Formula, Structure, and Rules for Simple past tense
| Formula for | Active voice | Passive voice
(auxiliary verb- was/were+by) |
| Simple | subject+verb+object | object+was/were+past participle(V3)+ by+subject |
| Negative | subject+did+not+verb+object | object+was/were+not+past participle(V3)+by+subject |
| Interrogative | did+subject+verb+object | was/were+object+past participle(V3)+by+subject |
| Interrogative+Negative | did+subject+not+verb+object | was/were+object+not+past participle(V3)+by+subject |
Examples:
Active: He played football.
Passive: Football was played by him.
Active: He did not play football.
Passive: Football was not played by him.
Active: Did he play football?
Passive: Was football played by him?
Active: Did he not play football?
Passive: Was football not played by him?
Active: she wrote a book.
Passive: A book was written by her.
Active: She did not write a book.
Passive: A book was not written by her.
Active: Did she write a book?
Passive: Was a book written by her?
Active: Did she not write a book?
Passive: Was a book not written by her?
Active: Hewlett-Packard typed a document.
Passive: A document was typed by Hewlett-Packard.
Active: Hewlett-Packard did not type a document.
Passive: A document was not typed by Hewlett-Packard.
Active: Did Hewlett-Packard type a document?
Passive: Was a document typed by Hewlett-Packard?
Active: Did Hewlett-Packard not type a document?
Passive: Was a document not typed by Hewlett-Packard?
Active: A cat drank milk.
Passive: Milk was drunk by a cat.
Active: A cat did not drink milk.
Passive: Milk was not drunk by a cat.
Active: Did a cat drink milk?
Passive: Was milk drunk by a cat?
Active: Did a cat not drink milk?
Passive: Was milk not drunk by a cat?
Active: They enjoyed a picnic.
Passive: A picnic was enjoyed by them.
Active: They did not enjoy a picnic.
Passive: A picnic was not enjoyed by them.
Active: Did they enjoy a picnic?
Passive: Was a picnic enjoyed by them?
Active: Did they not enjoy a picnic?
Passive: Was a picnic not enjoyed by them?
Active: Tim Berners-Lee entered the gate.
Passive: The gate was entered by Tim Berners-Lee.
Active: Tim Berners-Lee did not enter the gate.
Passive: The gate was not entered by Tim Berners-Lee.
Active: Did Tim Berners-Lee enter the gate?
Passive: Was Tim Berners-Lee entered the gate?
Active: Did Tim Berners-Lee not enter the gate?
Passive: Was Tim Berners-Lee not entered the gate?
Active: I planted flowers.
Passive: Flowers were planted by me.
Active: I did not plant flowers.
Passive: Flowers were not planted by me.
Active: Did I plant flowers?
Passive: Were flowers planted by me?
Active: Did I not plant flowers?
Passive: Were flowers not planted by me?
Active: James Gosling took breakfast.
Passive: Breakfast was taken by James Gosling.
Active: James Gosling did not take breakfast.
Passive: Breakfast was not taken by James Gosling.
Active: Did James Gosling take breakfast?
Passive: Was breakfast taken by James Gosling?
Active: Did James Gosling not take breakfast?
Passive: Was breakfast not taken by James Gosling?
Active: We ate mangoes.
Passive: Mangoes were eaten by me.
Active: We did not eat mangoes?
Passive: Mangoes were not eaten by me.
Active: Did we eat mangoes?
Passive: Were mangoes eaten by us?
Active: Did we not eat mangoes?
Passive: Were mangoes not eaten by us?
Active: I made noodles.
Passive: Noodles were made by us.
Active: I did not make noodles.
Passive: Noodles were not made by me.
Active: Did I make noodles?
Passive: Were noodles made by me?
Active: Did I not make noodles?
Passive: Were noodles not made by me?
Active: Linus joined an office.
Passive: An office was joined by Linus.
Active: Linus did not join an office.
Passive: An office was not joined by Linus.
Active: Did Linus join an office?
Passive: Was an office not joined by Linus?
Active: Did Linus not join an office?
Passive: Was an office not joined by Linus?
Active: Torvalds watered plants.
Passive: Plants were watered by Torvalds.
Active: Torvalds did not water plants.
Passive: Plants were not watered by Torvalds.
Active: Did Torvalds water plants?
Passive: Were plants watered by Torvalds?
Active: Did Torvalds not water plants?
Passive: Were plants not watered by Torvalds?
Active: Bill Gates earned money.
Passive: Money was earned by Bill Gates.
Active: Bill Gates did not earn money.
Passive: Money was not earned by Bill Gates.
Active: Did Bill Gates earn money?
Passive: Was money earned by Bill Gates?
Active: Did Bill Gates not earn money?
Passive: Was money not earned by Bill Gates?
Active: You ate pasta.
Passive: Pasta was eaten by you.
Active: You did not eat pasta.
Passive: Pasta was not eaten by you.
Active: Did you eat pasta?
Passive: Was pasta eaten by you?
Active: Did you not eat pasta?
Passive: Was pasta not eaten by you?
Active: They played a game.
Passive: A game was played by them.
Active: They did not play a game.
Passive: A game was not played by them.
Active: Did they play a game?
Passive: Was a game played by them?
Active: Did they not play a game?
Passive: Was a game not played by them?
Active: Steve Jobs painted a picture.
Passive: A picture was painted by Steve Jobs.
Active: Steve Jobs did not paint a picture.
Passive: A picture was not painted by Steve Jobs.
Active: Did Steve Jobs paint a picture?
Passive: Was a picture painted by Steve Jobs?
Active: Did Steve Jobs not paint a picture?
Passive: Was a picture not painted by Steve Jobs?
Learn More About Active & Passive Voice
- Simple present tense – Active and passive voice
- Present continuous tense – Active passive voice
- Present perfect tense – Active passive voice
- Simple past tense – Active Passive voice
- Past continuous tense – Active passive voice
- Past perfect tense – Active passive voice
- Simple future tense – Active passive voice
- Future perfect tense – Active passive voice