Grammar: Active and Passive Voice — Class 8 MCQs with Answers

Grammar: Active and Passive Voice — important questions & MCQs with answers (Class 8 English)

6 solved questions from this chapter's difficulty levels, each with its answer and explanation. Tap an option to check yourself.

0 of 6 answered

1. Q1 of 6Easy

   Identify the voice: 'The gardener waters the plants every morning.'

   AActive voiceBPassive voiceCBoth active and passiveDNeither active nor passive
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   Answer: Active voice

   Explanation: The subject 'the gardener' performs the action, so the sentence is in the active voice.

2. Q2 of 6Easy

   Change to passive: 'Ravi eats an apple.'

   AAn apple was eaten by Ravi.BAn apple eats Ravi.CAn apple is eaten by Ravi.DAn apple is eating by Ravi.
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   Answer: An apple is eaten by Ravi.

   Explanation: Simple present passive = object + is/am/are + past participle (V3) + by + subject.

3. Q3 of 6Medium

   Change to passive: 'The workers are repairing the road.'

   AThe road is repaired by the workers.BThe road was being repaired by the workers.CThe road has been repaired by the workers.DThe road is being repaired by the workers.
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   Answer: The road is being repaired by the workers.

   Explanation: Present continuous passive = is/am/are + being + V3.

4. Q4 of 6Medium

   Change to passive: 'Someone has stolen my bicycle.'

   AMy bicycle is stolen by someone.BMy bicycle was stolen.CMy bicycle has stolen.DMy bicycle has been stolen.
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   Answer: My bicycle has been stolen.

   Explanation: Present perfect passive = has been + V3; the vague agent 'someone' is usually dropped.

5. Q5 of 6Hard

   Change to passive: 'Shut the door.'

   ALet the door be shut.BThe door is shut.CThe door was shut by you.DShut the door by you.
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   Answer: Let the door be shut.

   Explanation: An imperative (command) becomes passive as 'Let + object + be + V3'.

6. Q6 of 6Hard

   Change to passive (keep the person as subject): 'The teacher gave the students a task.'

   AA task were given the students by the teacher.BThe students was given a task by the teacher.CThe students were given a task by the teacher.DThe students are given a task by the teacher.
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   Answer: The students were given a task by the teacher.

   Explanation: With two objects, either can become the subject; here the indirect object 'the students' (plural) takes 'were given'.

Grammar: Active and Passive Voice notes: key concepts (Class 8 English)

Voice tells us whether the subject of a sentence does the action (active) or receives it (passive). In the active voice the doer comes first ('Riya wrote a letter'); in the passive voice the receiver comes first and the doer, if named, follows 'by' ('A letter was written by Riya'). To convert active to passive, make the object the new subject, use the correct form of the verb 'be' + the past participle (V3), and keep the original tense unchanged. Passive is preferred when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious, or when we want to focus on the action or the receiver.

Voice

The form of a verb that shows whether the subject acts (active) or is acted upon (passive). Only transitive verbs (verbs that take an object) can be turned into the passive.

Active voice

The subject performs the action: 'The chef cooks the meal.' The doer is the grammatical subject and comes first.

Passive voice

The subject receives the action: 'The meal is cooked by the chef.' The object of the active sentence becomes the subject; the verb becomes a form of 'be' + past participle (V3).

Steps to convert

1) Make the active object the new subject. 2) Put 'be' in the same tense as the original verb. 3) Add the past participle (V3). 4) Add 'by + doer' (often dropped). 5) Change subject pronouns to object pronouns (I to me, he to him, they to them, she to her, we to us).

Keeping the tense

The tense must not change on conversion; only the verb form changes. Present continuous stays present continuous ('is being + V3'), past perfect stays past perfect ('had been + V3'), and so on.

Agent (by-phrase)

The 'by + doer' phrase is dropped when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious: 'My bicycle has been stolen' (we do not know by whom).

Two objects

Verbs like give, offer, send, tell take an indirect and a direct object, so either can become the subject: 'I was given a book' or 'A book was given to me.' When the thing becomes the subject, the person takes 'to'.

Imperatives in passive

Commands use 'Let + object + be + V3' ('Shut the door' becomes 'Let the door be shut'); polite requests with Please/Kindly use 'You are requested to + base verb'.

Questions in passive

Yes/no questions keep the helping verb first ('Was this poem written by him?'); 'Who' questions become 'By whom + was/were + object + V3?'

Modals in passive

With modals (can, may, must, should, will) and semi-modals (have to), the pattern is 'modal + be + V3': 'You must finish it' becomes 'It must be finished.'

When to use passive

Use the passive to stress the action or the receiver, to sound formal or impersonal (notices, reports, science), or when the doer is unknown or unimportant.