Reporting in the passive voice using verbs like "say" involves transforming the reported speech from its original active form into a passive construction. Here's how it works:
1. Identify the original active sentence.
Start with the original sentence that contains the direct speech.
"She said, 'The project will be completed by Friday.'"
2. Convert the reporting verb into the appropriate passive form.
In this case, "said" becomes "was said (by her)".
"It was said by her that the project would be completed by Friday."
In this transformation, the subject of the original active sentence ("She") becomes the agent (or optional agent) in the passive construction ("by her"). The verb "said" is changed to "was said" to maintain the passive voice. The rest of the sentence remains unchanged.
Remember that the agent (the person or thing performing the action) is optional in passive constructions. You can include it for clarity or omit it if it's not necessary or unknown.
Here are examples of using the verb "say" in the passive voice across different tenses:
Present "Be":
Active: They claim (that) the artist is creating a masterpiece.
Passive 1: It’s claimed that the artist is creating a masterpiece.
Passive 2: The artist is claimed to be creating a masterpiece.
Simple Present Noun Clause:
Active: We acknowledge that she loves classical music.
Passive 1: It’s acknowledged that she loves classical music.
Passive 2: She is acknowledged to love classical music.
Past "Be":
Active: They suggest that he was a famous musician in the past.
Passive 1: It’s suggested that he was a famous musician in the past.
Passive 2: He is suggested to have been a famous musician in the past.
Simple Past Noun Clause:
Active: People allege that he wrote several best-selling novels.
Passive 1: It’s alleged that he wrote several best-selling novels.
Passive 2: He is alleged to have written several best-selling novels.
Present Perfect Noun Clause:
Active: People speculate that he has won multiple awards.
Passive 1: It’s speculated that he has won multiple awards.
Passive 2: He is speculated to have won multiple awards.
Present Continuous Noun Clause:
Active: We believe he is performing on stage right now.
Passive 1: It’s believed that he is performing on stage right now.
Passive 2: He is believed to be performing on stage right now.
Past Continuous Noun Clause:
Active: People say he was touring around the world.
Passive 1: It’s said that he was touring around the world.
Passive 2: He is said to have been touring around the world.
Future Tense (will or going to) Noun Clause:
Active: People anticipate that the company will launch a new product soon.
Passive 1: It’s anticipated that the company will launch a new product soon.
Passive 2: The company is anticipated to launch a new product soon.
Present Passive Noun Clause:
Active: They assert that a lot of paintings are sold at the art auction every month.
Passive 1: It’s asserted that a lot of paintings are sold at the art auction every month.
Passive 2: A lot of paintings are asserted to be sold at the art auction every month.
Past Passive Noun Clause:
Active: They claim that the artifacts were discovered in the ancient ruins.
Passive 1: It’s claimed that the artifacts were discovered in the ancient ruins.
Passive 2: The artifacts are claimed to have been discovered in the ancient ruins.