A part of the following sentence is underlined. Choose the option that can replace the underlined part to improve the sentence. In case Options A, B and C are not found suitable, choose Option D: "No Improvement Required."
The new policy was believing to have reduced corruption in the department.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
Correct Answer
was believed to have reduced
Explanation
The sentence refers to a belief about an action that was completed in the past. The correct passive structure is "was believed to have + past participle (V³)". Therefore, the correct sentence is:
"The new policy was believed to have reduced corruption in the department."
The other options are incorrect. Option 1 changes the tense and meaning to present belief. Option 3 uses an incorrect continuous passive structure. Option 4 is incorrect because the original sentence has a grammatical error.
Key Points
Use was/were believed to have + V³ when expressing a past action that was believed to have already been completed. Example: "The project was believed to have succeeded."