: The nest door house has been bought by (Mr. Ali) A new Town is being built by the (government)
Example: When he was arrived collage he was arrested (by the police). Instead of, when he was arrived collage the police arrested him.
Example: My overtime rates is being reduced, I will have to be recommended.
Use of Prepositions with Passive Verbs
Active: The police arrested him.
Passive: He was arrested by the police.
Active: The smoke filled with the room.
Passive: The room was filled with smoke.
Note: When a verb + preposition + object combination is put into the passive, the preposition will remain after the verb in the sentence.
Example: Active: You must write to him.
Passive: He must be written to.
Active: You can play with these dolls in the room easily.
Passive: These dolls can be played with in the room easily.
Active: He threw away the old books.
Passive: Old books were thrown away.
Use of Prepositions in Passive Verbs
When we mention the agent it is followed by the verb.
Active: He painted his house.
Passive: His house was painted by Ali.
Active: What made these houses?
Passive: What these house made by?
Active: He must write to us.
Passive: We must be written to.
Active: She is paying with doll in the room.
Passive: Dolls are being played with in the room.
Knowledge, assume, believe, claim, consider, estimate, feel, find, know, presume, report, say, think, understand, suppose, these words are more suitable to write in the passive form than in active form.
Example: It is believed that he is dead. It is said that she is intelligent. It is supposed that he is mad…
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Nice grammar lesson.