| Form | the object becomes the subject; be + past participle | Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. → Hamlet was written by Shakespeare. |
| Present simple | am / is / are + V-ed | English is spoken here. |
| Past simple | was / were + V-ed | The bridge was built in 1990. |
| Present perfect | has / have been + V-ed | The window has been broken. |
| will, can, must | will / can / must be + V-ed | The results will be sent tomorrow. |
| Negative, question | negative: be + not + V-ed; question: be + subject + V-ed | The room wasn't cleaned. / Was the room cleaned? |
| Use | unknown or unimportant doer, processes, news, formal writing | My phone was stolen on the train. / Wine is made from grapes. |
| by / with | by names a new or important doer; with names a tool | The song was written by Adele. |
| Trap | verbs without an object stay active: happen / arrive / die | The accident happened yesterday. |
| Trap | use the past participle: made, written, sold, taken | The window was broken. |