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Introducción
La voz pasiva se usa cuando nos interesa más la acción o quien la recibe que quien la realiza, o cuando no sabemos quién la hizo. Es muy frecuente en noticias, textos científicos e instrucciones. En esta lección aprendemos a formarla en todos los tiempos verbales.
Explicación
Formación: sujeto (el objeto de la activa) + be en el tiempo de la oración activa + participio pasado del verbo principal. El agente, si se menciona, va con by.
Active: Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. → Passive: Hamlet was written by Shakespeare.
La pasiva en todos los tiempos (con el verbo make):
Present simple: It is made.
Present continuous: It is being made.
Past simple: It was made.
Past continuous: It was being made.
Present perfect: It has been made.
Past perfect: It had been made.
Future (will): It will be made.
Be going to: It is going to be made.
Future perfect: It will have been made.
Modales: It can / must / should be made.
Claves para no equivocarse:
El tiempo verbal lo marca siempre be; el participio no cambia.
Para pasar de activa a pasiva, mantén el mismo tiempo: They are building a bridge (present continuous) → A bridge is being built.
El agente se omite si es evidente, desconocido o poco importante: My phone has been stolen (no sabemos quién).
Con verbos de dos objetos (give, send, show, tell) lo más natural es empezar por la persona: They gave me a prize. → I was given a prize.
Negativas e interrogativas se forman con el auxiliar: It hasn't been repaired yet. Was it sent yesterday?
¿Cuándo usar la pasiva? No todas las frases deben pasarse a pasiva. Úsala cuando lo importante sea el resultado o el objeto de la acción, como en una noticia (Two people have been injured in an accident) o en un proceso científico (The water is heated to 100 °C). Si lo importante es quién hace la acción, la activa suele resultar más clara y natural. Solo los verbos con objeto directo pueden ponerse en pasiva.
Ejemplo
Pasa a pasiva:The police had arrested the suspect before the journalists arrived.
El objeto the suspect pasa a ser el sujeto.
El verbo activo had arrested está en past perfect → had been + participio.
Solución: The suspect had been arrested (by the police) before the journalists arrived. El agente puede omitirse porque es evidente.
Pasa a pasiva:They will have finished the new stadium by 2028. → The new stadium will have been finished by 2028.
Ejercicios
The road is closed because a new bridge ___ at the moment.
By next June, the new hospital ___.
Material adicional
Phrasal Verbs (Verbos frasales)
Los phrasal verbs (verbos frasales o verbos compuestos) son combinaciones de un verbo + partícula(s) (preposición o adverbio) que juntos tienen un significado diferente al del verbo original.
Son una de las mayores dificultades del inglés porque hay miles de ellos y muchas veces su significado no se puede deducir de las palabras individuales.
Ejemplo: look up ≠ mirar arriba. Look up = buscar (en un diccionario). «I need to look up this word in the dictionary.»
Tipos de phrasal verbs
Tipo
Descripción
Ejemplo
Intransitivo
No necesita objeto
The plane took off. (El avión despegó.)
Transitivo separable
El objeto puede ir entre el verbo y la partícula
Turn off the TV. / Turn the TV off.
Transitivo inseparable
El objeto SIEMPRE va después de la partícula
I look after my little sister. (Cuido a mi hermana.)
⚠️ Importante
Con phrasal verbs separables, si el objeto es un pronombre (it, them, him, her...), SIEMPRE va en medio: • ✅ Turn it off. ❌ Turn off it. • ✅ Pick them up. ❌ Pick up them.
41 phrasal verbs muy importantes
Phrasal Verb
Significado
Ejemplo
break down
averiarse / derrumbarse
The car broke down on the motorway.
break up
romper (relación) / terminar
They broke up last month.
bring up
criar / mencionar
She was brought up by her grandparents.
call off
cancelar
They called off the meeting.
carry on
continuar
Carry on reading, please.
come across
encontrar por casualidad
I came across an old photo.
come up with
idear / inventar
She came up with a great idea.
cut down on
reducir
You should cut down on sugar.
figure out
resolver / entender
I can't figure out this problem.
find out
descubrir / averiguar
I found out the truth.
get along (with)
llevarse bien
I get along well with my classmates.
get over
recuperarse / superar
She got over her illness quickly.
get up
levantarse
I get up at 7 every day.
give up
rendirse / dejar de
Don't give up! / He gave up smoking.
go on
continuar / pasar
Go on, tell me what happened.
grow up
crecer / hacerse mayor
I grew up in Sevilla.
hang out
pasar el rato
We hang out at the park.
keep on
seguir haciendo
Keep on trying!
look after
cuidar
She looks after her little brother.
look for
buscar
I'm looking for my keys.
look forward to
esperar con ganas
I'm looking forward to the holidays.
look up
buscar (información)
Look up the word in the dictionary.
make up
inventar / reconciliarse
She made up a story. / They argued but made up.
pass away
fallecer (eufemismo)
My grandfather passed away last year.
pick up
recoger / aprender rápido
I picked up some French in Paris.
point out
señalar / indicar
She pointed out the mistake.
put off
posponer
Don't put off your homework!
put on
ponerse (ropa) / encender
Put on your coat. / Put on the light.
run out of
quedarse sin
We ran out of milk.
set up
montar / crear / establecer
They set up a new business.
show up
aparecer / presentarse
He didn't show up for the meeting.
sort out
resolver / organizar
We need to sort out this problem.
take after
parecerse a
She takes after her mother.
take off
despegar / quitarse (ropa)
The plane took off. / Take off your shoes.
take up
empezar (un hobby/actividad)
I took up tennis last year.
throw away
tirar a la basura
Don't throw away that bottle — recycle it!
turn down
rechazar / bajar (volumen)
She turned down the job offer.
turn off
apagar
Turn off the TV, please.
turn on
encender
Turn on the light, please.
turn up
aparecer / subir (volumen)
He turned up late again.
work out
hacer ejercicio / resolver
I work out three times a week.
📖 Reading comprehension
Read the email:
Hi Marta,
Sorry I didn't show up at the party last Saturday. My car broke down on the way there and I couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. I tried to call you, but I had run out of battery on my phone!
I've been looking into getting a new car. I've come across some good deals online. My dad has offered to help me look for one this weekend.
By the way, have you found out about the English exam date? I need to look it up. I'm not going to put off studying this time — I'm going to set up a study plan and carry on working hard until the exam.
I'm really looking forward to seeing you this weekend. Let's hang out and catch up!
See you soon, Carlos
Find the phrasal verbs and explain their meaning: 1. show up = ___ 2. broke down = ___ 3. figure out = ___ 4. run out of = ___ 5. looking into = ___ 6. come across = ___ 7. look for = ___ 8. found out = ___ 9. look it up = ___ 10. put off = ___ 11. set up = ___ 12. carry on = ___ 13. looking forward to = ___ 14. hang out = ___
✏️ Ejercicios
1. Completa con el phrasal verb correcto: a) I need to ___ this word in the dictionary. (look up / look after) b) She ___ her grandmother. They look very similar. (takes after / takes off) c) Don't ___! Keep trying! (give up / get up) d) Please ___ the TV. It's too loud. (turn off / turn on) e) I ___ in a small village near the coast. (grew up / got up) f) We've ___ of sugar. Can you buy some? (run out / found out)
2. Reescribe con un pronombre (it/them/him/her): a) Turn off the light. → Turn ___ off. b) Pick up the books. → Pick ___ up. c) Look up the word. → Look ___ up. d) Put on your jacket. → Put ___ on.
3. Traduce al inglés usando phrasal verbs: a) Me levanto a las 7. → ___ b) Ella cuida a su hermano pequeño. → ___ c) No te rindas. → ___ d) El avión despegó a las 10. → ___ e) Estoy buscando mis llaves. → ___ f) Tengo muchas ganas de las vacaciones. → ___ g) Apaga la luz, por favor. → ___ h) Ella se inventó una historia. → ___
4. Escribe un párrafo sobre tu fin de semana usando al menos 6 phrasal verbs.
📋 Resumen de la lección
Los phrasal verbs = verbo + partícula con un significado especial.
Separables: el objeto puede ir entre verbo y partícula. Con pronombres, SIEMPRE en medio.
Inseparables: el objeto siempre va después de la partícula completa.
Hay que memorizarlos porque su significado no se deduce del verbo original.
Publicidad
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