The passive voice
be + past participle, by, and when to use the passive.
Form: be (in the right tense) + past participle. The agent is introduced by by.
| Tense | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| present | They make cars here. | Cars are made here. |
| past | Someone stole my bike. | My bike was stolen. |
| present perfect | They have sold the house. | The house has been sold. |
| future | They will build a bridge. | A bridge will be built. |
Passive with two objects
With verbs like give, offer, send, tell, ask, the person usually becomes the subject: I was given a present. She was offered the job.
Test yourself
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Make passive: They built this church in 1200.
Show answer
This church was built in 1200. -
Make passive: Someone asked me to wait.
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I was asked to wait. -
Make passive: They will deliver the parcel tomorrow.
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The parcel will be delivered tomorrow. -
Make passive with the person as subject: They offered her a job.
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She was offered a job.