Choose the appropriate Passive Voice for the following sentence:
They released the list of participants for the quiz yesterday.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → The list of participants for the quiz was released yesterday.
Active to passive voice (simple past):
| Change | Active | Passive | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Object becomes subject | the list of participants for the quiz | The list of participants for the quiz | “The list of participants for the quiz” moves to the front. |
| Tense kept | released | was released | Be + past participle in the same tense. The singular subject “the list” takes “was”: released becomes “was released”. |
| Agent (by ...) | They | – (dropped) | “By them” is dropped, because “they” refers to no one in particular. “Yesterday” stays. |
| Full sentence | They released the list of participants for the quiz yesterday. | The list of participants for the quiz was released yesterday. |
Example: They opened the new bridge last week. → The new bridge was opened last week.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: For the quiz, the list of participants was released. — Incorrect. It drops "yesterday", so the time of the action is lost.
Option 2: They released the list of participants yesterday. — Incorrect. It is still in the active voice, and it drops "for the quiz".
Option 3: They released the list of participants for the quiz yesterday. — Incorrect. It only repeats the given active sentence.