Present simple passive used for descriptions

Hello :D

"This shirt is made of cotton."

How can I change this sentence so that it's in the active voice?

"Cotton made this shirt." has a different meaning. "Cotton was used to make this shirt." has the correct meaning, but is in the passive voice. I also have trouble with sentences like "This fork is used for eating.".

How do I go from passive to active and back again if there isn't a 'doer' in the sentence?

Thank you for your help.

[Casiopea]

Originally Posted by Lovejoy

Hello :D

"This shirt is made of cotton."

How can I change this sentence so that it's in the active voice?

"Cotton made this shirt." has a different meaning. "Cotton was used to make this shirt." has the correct meaning, but is in the passive voice. I also have trouble with sentences like "This fork is used for eating.".

How do I go from passive to active and back again if there isn't a 'doer' in the sentence?

Thank you for your help.

Hello,

First, it's not passive in structure. Second, the past participle "made" has two functions: it functions as a verb (make, made) and as an adjective: (made, made of, made from)

Verb (make, made)
Active: John makes lunch everyday.
Passive: Lunch is made by John everyday.

Adjective (made)
Active: This shirt is made of cotton.
Passive: (No passive form. The verb 'is' is stative')

Active: John makes (Verb) shirts made of (adjective) cotton for a living.
Passive: Shirts made of cotton are made by John for a living.

Verb (used)
Passive: This fork is used by people for eating.
Active: People use this fork for eating.

Adjective (used)
Active: This is a used-fork.
Active:This fork is used (i.e. old)
Passive: (no passive form)

Verb (used), Adjective (used)
Active: I used his used car today.
Passive: His used car was used by me today.

Active and Passive: This fork is made of (adjective) silver and made (verb) by people in Mexico.


All the best,