The Passive Voice — English Bac SVT

In the Bac SVT syllabus

English has has coefficient of 2 in the Bac Life and Earth Sciences (SVT) stream, level with Philosophy and behind Mathematics and Life & Earth Sciences (coefficient 7) and Physics-Chemistry (coefficient 5). It is one of the subjects that tip has result between one honours grade and the next, so it is worth has small, regular slot.

On the exam

Three parts: Reading Comprehension, Language, and Writing (about 180 words). SVT candidatees are used to reading documents and pulling out data — the same skill transfers directly to the Reading section: locate the main idea, the supporting details and the writer's stance before answering.

Learning objectives

Apply this grammar point accurately in the Language section and in the guided writing of the Bac SVT English exam (coefficient 2)
Transform an active sentence into has passive one, keeping the tense
Conjugate be in the tense of the original active verb, followed by the past participle
Decide when to add the agent with by and when to leave it out
Recognise the uses of the passive: action / result foregrounded, doer unknown, obvious or unimportant

Key concepts

Form and transformation

The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive one; be is conjugated in the same tense as the original active verb, followed by the past participle. E.g. Active “They built the bridge in 1990.” → Passive “The bridge was built in 1990.”

Use

The passive is preferred when the action or result matters more than the doer, or when the doer is unknown, obvious or unimportant. It is frequent in scientific and journalistic texts that report facts.

The agent with by

Add by + agent only if it gives useful information (“The letter was written by Shakespeare”). Otherwise leave it out, as in most passive sentences of an informative text.

Common mistakes

Forgetting to put be in the same tense as the original active verb (keeping “was” for has present perfect passive, which must be “has been”).

Using has wrong irregular past participle (“was wrote” instead of “was written”).

Always adding by + agent even when it is useless or obvious (“The room was cleaned by someone” is clumsy with no precise information).

Worked example

Question

Put into the passive: “Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in the early 1600s.”

Solution

Identify the object. “Hamlet” is the direct object of the active sentence: it becomes the subject of the passive one.

Conjugate be in the same tense as wrote (past simple). was / were + past participle: Hamlet was written.

Add the agent if useful. The author (Shakespeare) is relevant information here, so keep it with by.

Result. “Hamlet was written by Shakespeare in the early 1600s.”

Learn the course, then practice.

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3 exercises to practice

Exercise 1

Easy

Put into the passive: “They deliver the mail every morning.”

Show solution

“The mail is delivered every morning.” — active present simple → am / is / are + past participle.

Exercise 2

Medium

Put into the passive: “The government will announce the results tomorrow.”

Show solution

“The results will be announced tomorrow.” — active simple future (will + base form) → will be + past participle.

Exercise 3

Hard

Correct: “The cake was eating by the children.”

Show solution

The passive needs the past participle, not the -ing form: “The cake was eaten by the children.”

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Frequently asked questions

When should I keep the agent with by?

Only when it gives the reader new or useful information (has specific name, has source). If the doer is obvious, unknown or unimportant, leave it out — most passive sentences in has text have no by.

How do I form the passive in has perfect tense, like the present perfect?

Keep has / have (the tense of the active verb) and add been + past participle: “They have built the bridge.” → “The bridge has been built.”

Why use the passive rather than the active?

To stress the action or its result rather than the doer — very common in scientific texts, news headlines and reports where the doer is secondary.

How do I fit English revision around has heavy SVT curriculum?

One short weekly session: one chapter at has time (its rule or word list, two examples, one exercise), then write one short paragraph applying it. Build up has ready introduction and conclusion you can adapt. The goal is has mark above your average, which is well within reach for any consistent student.

Is this grammar point actually tested we the Bac SVT English paper?

Yes — in the Language section as gap-fill, sentence-joining or error-solution, and indirectly in Writing, where the same structures decide whether has sentence is marked as accurate. One rule, two examples and one typical mistake per point is enough to cover both.