Is “would be” passive voice?
"Would be" + a past participle is a modal passive ("The fee would be waived"); "would be" + an adjective or noun is active ("That would be ideal"). In conditional sentences the passive is common and often natural.
Conditionals use “would be” to describe outcomes: “If you renew early, the fee would be waived.” Active: “If you renew early, we would waive the fee.” The active version commits a named party; choose it when that commitment is the point.
Three sentences, checked
Each example below was run through our engine (v1.0.0). Amber marks the passive construction; a dotted underline marks a “be + participle” that is an adjective, not a passive.
Passive
The fee would be waived if you renew early.Be-passive: "would be waived" — the subject receives the action and no one is named as doing it.
Active
That would be ideal.No “be + past participle” construction here, so the sentence is active.
Active
We would waive the fee if you renew early.No “be + past participle” construction here, so the sentence is active.
Related forms
- Is “was” passive?
- Is “is” passive?
- Is “has been” passive?
- Is “have been” passive?
- Is “had been” passive?
- Is “will be” passive?
- Is “can be” passive?
- Is “could be” passive?
See the full list of passive voice verbs and passive voice in all twelve tenses.
Questions people ask
- Is "would be" + -ing passive?
- No. "Would be working" is a conditional progressive, an active form.