The Passive Voice
Focus on the action with be + past participle across tenses, and name the doer with “by”. B1 grammar with 20 questions.
In the passive voice, we focus on the action or the thing that receives it, rather than who does it. “Tutors teach the lessons” (active) becomes “The lessons are taught by tutors” (passive). We use it a lot in formal writing, news, and processes.
How to make it: be + past participle
Use the correct form of be (am/is/are/was/were) + the past participle.
| Tense | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| Present | They clean the room. | The room is cleaned. |
| Past | They built the school in 2010. | The school was built in 2010. |
| Present perfect | They have sent the email. | The email has been sent. |
The key formulaPassive = the right tense of be + past participle. Only the “be” part changes for tense; the past participle stays the same.
When we use the passive
| Reason | Example |
|---|---|
| The doer is unknown | My phone was stolen. (we don’t know who) |
| The doer is obvious or unimportant | The bridge was built in 1990. |
| To sound formal/objective | The results will be announced soon. |
Saying who did it: by
If we want to mention the doer, we use by.
- The lessons are taught by qualified tutors.
- This book was written by a famous author.
Tutor tip for Arabic speakersThe two essential parts are be + past participle. Learners often forget “be” (“The room cleaned” ✗) or use the wrong participle (“was build” ✗). Get both right: “The room is cleaned,” “The school was built.”
Common mistakes
- The room cleaned every day. → The room is cleaned every day.
- The school was build in 2010. → The school was built in 2010.
- The email has sent. → The email has been sent.
Practise the passive voice with the 20 questions below.
Check your understanding
Answer the questions below. You will see instantly if you are right.
1.Make passive: "They clean the room."
is + cleaned (present passive).
2.Passive = be + ___.
be + past participle.
3.Make passive (past): "They built the school in 2010."
was + built.
4.Present perfect passive: "They have sent the email."
has been + sent.
5.Which is correct?
is cleaned.
6.Which is correct?
was built (past participle).
7.Which is correct?
has been sent.
8.We use the passive when the doer is ___.
unknown/unimportant.
9.To mention the doer, we use ___.
by + the doer.
10."The lessons are taught ___ qualified tutors."
by qualified tutors.
11."My phone ___ yesterday." (someone stole it, unknown)
was stolen (past passive).
12."English ___ all over the world." (present)
is spoken.
13."The results ___ tomorrow." (future passive)
will be announced.
14.Past participle of "write":
written.
15."This book ___ by a famous author."
was written.
16."The cars ___ in Japan." (present, general)
are made (plural).
17."A new bridge ___ next year." (future)
will be built.
18."The homework ___ already." (present perfect, it is done)
has been done.
19.Make passive: "Someone cleans the office daily."
is cleaned daily.
20.Choose the full correct sentence:
were delivered (plural past passive).
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