Select the option that expresses the given sentence in active form.
The entire cake was eaten by Maria.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The correct answer is option 3 i.e. Maria ate the entire cake.
The given sentence is in passive voice:
'The entire cake was eaten by Maria.'
Let’s break it down:
- Verb tense: 'was eaten' → past simple passive
- Subject in passive: 'The entire cake'
- Agent (doer): 'Maria'
To change to active voice:
- Subject becomes Maria
- Verb changes from passive to active → 'was eaten' becomes 'ate'
- Object becomes the entire cake.
Why the other options are incorrect:
Option 1: 'Maria is eating...'
Present continuous tense — doesn't match the past tense of the original sentence.
Option 2: 'Maria was eating...'
Past continuous tense — implies the action was ongoing, not completed.
Option 4: 'Maria had eaten...'
Past perfect tense — too far in the past and not equivalent to the simple past passive form.