The Passive Voice — Focus on the Action

Have you noticed how news headlines rarely say who did something?

Notice

  • The bridge was built in 1990.
  • English is spoken in many countries.
  • The package will be delivered tomorrow.

Rule

The Passive Voice (be + past participle) focuses on the action or the result, not who did it. We use it when the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious from context — very common in news, processes, and formal writing.

Form: am/is/are/was/were/will be + past participle.

Practice

  1. This phone ___ (make) in Vietnam.
    Answer: is made
  2. The Eiffel Tower ___ (build) in 1889.
    Answer: was built
  3. The results ___ (announce) next week.
    Answer: will be announced
  4. Rice ___ (grow) in many Asian countries.
    Answer: is grown
  5. The letter ___ (send) yesterday.
    Answer: was sent

Connect

Passive sentences are everywhere in news articles — practise spotting them.

Try Reading Quiz →

CEFR: Reading — understand texts that consist mainly of high-frequency everyday or job-related language.

Azizul Hakim
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