ACTIVE-PASSIVE VOICE (वाच्य) – Complete Guide for Competitive Exams

August 16, 2026

ACTIVE-PASSIVE VOICE (वाच्य) – Complete Guide for Competitive Exams

📚 WHAT IS VOICE?

Voice = बताता है कि Subject काम कर रहा है या काम उस पर हो रहा है।

Voice	Focus	Structure
Active	Subject करता है (Doer)	Subject + Verb + Object
Passive	Object पर क्रिया होती है (Receiver)	Object + Helping Verb + V3 + by + Subject

🔥 BASIC RULES (मूल नियम)

Rule 1: Structure Change

Active	Passive
Subject (Doer)	Object → Subject
Verb (V1/V2/V3)	Be + V3 (Past Participle)
Object (Receiver)	By + Subject

✅ Example:

Active: Ram eats an apple.
Passive: An apple is eaten by Ram.

Rule 2: Universal Rule (All Tenses)

Passive Voice Formula:
Object + (Be verb) + V3 + (by + Subject)

Tense	Active	Passive
Simple Present	eats	is/am/are + eaten
Present Continuous	is eating	is/am/are being + eaten
Present Perfect	has eaten	has/have been + eaten
Simple Past	ate	was/were + eaten
Past Continuous	was eating	was/were being + eaten
Past Perfect	had eaten	had been + eaten
Simple Future	will eat	will be + eaten
Future Perfect	will have eaten	will have been + eaten

🎯 TENSE-WISE CONVERSION (WITH TRICKS)

1. Simple Present Tense

Active	Passive
V1/V1+s	Is/Am/Are + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He writes a letter.
Passive: A letter is written by him.
Active: They play cricket.
Passive: Cricket is played by them.
Active: I eat an apple.
Passive: An apple is eaten by me.

🧠 TRICK: Is/Am/Are + V3 (जैसे He = is, They = are, I = am)

2. Present Continuous Tense

Active	Passive
Is/Am/Are + V1+ing	Is/Am/Are being + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He is writing a letter.
Passive: A letter is being written by him.
Active: They are playing cricket.
Passive: Cricket is being played by them.

🧠 TRICK: Is/Am/Are + being + V3

3. Present Perfect Tense

Active	Passive
Has/Have + V3	Has/Have been + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He has written a letter.
Passive: A letter has been written by him.
Active: They have played cricket.
Passive: Cricket has been played by them.

🧠 TRICK: Has/Have been + V3

4. Simple Past Tense

Active	Passive
V2	Was/Were + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He wrote a letter.
Passive: A letter was written by him.
Active: They played cricket.
Passive: Cricket was played by them.

5. Past Continuous Tense

Active	Passive
Was/Were + V1+ing	Was/Were being + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He was writing a letter.
Passive: A letter was being written by him.
Active: They were playing cricket.
Passive: Cricket was being played by them.

6. Past Perfect Tense

Active	Passive
Had + V3	Had been + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He had written a letter.
Passive: A letter had been written by him.
Active: They had played cricket.
Passive: Cricket had been played by them.

7. Simple Future Tense

Active	Passive
Will/Shall + V1	Will be/Shall be + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He will write a letter.
Passive: A letter will be written by him.
Active: They will play cricket.
Passive: Cricket will be played by them.

8. Future Perfect Tense

Active	Passive
Will have + V3	Will have been + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He will have written a letter.
Passive: A letter will have been written by him.

🚫 SPECIAL CASES (Important!)

Case 1: Modal Verbs (Can, Could, May, Might, Should, Must, etc.)

Active	Passive
Modal + V1	Modal + be + V3

✅ Examples:

Active: He can write a letter.
Passive: A letter can be written by him.
Active: You must obey the rules.
Passive: The rules must be obeyed by you.
Active: She may help him.
Passive: He may be helped by her.

Case 2: Imperative Sentences (Commands/Advice/Requests)

Type	Active	Passive
Command	Write a letter.	Let a letter be written.
Advice	Obey your parents.	Let your parents be obeyed.
Request	Please help me.	You are requested to help me.
Negative	Do not smoke.	You are advised not to smoke.

✅ Rules:

Command → Let + Object + be + V3
Advice → Let + Object + be + V3
Request → You are requested to + V1
Negative → You are advised not to + V1

Case 3: No Passive Voice (These verbs have no Passive)

Verb Type	Examples
Intransitive Verbs	Sleep, Die, Arrive, Go, Come, Happen
State Verbs	Belong, Possess, Have, Lack

❌ Cannot change to Passive:

He died. (No Passive)
She sleeps. (No Passive)
I have a car. (No Passive)
This book belongs to me. (No Passive)

Case 4: Verbs with Two Objects

Active	Passive (Option 1)	Passive (Option 2)
He gave me a book.	I was given a book.	A book was given to me.
She taught us English.	We were taught English.	English was taught to us.

🧠 TRICK:

Indirect Object (Person) → पहले Passive बनाएँ
Direct Object (Thing) → “to/for” के साथ Passive बनाएँ

Case 5: Prepositions in Passive (By/With/To)

Active	Passive
He wrote with a pen.	A pen was written with.
She opened the door with a key.	The door was opened with a key.
He knows me.	I am known to him. (Not “by”)

🧠 TRICK:

By = Person (Agent) → “by Ram”
With = Instrument/Tool → “with a pen”
To = Know → “known to him”

Case 6: Passive of “It is time”

Active	Passive
It is time to start.	It is time for the work to be started.
It is time to eat.	It is time for the food to be eaten.

Case 7: Reflexive Pronoun (Himself, Herself, etc.)

Active	Passive
He killed himself.	He was killed (by himself).
She hurt herself.	She was hurt (by herself).

🧠 TRICK: “Himself/Herself/Themselves” etc. का Passive में “by + Reflexive” आता है।

📝 OLD EXAM QUESTIONS (पुराने प्रश्न पत्र)

SET 1: Basic Level

Q.1 Change into Passive:

Ram eats an apple. (SSC GD 2020)

(a) An apple is eaten by Ram.
(b) An apple was eaten by Ram.
(c) An apple has been eaten by Ram.
(d) An apple is being eaten by Ram.

Answer: (a) An apple is eaten by Ram. ✅
Reason: Simple Present → is + V3

Q.2 Change into Passive:

She has written a letter. (SSC CHSL 2021)

(a) A letter has been written by her.
(b) A letter is written by her.
(c) A letter was written by her.
(d) A letter had been written by her.

Answer: (a) A letter has been written by her. ✅
Reason: Present Perfect → has been + V3

Q.3 Change into Passive:

They were playing cricket. (SSC MTS 2022)

(a) Cricket was played by them.
(b) Cricket is being played by them.
(c) Cricket was being played by them.
(d) Cricket had been played by them.

Answer: (c) Cricket was being played by them. ✅
Reason: Past Continuous → was being + V3

Q.4 Change into Active:

The work was completed by him. (NDA 2018)

(a) He completes the work.
(b) He completed the work.
(c) He had completed the work.
(d) He has completed the work.

Answer: (b) He completed the work. ✅
Reason: Simple Past → V2 (Completed)

Q.5 Change into Passive:

He will buy a car. (SSC CPO 2020)

(a) A car will be bought by him.
(b) A car is bought by him.
(c) A car was bought by him.
(d) A car has been bought by him.

Answer: (a) A car will be bought by him. ✅
Reason: Simple Future → will be + V3

SET 2: Intermediate Level

Q.6 Change into Passive:

He was writing a letter. (SSC CGL 2019)

(a) A letter was written by him.
(b) A letter is being written by him.
(c) A letter was being written by him.
(d) A letter has been written by him.

Answer: (c) A letter was being written by him. ✅
Reason: Past Continuous → was being + V3

Q.7 Change into Passive:

I have finished the work. (Bank PO 2018)

(a) The work has been finished by me.
(b) The work is finished by me.
(c) The work was finished by me.
(d) The work had been finished by me.

Answer: (a) The work has been finished by me. ✅
Reason: Present Perfect → has been + V3

Q.8 Change into Passive:

She will have completed the project. (SSC CHSL 2022)

(a) The project will be completed by her.
(b) The project will have been completed by her.
(c) The project is completed by her.
(d) The project was completed by her.

Answer: (b) The project will have been completed by her. ✅
Reason: Future Perfect → will have been + V3

Q.9 Change into Passive:

They had already taken the decision. (SSC MTS 2021)

(a) The decision has been taken by them.
(b) The decision had been taken by them.
(c) The decision is taken by them.
(d) The decision was taken by them.

Answer: (b) The decision had been taken by them. ✅
Reason: Past Perfect → had been + V3

Q.10 Change into Passive:

Please help me. (SSC GD 2020)

(a) You are requested to help me.
(b) Let me be helped.
(c) I should be helped.
(d) Help me please.

Answer: (a) You are requested to help me. ✅
Reason: Request → You are requested to + V1

SET 3: Error Detection

Q.11 Find the error: (SSC CGL 2022)

The letter (A) / has been (B) / written by (C) / Ram yesterday. (D)

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

Answer: (b) B ❌
Correct: “The letter was written by Ram yesterday.”
Reason: “Yesterday” = Past time → Simple Past (was written)

Q.12 Find the error: (Bank PO 2021)

This work (A) / was being (B) / done by him (C) / last year. (D)

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

Answer: (b) B ❌
Correct: “This work was done by him last year.”
Reason: “Last year” = Past time (Not Continuous)

Q.13 Find the error: (SSC CHSL 2023)

The problem (A) / is being (B) / solved by (C) / the students now. (D)

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

Answer: No error ✅
“Now” = Present Continuous → is being solved (Correct)

Q.14 Find the error: (CDS 2022)

The house (A) / was built (B) / by my father (C) / in 2005. (D)

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

Answer: No error ✅
Simple Past → was built (Correct)

Q.15 Find the error: (SSC CPO 2023)

He was (A) / being given (B) / the award (C) / by the President. (D)

(a) A (b) B (c) C (d) D

Answer: No error ✅
Past Continuous → was being given (Correct)

SET 4: Advanced Level (Mixed)

Q.16 Change into Passive:

Someone has stolen my bike. (SSC CGL 2021)

(a) My bike was stolen.
(b) My bike has been stolen.
(c) My bike is stolen.
(d) My bike had been stolen.

Answer: (b) My bike has been stolen. ✅
Reason: Present Perfect → has been + V3

Q.17 Change into Passive:

The manager will give you a bonus. (Bank PO 2020)

(a) A bonus will be given to you by the manager.
(b) You will be given a bonus by the manager.
(c) Both (a) and (b)
(d) Neither (a) nor (b)

Answer: (c) Both (a) and (b) ✅
Reason: Two objects → Two passive forms possible

Q.18 Change into Passive:

She knows me. (SSC MTS 2023)

(a) I am known to her.
(b) I am known by her.
(c) I was known to her.
(d) I have been known to her.

Answer: (a) I am known to her. ✅
Reason: “Know” → “known to” (Not “by”)

Q.19 Change into Passive:

We should help the poor. (NDA 2021)

(a) The poor should be helped by us.
(b) The poor are helped by us.
(c) The poor should help us.
(d) The poor were helped by us.

Answer: (a) The poor should be helped by us. ✅
Reason: Modal → Modal + be + V3

Q.20 Change into Active:

The thief was arrested by the police. (SSC CHSL 2023)

(a) Police arrested the thief.
(b) Police has arrested the thief.
(c) Police had arrested the thief.
(d) Police is arresting the thief.

Answer: (a) Police arrested the thief. ✅
Reason: Simple Past → V2 (arrested)

SET 5: Imperative and Other Sentences

Q.21 Change into Passive:

Obey your parents. (SSC GD 2022)

(a) Your parents should be obeyed.
(b) Let your parents be obeyed.
(c) You should obey your parents.
(d) Parents are obeyed.

Answer: (b) Let your parents be obeyed. ✅
Reason: Command → Let + Object + be + V3

Q.22 Change into Passive:

Do not smoke. (Bank PO 2019)

(a) Smoking should be avoided.
(b) You are advised not to smoke.
(c) Let not smoke.
(d) Smoke should not be done.

Answer: (b) You are advised not to smoke. ✅
Reason: Negative advice → You are advised not to + V1

Q.23 Change into Passive:

Who broke the window? (SSC CGL 2020)

(a) By whom was the window broken?
(b) Who was the window broken by?
(c) The window was broken by whom?
(d) Both (a) and (b)

Answer: (d) Both (a) and (b) ✅
Reason: Interrogative Passive → “By whom” or “Who…by”

Q.24 Change into Passive:

I have to do the work. (SSC CPO 2021)

(a) The work has to be done by me.
(b) The work had to be done by me.
(c) The work is done by me.
(d) The work was done by me.

Answer: (a) The work has to be done by me. ✅
Reason: “Have to” → “has to be” + V3

Q.25 Change into Passive:

He killed himself. (CDS 2022)

(a) He was killed by himself.
(b) He is killed by himself.
(c) He had been killed by himself.
(d) He was killed.

Answer: (a) He was killed by himself. ✅
Reason: Reflexive → by himself

📊 QUICK REVISION TABLE

Tense	Active	Passive (Be + V3)
Simple Present	He eats	is/am/are eaten
Present Continuous	He is eating	is/am/are being eaten
Present Perfect	He has eaten	has/have been eaten
Simple Past	He ate	was/were eaten
Past Continuous	He was eating	was/were being eaten
Past Perfect	He had eaten	had been eaten
Simple Future	He will eat	will be eaten
Future Perfect	He will have eaten	will have been eaten
Modal (Can)	He can eat	can be eaten
Modal (Must)	He must eat	must be eaten

🎯 SUPER TRICKS SUMMARY

TRICK 1: Passive Formula

Object + (Be verb) + V3 + (By + Subject)

TRICK 2: Tense पहचानो – Be Verb चुनो

Time	Be Verb
Present	Is/Am/Are
Past	Was/Were
Future	Will be/Shall be
Continuous	being + V3
Perfect	been + V3

TRICK 3: “By” से शुरू मत करो

❌ By Ram is an apple eaten.
✅ An apple is eaten by Ram.

TRICK 4: Two Objects का Rule

Person → पहले Passive
Thing → “to/for” के साथ Passive

TRICK 5: No Passive वाले Verbs

Happen, Die, Sleep, Arrive, Belong, Have → Passive नहीं बनेगा

TRICK 6: Imperative Sentences

Type	Structure
Command	Let + Object + be + V3
Advice	Let + Object + be + V3
Request	You are requested to + V1
Negative	You are advised not to + V1

💪 COMMON EXAM TRAPS

Trap 1: Tense मिलाना

❌ He has written a letter. → A letter was written by him. (Wrong tense)
✅ A letter has been written by him. (Correct)

Trap 2: “By” vs “With” vs “To”

❌ I am known by him. (Wrong)
✅ I am known to him. (Correct – Know → to)
❌ He opened the door by a key. (Wrong)
✅ He opened the door with a key. (Correct – Tool → with)

Trap 3: Intransitive Verbs

❌ He died. → He was died. (Wrong)
✅ No Passive (Intransitive)

Trap 4: Imperative Sentences

❌ Do it. → You are requested to do it. (Wrong – it’s a command)
✅ Let it be done. (Correct – command)

Trap 5: Object हटाना

❌ They play cricket. → Cricket is played. (Wrong – missing “by them”)
✅ Cricket is played by them. (Correct)

📌 MOST IMPORTANT FOR EXAMS:

Tense Conversion → 2-3 questions (पक्का!)
Modal + V3 → 1-2 questions
Two Objects → 1 question
Imperative Sentences → 1 question
Know → known to → 1 question
No Passive (Intransitive verbs) → 1 question
Error Detection → 1-2 questions

💪 Practice Tips:

Tense Table याद करें (कौन सी Helping Verb किस Tense में आता है)
By/With/To का अंतर समझें
Imperative Sentences के 3-4 forms याद रखें
Previous Papers (SSC, Bank, NDA, CDS) solve करें
Passive में “By” हटाना भी आना चाहिए (जब Agent अनजान हो)

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