HOME / GRAMMAR EXERCISES / PASSIVE VOICE (SIMPLE PAST) 1

Topic: THE PASSIVE VOICE (SIMPLE PAST) 1

level: Beginner/Intermediate

Fill in the blanks to change each active voice sentence into a passive voice sentence.
Example: Henry Miller wrote that book. → That book was written by Henry Miller.

1. The president gave John an award. → John an award by the president.

2. Everyone saw them. → They by everyone.

3. The police brought him. → He by the police.

4. The firefighters saved the women. → The women by the firefighters.

5. All the students understood the explanation. → The explanation by all the students.

6. Mrs. Richardson filed two complaints. → Two complaints by Mrs. Richardson.

7. That man stole my wallet. → My wallet by that man.

8. Everyone knew them. → They by everyone.

9. A snake bit him. → He by a snake.

10. Thomas and his brother built that house. → That house by Thomas and his brother.

11. The detective questioned him. → He by the detective.

12. My mother ironed our clothes. → Our clothes by my mother.

13. Robert warned Steven about Frank. → Steven by Robert about Frank.

14. They picked Anthony. → Anthony by them.

15. My brother sold the paintings. → The paintings by my brother.

GRAMMAR REVIEW! The passive voice using the simple past tense

Structure:
Subject + was/were + past participle
Example:
Active: The chef cooked the meal.
Passive: The meal was cooked (by the chef).

TOP TIPS!
• Use "was" for singular subjects and "were" for plural subjects.
• The focus is on the receiver of the action, not the doer.
• The agent (the one who does the action) is often omitted if it's unknown or unimportant.

More Examples:
The window was broken last night.
The letters were delivered this morning.
The movie was directed by Sofia Coppola.

CHECK OUT OUR OTHER PASSIVE VOICE PRACTICE TESTS:
The passive voice (simple past) 1 (B/I)
The passive voice (simple present) 1 (I)
The passive voice (mixed) 1 (B)
The passive voice (mixed) 2 (I)
The passive voice (mixed) 3 (I)

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