Di pejabat, laporan saya telah ditulis semula oleh bos dalam bentuk pasif.

At the office, my report was rewritten by the boss in passive form.

Breakdown of Di pejabat, laporan saya telah ditulis semula oleh bos dalam bentuk pasif.

• di: at
• pejabat: the office
• laporan: the report
• bos: the boss
• saya: my
• dalam: in
• oleh: by
• telah: already
• menulis semula: to rewrite
• bentuk: the form
• pasif: passive

Questions & Answers about Di pejabat, laporan saya telah ditulis semula oleh bos dalam bentuk pasif.

Why is Di pejabat placed at the beginning of the sentence?

Putting the location phrase (Di pejabat, “at the office”) up front is common in Malay to set the scene. It’s an adverbial of place moved to the start for emphasis or context, just like “At the office…” in English.

What is the passive construction in this sentence?

The passive is formed by:

• telah (completed aspect marker)
• di-
  • verb root + (optional) particles
• oleh phrase for the agent
  Here: telah
  • ditulis
    • semula
      • oleh bos.

Why do we use ditulis semula instead of ditulis lagi?

• semula means “again” or “anew,” emphasizing the action of rewriting.
• lagi generally means “more” or “again,” but ditulis lagi can be ambiguous—it might imply “written extra times.”
  Thus dicontoh semula is more precise for “rewritten.”

Why is laporan saya placed before the verb rather than after?

In a Malay passive clause, the patient or theme (the thing acted upon) becomes the grammatical subject and appears before the verb. Here, laporan saya (“my report”) is the subject of the passive.

Can we omit oleh bos here? If so, what changes?

Yes. The agent phrase (oleh bos) is optional when:

• It’s obvious who did the action.
• You want to focus on the action or object.
  Then the sentence reads:
  “Di pejabat, laporan saya telah ditulis semula dalam bentuk pasif.”

What’s the difference between telah and sudah?

Both indicate a completed action:

• telah is more formal and common in writing or formal speech.
• sudah is neutral and widely used in everyday conversation.
  You could say sudah ditulis semula, but telah fits the formal register here.

Why is bentuk pasif added at the end?

bentuk pasif literally means “passive form.” It clarifies that the action is expressed in passive voice. In Malay, manner or explanatory phrases like this typically follow the main clause.

How would you convert this passive sentence into active voice?

Change the focus back to the actor and switch to an active verb form:
Bos telah menulis semula laporan saya di pejabat.