Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) isused to represent the progressive actionsof the past time frame. This passive tense uses “was/were” along with “being” to show that action would not had complete yet during past time. All the Past Continuous Tense (Active Voice) sentences can be converted to passive voice form, just by following thebelow-mentioned general rules.

Past Continuous Tense Passive Voice Rules

To convert the Active Voice Sentences ofPast Continuous Tense in Passive Voice sentences, you just have to follow the below-mentioned general rules.

• At first, convert the Object of Active Voice sentence into the Subject of Passive Voice Sentence.
• Then, use helping verb “was being/were being”, according to the subject of passive voice sentence.
• Then, use 3rd Verb.
• After this, use preposition “by”, to represent the doer of the action.
• Then, convert the Subject of Active Voice sentence into the object of Passive voice sentence.
• At the end, write the remaining words if there is any in the activevoice sentence.

Helping Verbs of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Following 2 helping verbs are used while making the passive sentences of Past Continuous Tense.

• Was being
• Were being

“Was being” As An Helping Verb in Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) Sentences

“Was being” is used as an helping verb in Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) sentences with singular number of nouns and pronouns (I/he/she/it). Thus, these passive sentences with “was being” as helping verb have the folowing general structural formula.

I/he/she/it/Singular Noun+ was+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words

“Was being” is used as an helping verb in following Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) sentences.

1. The manager was interviewing me.
   • I was being interviewed by the manager.
2. The doctor was treating him.
   • He was being treated by the doctor.
3. Her mother was scolding her.
   • She was being scolded by her mother.
4. The mechanic was repairing it.
   • It was being repaired by the mechanic.
5. A stranger was following me.
   • I was being followed by a stranger.

“Were being” As An Helping Verb in Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) Sentences

“Were being” is used as an helping verb with plural nouns and pronouns (we/you/they), to show the progressive actions of the past time. Thus, passive progressive actions with “were being” as helping have thefollowing sentence structural formula.

We/you/they/Plural Noun+ were+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words

Following are some examples of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) sentences with “were being” as helping verb.

1. Mr. Brown was teaching us English.
   • We were being taught English by Mr. Brown.
   • English was being taught to us by Mr. Brown.
2. The security guard was watching you.
   • You were being watched by the security guard.
3. The hotel staff was serving them dinner.
   • They were being served dinner by the hotel staff.
   • Dinner was being served to them by the hotel staff.
4. An experienced instructor was guiding us.
   • We were being guided by an experienced instructor.
5. The police were questioning them.
   • They were being questioned by the police.

Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) Formula

Declarative, Negative, Interrogative, and Interrogative-Negative sentences of Past Continuous Tense(Passive Voice), use helping verb “was being/were being”, with 3rd Verb. The sentence structure would be different according to the type of sentence. However, Past Continuous Tense(Passive Voice) sentences follow the following general sentence formula.

Subject+ was/were+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words

Declarative Sentence Formula of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Declarative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) use “was being/were being” as helping verb with 3rd verb, in order to indicate the progressive actions. So, theseassertive/declarative sentences have the following sentence formula.

I/we/you/they/he/she/it/ Singular & Plural Noun+ was/were+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words

Examples of Declarative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Following are some examples of Declarative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice).

1. The dentist was examining me.
   • I was being examined by the dentist.
2. The magician was entertaining us.
   • We were being entertained by the magician.
3. The manager was informing you about the meeting.
   • You were being informed about the meeting by the manager.
4. The teacher was warning them.
   • They were being warned by the teacher.
5. His boss was praising him.
   • He was being praised by his boss.
6. The stylist was dressing her.
   • She was being dressed by the stylist.
7. The janitor was cleaning it.
   • It was being cleaned by the janitor.
8. The mechanic was repairing the car.
   • The car was being repaired by the mechanic.
9. The clerk was checking the documents.
   • The documents were being checked by the clerk.
10. The coach was training the students.
    • The students were being trained by the coach.

Negative Sentence Formula of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Negative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) takes “not” after the helping verb “was/were”, and before “being”, to show the negativity of the past time progressive action. Thus, these negative sentences have the following sentence structural formula.

I/we/you/they/he/she/it/ Singular & Plural Nouns+ was/were+ not+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words

Examples of Negative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Following are some examples of Negative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice).

1. No one was helping me.
   • I was not being helped by anyone.
2. Our mentor was not guiding us.
   • We were not being guided by our mentor.
3. The committee was not inviting you to the event.
   • You were not being invited by the committee to the event.
4. The manager was not trusting them.
   • They were not being trusted by the manager.
5. His friends were not supporting him.
   • He was not being supported by his friends.
6. Her boss was not calling her.
   • She was not being called by her boss.
7. The technician was not fixing it.
   • It was not being fixed by the technician.
8. The workers were not painting the house.
   • The house was not being painted by the workers.
9. The clerk was not updating the files.
   • The files were not being updated by the clerk.
10. The teacher was not teaching the children.
    • The children were not being taught by the teacher properly.

Interrogative Sentence Formula of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Interrogative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) takes “was/were” at the start of sentences to show the questionability about the progressive actions of the past time. Thus, these interrogative sentences have the following sentence structural formula.

Was/were+ I/we/you/they/he/she/it/Singular & Plural nouns+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words+?

Examples of Interrogative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Following are some examples of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) Interrogative Sentences.

1. Was the officer questioned me?
   • Was I being questioned by the officer?
2. Was the waiter serving us lunch?
   • Were we being served lunch by the waiter?
   • Was the lunch being served to us by the waiter?
3. Was the lawyer advising you?
   • Were you being advised by the lawyer?
4. Were the police chasing them?
   • Were they being chased by the police?
5. Was the doctor observing him?
   • Was he being observed by the doctor?
6. Was the cameraman recording her?
   • Was she being recorded by the cameraman?
7. Was the mechanic repairing it?
   • Was it being repaired by the mechanic?
8. Was the student reading the book?
   • Was the book being read by the student?
9. Were the workers cleaning the roads?
   • Were the roads being cleaned by the workers?
10. Was the host welcoming the guests?
    • Were the guests being welcomed by the host?

Interrogative-Negative Sentence Formula of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Interrogative-Negative sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice) takes “was/were” at thestart of sentences, and “not being” comes after the subject of Passive Voice sentences. Thus, these interrogative-negative sentenceshave the following general structural sentence formula.

Was/were+ I/we/you/they/he/she/it/Singular & Plural Nouns+ not+ being+ 3rd Verb+ by+ Object+ Remaining Words+?

Examples of Interrogative-Negative Sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice)

Following are some examples of Interrogative-Negative sentences of Past Continuous Tense (Passive Voice).

1. Was the staff not treating me well?
   • Was I not being treated well by the staff?
2. Was the manager not informing us about the changes?
   • Were we not being informed about the changes by the manager?
3. Was he not following you?
   • Were you not being followed by him?
4. Were their friends not inviting them to the party?
   • Were they not being invited to the party by their friends?
5. Was his teacher not warning him?
   • Was he not being warned by his teacher?
6. Were her colleagues not supporting her?
   • Was she not being supported by her colleagues?
7. Was the engineer not repairing it?
   • Was it not being repaired by the engineer?
8. Was the team not completing the projects?
   • Were the projects not being completed by the team?
9. Was the gardener not watering the flowers?
   • Were the flowers not being watered by the gardener?
10. Was the instructor not preparing the students for the test?
    • Were the students not being prepared for the test by the instructor?