Episode 34: It Was Being Built

Passive Continuous — Empire State Building, 1930-1931 (B1-B2)

Grammar Box

Meaning: Passive continuous emphasizes an ongoing action happening to something/someone, focusing on the process rather than who’s doing it.

Form: is/are/was/were + being + past participle. (Present continuous passive: is being built. Past continuous passive: was being built.)

Example 1: “The building is being renovated right now.” (Focus on the building and ongoing process, not who’s renovating.)

Example 2: “When I arrived, the problem was being discussed.” (Past continuous passive—action in progress at that moment.)

Common mistake: Wrong: “The house is being build.” Better: “The house is being built.” (Need past participle after ‘being.’)

The Challenge

Luna wrote about a project: “The website is being develop by our team.” Professor Wisdom circled ‘develop.’ “After ‘being,’ we need the past participle: ‘developed,’ not the base form.” Luna tried: “Is being developed?” “Perfect,” he said. “Continuous passive shows action in progress happening to something. The focus shifts from the doers to what’s being done.” The watch glowed. “Let’s see the most impressive ‘being built’ in history.”

The Journey

New York City, 1930-1931. Every day, thousands of people gathered on Fifth Avenue, necks craned upward, watching the impossible unfold. The Empire State Building was being constructed at the astonishing pace of four and a half stories per week. No structure this tall had ever been built so fast.

On the construction site, 3,400 workers—many of them Irish and Italian immigrants desperate for work during the Great Depression—performed a daily miracle. Steel beams were being lifted by cranes. Rivets were being hammered in by teams working in perfect rhythm, their hammers creating a constant percussion across the skyline. Limestone and granite panels were being installed by men who walked narrow beams eighty stories above the ground with no safety harnesses.

A newspaper reporter visiting the site wrote: “As I watched, floors were being added at a rate that seemed impossible. Materials were being hoisted, walls were being erected, and somewhere above, the iconic spire was being assembled. The building wasn’t just growing—it was being willed into existence by the collective effort of thousands.”

One worker, asked about the danger, shrugged. “We know men are being injured. Some are being killed. But this isn’t just a building being constructed. It’s hope being built, story by story. In a city where people are being laid off every day, we’re creating something that proves humans can still accomplish the extraordinary.”

The Deep Dive

Passive continuous (being + past participle) emphasizes ongoing actions happening to subjects, particularly useful when the process matters more than who’s doing it, or when the doers are unknown, unimportant, or obvious from context. This structure works in present continuous (is/are being) and past continuous (was/were being), but rarely in future continuous.

Compare: “Workers are building the bridge” (active—focus on workers) vs. “The bridge is being built” (passive continuous—focus on the bridge and the ongoing process). Passive continuous often appears in news, construction updates, and process descriptions where the subject receiving the action is more important than the agent.

When NOT to use: Avoid passive continuous with stative verbs (know, believe, own) or when you need to emphasize who’s performing the action. Also avoid excessive passive voice, which can make writing feel bureaucratic or evasive. Use it when it genuinely improves clarity or focus.

More Examples

Construction: “A new metro line is being built beneath the city center.” (Focus on the line and ongoing work.)

Technology: “The software is being tested by users worldwide right now.” (Emphasizes the testing process happening now.)

Investigation: “The case was being reviewed when new evidence emerged.” (Past continuous—review in progress at that moment.)

Environment: “The forest is being destroyed faster than it can regrow.” (Ongoing process, emphasis on what’s happening to the forest.)

Contrast: “They are discussing the proposal” (active—who’s discussing) vs. “The proposal is being discussed” (passive—what’s being discussed matters more).

Practice & Reflection

Exercises:

Fill in the blank: The documents _ (review) by the legal team right now.
Correct the mistake: “A new hospital is being build in our neighborhood.”
Choose and explain: Which uses passive continuous correctly?
a) “The movie is being watched by millions.”
b) “The movie is being very popular.”
Rewrite: Transform “They are repairing the road outside my office” into passive continuous, focusing on the road.
Compare: Explain when to use “is built” vs. “is being built.”
Your reflection: Write a passive continuous sentence about something currently happening in your city or workplace.

Answer Key:
1. are being reviewed (present continuous passive: are + being + past participle)
2. “…is being built in our neighborhood.” (Need past participle ‘built,’ not base form.)
3. (a) uses passive continuous correctly. (b) is wrong—stative adjective ‘popular’ cannot be passive continuous.
4. “The road is being repaired outside my office.” (Focus shifts from ‘they’ to ‘the road.’)
5. “Is built” = passive simple (completed or habitual). “Is being built” = passive continuous (in progress right now).
6. Check: Does your sentence use ‘is/are being + past participle’ to describe an ongoing process? Example: “Our office building is being renovated, so we’re working from home this month.”

The Lesson

Luna wrote: “The final chapter is being written as we speak.” The Professor smiled. “Perfect. The Empire State Building taught us that ‘being built’ isn’t just grammar—it’s hope in action. When something is being created, it’s not finished yet, but it’s no longer just a dream.” Luna nodded. The most powerful moments in history weren’t when things were finished. They were when things were being built, when possibility was being transformed into reality, one day at a time.