1. Identify the subject, verb, and object:
* Active: The dog chased the ball.
* Subject: The dog
* Verb: chased
* Object: the ball
2. Make the object the new subject:
* Passive: The ball was chased
3. Add the past participle of the verb:
* Passive: The ball was chased
4. Use the appropriate form of "be" as the helping verb:
* Passive: The ball was chased by the dog.
5. Add "by" and the original subject (now the agent):
* Passive: The ball was chased by the dog.
Important Considerations:
* Not all sentences can be easily made passive: Some sentences, especially those with intransitive verbs (verbs that don't take a direct object), don't have an object to become the subject.
* Purpose: Using passive voice can sometimes be useful to emphasize the action or object rather than the performer. However, it's often considered less direct and can sound more formal.
Examples:
* Active: The chef prepared the meal.
* Passive: The meal was prepared by the chef.
* Active: John painted the house.
* Passive: The house was painted by John.
* Active: They built the bridge.
* Passive: The bridge was built by them.
Let me know if you'd like to practice with more examples!