Choose the correct passive construction(s) of the given sentence:
The cooperative bank granted the flood-hit farmers an interest-free loan last month.
(A) The flood-hit farmers were granted an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month.
(B) An interest-free loan was granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month.
(C) The flood-hit farmers were granted to an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month.
(D) An interest-free loan has been granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (A) and (B) only
Passive of a verb with two objects (simple past):
| Change | Active | Passive | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Object becomes subject | the flood-hit farmers / an interest-free loan | The flood-hit farmers (A) or An interest-free loan (B) | “Granted” has two objects, the farmers (people) and a loan (a thing). Either one can become the subject. |
| Tense kept | granted | were granted (A) / was granted (B) | “Granted” is in the simple past, so the passive stays in the simple past: was / were + past participle (V3). “Were” for the farmers, “was” for one loan. |
| The other object | an interest-free loan / the flood-hit farmers | an interest-free loan (A) / to the flood-hit farmers (B) | When “an interest-free loan” is the subject (B), “to” goes before “the flood-hit farmers”. |
| Agent (by ...) | The cooperative bank | by the cooperative bank | The bank is named, so the doer comes after “by”. |
| Full sentence | The cooperative bank granted the flood-hit farmers an interest-free loan last month. | (A) The flood-hit farmers were granted an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month. (B) An interest-free loan was granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month. |
Other verbs with two objects work the same way, like lend, promise and pay. Example: Kavya’s uncle lent her a calculator. → Kavya was lent a calculator by her uncle.
(A) The flood-hit farmers were granted an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month. — Correct.
- The farmers are the subject.
- “Were granted” keeps the simple past and agrees with “farmers”.
(B) An interest-free loan was granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month. — Correct.
- The loan is the subject.
- “To the flood-hit farmers” shows who got it.
(C) The flood-hit farmers were granted to an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month. — Incorrect.
- “To” is wrongly put before the loan.
- When the people are the subject, the thing comes straight after “were granted”.
- Correct form: The flood-hit farmers were granted an interest-free loan by the cooperative bank last month.
(D) An interest-free loan has been granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month. — Incorrect.
- “Has been granted” is the present perfect.
- But the active “granted” is the simple past, and “last month” needs the simple past.
- Correct form: An interest-free loan was granted to the flood-hit farmers by the cooperative bank last month.