Present and past simple passive: be + past participle
Learn how to focus on actions and objects using the passive voice.
- check_circleI can form the present simple passive.
- check_circleI can form the past simple passive.
- check_circleI can use the passive voice to focus on the object of an action.
Discover
Meet today's English in a real situation — no rules yet. Read it once and try to guess the pattern in the words in bold. Underlined words open a short definition.
Tour Guide: Welcome to the City Museum! This building has a fascinating history. It was built in 1895 as a train station.
Tourist: Wow, it’s beautiful. Are these original windows?
Tour Guide: Yes, they are. They were designed by a famous local artist. Today, the building is visited by thousands of people every year.
Tourist: What happens in this big hall?
Tour Guide: Special exhibitions are held here every month. And look up at the ceiling—it was painted over 100 years ago!
Tourist: Amazing. Who looks after the museum?
Tour Guide: It is managed by the city council. The maintenance is very expensive, so the museum is supported by public donations.
Learn
Now the rules behind what you just saw — explained simply, with examples. Underlined words open a short definition — hover on desktop, tap on a phone.
We use the passive voice when we want to focus on the object of an action, rather than who did the action.
In active sentences, the person who does the action (the subject) is the most important part. In passive sentences, the thing that receives the action becomes the subject.
Present Simple Passive
We form the present simple passive with am / is / are + past participle. We use it to talk about facts, general truths, and regular actions.
Active: People speak English all over the world. Passive: English is spoken all over the world.
When we want to say who does the action in a passive sentence, we use by.
The office is cleaned by Maria every evening.
Past Simple Passive
We form the past simple passive with was / were + past participle. We use it to talk about finished actions in the past.
Active: Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928. Passive: Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928.
If you don’t know who did the action, or if it isn’t important, you don’t need to use by.
Example: My bicycle was stolen. (We don’t know who stole it!)
Active vs. Passive
Look at how the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
- Active: They make wine in France. (Focus: “They” - people in general)
- Passive: Wine is made in France. (Focus: “Wine” - the product)
Common Mistake: Don’t forget the verb be!
Incorrect: The pyramids built in Egypt. Correct: The pyramids were built in Egypt.
- Present Passive: am/is/are + past participle (The email is sent.)
- Past Passive: was/were + past participle (The house was built.)
- Use by to say who did the action.
- The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.
Practice
Try it yourself. You'll see right away whether you got it right, plus a short explanation of why.
Use It
Now make the language yours in a real task. Use the prompt below — the editor keeps a simple word count, and nothing is saved or graded.
Before you finish — be honest. Can you do these now?