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Passive of Wh-Questions

Introduction

In many competitive exams, you’ll often be asked to convert Wh-questions (who, what, when, where, why, how) into passive voice. This pattern helps test your understanding of sentence structure, verb inversion, and tense adjustment.

Mastering this pattern ensures you can correctly transform question sentences while maintaining grammatical accuracy.

Pattern: Passive of Wh-Questions

Pattern

Wh-word + appropriate “be” verb + past participle + (by + agent)

The Wh-word remains at the beginning. The object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive form, and the tense of the verb is adjusted accordingly.

Step-by-Step Example

Question

Convert into passive voice:
Who wrote this letter?

A. Who this letter was written?

B. By whom was this letter written?

C. Whom was this letter written?

D. By who was this letter written?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify components.

    Subject: Who; Verb: wrote; Object: this letter.

  2. Step 2: Change the object into the subject position.

    This letter becomes the new subject.

  3. Step 3: Replace “who” with “by whom”.

    In passive questions, “who” → “by whom”.

  4. Step 4: Convert the verb to passive form.

    ‘wrote’ (simple past) → ‘was written’.

  5. Step 5: Form the passive question.

    → By whom was this letter written?

  6. Final Answer:

    By whom was this letter written? → Option B.

  7. Quick Check:

    Wh-word stays first; tense (past) preserved; ‘who’ replaced by ‘by whom’. ✅

Quick Variations

  • 1. When: When did they build the bridge? → When was the bridge built?
  • 2. Where: Where did they hold the meeting? → Where was the meeting held?
  • 3. What: What did he say? → What was said by him?

Trick to Always Use

  • Step 1: Keep the Wh-word (Who, What, When, etc.) at the start.
  • Step 2: Move the object to the beginning and adjust the “be” verb for tense.
  • Step 3: Replace “who” with “by whom”.
  • Step 4: Use past participle (V₃) form of the verb.

Summary

Summary

  • Always retain the Wh-word at the start of the sentence.
  • Use correct form of “be” verb depending on the tense.
  • “Who” → “By whom” in passive form.
  • Ensure the subject and verb agree in number and tense.

Example recap: “Who broke the window?” → “By whom was the window broken?” ✅

Practice

(1/5)
1. Convert into passive voice:<br>Who painted this picture?
easy
A. By whom was this picture painted?
B. Who was this picture painted by?
C. By whom this picture was painted?
D. Who painted this picture by?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify the structure.

    Question word ‘Who’ → indicates a person performing the action.

  2. Step 2: Replace ‘Who’ with ‘By whom’.

    In passive voice, ‘Who’ changes to ‘By whom’.

  3. Step 3: Identify tense and convert verb.

    ‘Painted’ → simple past → passive form ‘was painted’.

  4. Step 4: Arrange in question form.

    → By whom was this picture painted?

  5. Final Answer:

    By whom was this picture painted? → Option A.

  6. Quick Check:

    ‘Who’ → ‘By whom’; tense past → ‘was painted’. ✅
Hint: ‘Who’ in active → ‘By whom’ in passive.
Common Mistakes: Forgetting to invert ‘was’ and subject in the question form.
2. Change into passive voice:<br>When did they complete the project?
easy
A. When did the project be completed?
B. When was the project completed?
C. When had the project completed?
D. When has the project been completed?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify the question word.

    ‘When’ stays at the beginning.

  2. Step 2: Find tense and convert verb.

    ‘Did complete’ → simple past → ‘was completed’ in passive.

  3. Step 3: Replace subject and object.

    ‘The project’ becomes the new subject.

  4. Step 4: Frame final question.

    → When was the project completed?

  5. Final Answer:

    When was the project completed? → Option B.

  6. Quick Check:

    Past tense → ‘was’ + V₃ (‘completed’). ✅
Hint: Keep Wh-word same; convert main verb to ‘was/were + V₃’.
Common Mistakes: Using ‘did’ instead of changing to ‘was’.
3. Transform into passive voice:<br>Who broke the window?
easy
A. By who was the window broken?
B. Who was the window broken by?
C. By whom was the window broken?
D. Whom was the window broken?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify components.

    Subject ‘Who’, verb ‘broke’, object ‘the window’.

  2. Step 2: Change ‘Who’ to ‘By whom’.

    In passive questions, ‘Who’ → ‘By whom’.

  3. Step 3: Change verb form.

    ‘Broke’ (past) → ‘was broken’ (passive).

  4. Step 4: Frame full question.

    → By whom was the window broken?

  5. Final Answer:

    By whom was the window broken? → Option C.

  6. Quick Check:

    ‘Who’ → ‘By whom’, verb → ‘was broken’. ✅
Hint: ‘Who broke’ → ‘By whom was ... broken’.
Common Mistakes: Using ‘by who’ instead of ‘by whom’.
4. Convert into passive voice:<br>Where did they hold the meeting?
medium
A. Where was the meeting held?
B. Where did the meeting be held?
C. Where the meeting was held?
D. Where had the meeting been held?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Keep the Wh-word same.

    ‘Where’ remains at the start.

  2. Step 2: Identify tense and convert verb.

    ‘Did hold’ → simple past → passive ‘was held’.

  3. Step 3: Make object the subject.

    ‘The meeting’ becomes the new subject.

  4. Step 4: Form the sentence.

    → Where was the meeting held?

  5. Final Answer:

    Where was the meeting held? → Option A.

  6. Quick Check:

    Simple past passive → ‘was + V₃’. ✅
Hint: Keep ‘Wh’ word same; replace ‘did’ with ‘was/were’.
Common Mistakes: Keeping ‘did’ in the passive question.
5. Change into passive voice:<br>Why did he tell you the secret?
medium
A. Why was you told the secret by him?
B. Why were you told the secret by him?
C. Why did the secret be told by him?
D. Why were you told the secret?

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify question word.

    ‘Why’ remains at the start.

  2. Step 2: Find tense and convert verb.

    ‘Did tell’ → simple past → passive ‘were told’.

  3. Step 3: Change object to subject.

    ‘You’ → new subject → ‘were told’ (as ‘you’ uses were).

  4. Step 4: Frame question (agent optional).

    → Why were you told the secret?

  5. Final Answer:

    Why were you told the secret? → Option D.

  6. Quick Check:

    ‘Why’ same, verb → past passive ‘were told’. ✅
Hint: Keep Wh-word same, use correct form of ‘was/were + V₃’.
Common Mistakes: Using ‘was’ with ‘you’ instead of ‘were’.

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