passive

In a passive sentence, the subject is the thing or person that something happens to. You use it when the doer is not important, not known, or obvious. The passive has two parts: a form of be and the past participle (made, built, written).

Present and past

The tense is in be: am, is or are for the present, was or were for the past. The participle doesn't change.

Active and passive

An active sentence starts with the doer. A passive sentence starts with what the action is done to. The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive one.

By for the doer

Add by + the doer only when it is new or important information. Most passive sentences don't have it.

Questions and negatives

Questions put be before the subject. Negatives add not after be.

Was born

Be born is always passive. For the day or place of your birth, say I was born.

After can, must, will

After a modal verb, use be + past participle.

Common mistakes

Don't leave out be, and use the past participle, not the past simple, when they are different.

• × The house built in 1900. → The house was built in 1900.
• × The letter was wrote by my sister. → The letter was written by my sister.
• × I born in Osaka. → I was born in Osaka.
• × The car was repaired from a mechanic. → The car was repaired by a mechanic.