Passive voice: be plus participle

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The passive lets you focus on the person or thing affected: The report was checked. Use the appropriate form of be plus a past participle. Add a by phrase when the agent matters. The tense appears in be: is checked, was checked, will be checked.

Try the three exercise formats

Examples to compare

  • Three editors checked the report.
  • The report was checked by three editors.
  • The doors are locked at eight each evening.

Watch the meaning and the limits

The passive is not automatically more formal or better writing. Use it when the result or affected item matters more than the actor, or the actor is unknown. It is not the same as a continuous form: was checking is active; was checked is passive.

Read each example aloud, then change one detail to make a sentence you could use. Continue with focused practice when you want a different set.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

Mistake: The report was wrote yesterday.

Use: The report was written yesterday.

The passive uses be plus a past participle; written is the participle of write.

Try the pattern

3 choose questions · 2 sentence completions · 2 word gaps. Read the reason after every answer. No timer.

Typed answers stay on this page. This guided set checks the requested construction; it does not judge general writing. Read the accepted answers and reasons.

Use it in your own sentence

Write one sentence about your own routine or situation. Check the subject, verb form and intended meaning against the rule above. A different sentence may need a different form: these exercises accept the reviewed answers for their stated context.

Try the next practice set, or choose another grammar point.

All drill answers and reasons

  1. Complete the past passive: The report was ___.

    Choices: checked / checking / check

    Accepted: checked

    Be takes a past participle in the passive.

  2. Complete the future passive: It will ___ checked.

    Choices: be / been / being

    Accepted: be

    Will takes base be, followed by checked.

  3. The report was checked ___ three editors.

    Choices: by / to / of

    Accepted: by

    By introduces the agent in this passive clause.

  4. Complete the past passive using check: The report ___ yesterday.

    Accepted: was checked

    Use was plus the participle checked for this past passive.

  5. Complete the future passive using repair: The door ___ tomorrow. Use will.

    Accepted: will be repaired

    Future passive uses will be plus the past participle repaired.

  6. The letter was ___ yesterday. Use the past participle of write.

    Accepted: written

    Written is the participle after was in this passive.

  7. The report was checked ___ three editors. Introduce the agent who did the checking.

    Accepted: by

    By introduces the agent responsible for the action.

Practice questions

How do the three exercise formats work?

Choose asks you to pick an answer. Complete the sentence asks you to type the missing phrase. Fill in the word asks for one word, or no article where stated. Every checked answer includes a reason.

Which typed answers are accepted?

Use the form and meaning requested in the prompt. Reviewed alternatives and contractions are accepted where they fit. Capital letters, surrounding spaces, straight or curly apostrophes and a final full stop, question mark or exclamation mark do not affect marking. The answer reference lists the accepted forms.

Are my typed answers sent or saved?

Typed answers stay on this page in your browser. They are not sent to the server or saved. If device progress is available, completing a set records only the activity and study points on this device.

Can this check my own writing or certify my level?

No. This is a small guided set with reviewed answers, not a general grammar checker or a level certificate. An unlisted answer does not mean it is always wrong in English. Read the prompt and the explanation for this construction.

Further reference: Cambridge English Grammar Today. The explanations, examples and exercises here are original; each lesson covers a useful pattern rather than every exception.