English Passive Voice: Complete Grammar Guide with 48 Examples
The passive voice is one of the most important structures in English. It shifts focus from who acts to what happens — essential for academic writing, news, formal speech, and everyday conversation. This guide covers all passive tenses and special constructions with real examples. Search or filter by category below.
48 items · 6 topics
"The letter is written"
Present Simple Passive — someone writes the letter habitually
"The report is written by the team every Friday."
"The cake was baked"
Past Simple Passive — someone baked the cake at a specific time
"The cake was baked by my grandmother last night."
"The contract will be signed"
Future Simple Passive — someone will sign the contract
"The contract will be signed by both parties tomorrow."
"Mistakes are made"
Present Simple Passive — people make mistakes in general
"Mistakes are made by everyone when learning something new."
"The road was repaired"
Past Simple Passive — workers repaired the road
"The road was repaired after the heavy floods last spring."
"The package will be delivered"
Future Simple Passive — a courier will deliver the package
"The package will be delivered to your door by noon."
"Coffee is grown in Brazil"
Present Simple Passive — farmers grow coffee there as a fact
"Coffee is grown in Brazil and exported worldwide every year."
"The bridge was built in 1890"
Past Simple Passive — workers built it at that time
"The bridge was built in 1890 and still stands today."
"The house is being painted"
Present Continuous Passive — painters are painting it right now
"The house is being painted by a professional crew this week."
"The film was being shot"
Past Continuous Passive — the crew was shooting it at that moment
"The film was being shot when the storm interrupted production."
"The data is being analysed"
Present Continuous Passive — analysts are working on it now
"The data is being analysed by the research team as we speak."
"The road was being repaired"
Past Continuous Passive — workers were repairing it at the time
"The road was being repaired when we tried to drive through."
"A new policy is being discussed"
Present Continuous Passive — people are discussing it currently
"A new policy is being discussed by the board this afternoon."
"The suspects were being questioned"
Past Continuous Passive — police were questioning them
"The suspects were being questioned when the lawyer arrived."
"The app is being updated"
Present Continuous Passive — developers are updating it now
"The app is being updated — please try again in a few minutes."
"The proposal was being reviewed"
Past Continuous Passive — someone was reviewing it at that point
"The proposal was being reviewed by senior management all morning."
"The invoice has been sent"
Present Perfect Passive — someone sent it; the result matters now
"The invoice has been sent to the client already."
"The decision had been made"
Past Perfect Passive — someone made it before another past event
"The decision had been made before we arrived at the meeting."
"The report will have been submitted"
Future Perfect Passive — it will be done before a future deadline
"The report will have been submitted by the time you read this."
"Three suspects have been arrested"
Present Perfect Passive — police arrested them recently
"Three suspects have been arrested in connection with the robbery."
"The rules had been explained"
Past Perfect Passive — someone explained them before the event
"The rules had been explained clearly before the game began."
"The funds have been transferred"
Present Perfect Passive — the transfer is complete as of now
"The funds have been transferred to your account successfully."
"The building has been demolished"
Present Perfect Passive — workers demolished it; it is gone now
"The old factory has been demolished to make way for a park."
"The winners had been announced"
Past Perfect Passive — announced before another past moment
"The winners had been announced before we reached the venue."
"This must be done immediately"
Modal passive expressing strong obligation
"This must be done immediately or we will miss the deadline."
"The problem can be solved"
Modal passive expressing possibility or ability
"The problem can be solved if we work together effectively."
"Mistakes should be avoided"
Modal passive expressing advice or recommendation
"Mistakes should be avoided by double-checking your work."
"The door might be locked"
Modal passive expressing uncertainty about state
"The door might be locked — try the side entrance instead."
"Tickets could be purchased online"
Modal passive expressing option or past possibility
"Tickets could be purchased online before the event sold out."
"The form must be completed in full"
Modal passive showing a firm requirement
"The form must be completed in full before it can be processed."
"Better results may be achieved"
Modal passive expressing possibility of improvement
"Better results may be achieved with regular daily practice."
"The meeting could have been cancelled"
Modal perfect passive — it was possible but did not happen
"The meeting could have been cancelled if we had known earlier."
"It is said that…"
Impersonal passive reporting general belief or opinion
"It is said that learning a language before age ten is much easier."
"It is believed that…"
Impersonal passive expressing a widely held belief
"It is believed that regular exercise improves mental health."
"It is reported that…"
Impersonal passive used in news and formal writing
"It is reported that the company will announce layoffs next week."
"He is known to be honest"
Personal impersonal passive — the subject shifts to the person
"She is known to be one of the best surgeons in the country."
"They are thought to have left"
Personal impersonal passive with perfect infinitive
"They are thought to have left the country before the arrest."
"It is expected that prices will rise"
Impersonal passive expressing a forecast or expectation
"It is expected that prices will rise sharply in the coming months."
"It has been confirmed that…"
Impersonal passive with present perfect — recently verified fact
"It has been confirmed that the vaccine is safe and effective."
"He is alleged to have stolen the funds"
Impersonal passive used for unproven claims (legal/news)
"The executive is alleged to have stolen the funds over three years."
"Get done / get finished"
"Get passive" — informal alternative to "be passive"
"The dishes never get done unless I do them myself."
"Have it repaired"
"Have something done" causative — you arrange for someone else to do it
"I had my car repaired at the garage on the corner."
"Get caught"
"Get passive" expressing an unexpected or unfortunate event
"He always gets caught when he tries to cheat on the exam."
"She was born in Tokyo"
Passive of "bear": "born" for birth events
"She was born in Tokyo but grew up in London."
"Have your photo taken"
Causative passive — arrange for a photographer to take your photo
"We had our photo taken at the top of the Eiffel Tower."
"It needs fixing"
Passive gerund after "need" to express a required action
"The leak needs fixing before the walls get any worse."
"Being told what to do"
Passive gerund — used after prepositions and as a subject
"She hates being told what to do by people who know less than she does."
"To be continued"
Passive infinitive used idiomatically to signal a continuation
"The story is far from over — to be continued in the next episode."
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the passive voice in English?
The passive voice is a grammatical structure where the object of an action becomes the subject of the sentence. It is formed with the verb "to be" + past participle (e.g., "The letter was written"). The agent (who does the action) can be omitted or introduced with "by". It is used when the action or result is more important than the person performing it.
How do you form the passive voice in different tenses?
The pattern is always: subject + correct form of "be" + past participle. Present Simple: "is/are + pp" (The cake is baked). Past Simple: "was/were + pp" (The cake was baked). Present Perfect: "has/have been + pp" (The cake has been baked). Future: "will be + pp" (The cake will be baked). Continuous tenses add "-ing" to "be": "is being baked", "was being baked".
When should you use the passive voice?
Use the passive when: (1) you do not know who performed the action ("The window was broken"); (2) the actor is unimportant or obvious ("Mistakes are made"); (3) you want to sound formal or impersonal (academic and scientific writing); (4) you want to focus on the result rather than the person doing it. Overusing the passive can make writing feel impersonal, so balance it with active sentences.
What is the difference between "was done" and "has been done"?
"Was done" (Past Simple Passive) refers to a completed action at a specific time in the past: "The report was written yesterday." "Has been done" (Present Perfect Passive) focuses on the result that is relevant now, without specifying when: "The report has been written." Use the past simple with time expressions (yesterday, last week, in 2020) and the present perfect when the time is not stated or does not matter.
What is the "get passive" and when is it used?
The "get passive" uses "get + past participle" instead of "be + past participle". It is more informal and common in spoken English. It often implies something unexpected, unfortunate, or gradual: "She got promoted" (positive surprise), "He got fired" (unfortunate), "The work got done eventually" (gradual). Avoid the get passive in formal writing and use "be" instead.
Passive structures appear constantly in films, podcasts, and news. Listening builds intuition faster than grammar drills.
Hear passive voice in real English conversations →