Passive Voice Verb Tenses
Previously, I wrote notes on how to make the passive voice and when to use it. The formation section focused on passive forms of the simple tenses, but other tenses can be passive too. I list examples here and include a handy graphic at the end.
In this post, PP refers to the past participle form of a verb.
The Simple Tenses
Simple Past
was/were + PP, got + PP
We were congratulated for winning.
His cat got hit by a car.
Simple Present
am/is/are + PP, get + PP
More money is spent near the end of the year.
Good-looking people get treated better.
Simple Future
will be + PP, will get + PP, am/is/are going to be + PP
We will be thanked.
The price is going to be raised.
You will get arrested!
The Continuous Tenses
Past Continuous
was/were being + PP, was/were getting + PP
Photos were being taken constantly.
The fridge was getting fixed.
Present Continuous
am/is/are being + PP, am/is/are getting + PP
I am being given an award.
The windows are getting cleaned today.
Future Continuous
will be being + PP, will be getting + PP
The house will be being renovated by then.
He will be getting shaved in the morning.
The future continuous appears in passive form infrequently. It can sound quite awkward and alternative expressions are possible. For example, instead of the first example, people are more likely to say, ‘the house will be under renovation by then.’
The Perfect Tenses
‘Get’ passives are still possible with the perfect tenses, though they seem less likely to appear than they do with the simple and continuous tenses. To make these examples ‘get’ passives, replace ‘been’ with ‘gotten’ (though some native speakers use ‘got’).
Past Perfect
had been + PP
Our proposal had been accepted.
The cake had been baked.
Present Perfect
have/has been + PP
Someone has been killed!
The clothes have been washed.
Future Perfect
will have been + PP
The work will have been finished by the time we meet.
The Perfect Continuous Tenses
Passive perfect continuous tense sentences are very unlikely - it's often difficult to understand exactly what they mean. I’m including examples here for demonstration purposes, but I wouldn’t recommend them to learners.
Past Perfect Continuous
had been being + PP
I had been being trained to do that job.
Present Perfect Continuous
has/have been being + PP
We have been being punished for a while now.
Future Perfect Continuous
will have been being + PP
An essay will have been being written.
Behold, my passive verb tense reference chart. The PDF version is good for printing.
There is a chart with active voice tense examples over here.
Practice using the passive voice with these passive voice conversation questions.