O documento removido foi encontrado no armário.

The removed document was found in the cupboard.

Breakdown of O documento removido foi encontrado no armário.

• em: in
• o armário: the cupboard
• o documento: the document
• removido: removed
• ser encontrado: to be found

Questions & Answers about O documento removido foi encontrado no armário.

Why is removido placed after documento?

In European Portuguese, adjectives and past participles used adjectivally generally follow the noun they modify. So documento removido is literally “document removed” (i.e. “the removed document”), not removido documento.

Can I say removido documento instead?

No; that word order sounds unnatural. Only a few very common or short adjectives routinely precede the noun (e.g. grande, bom), but most—including past participles like removido—come after.

Why is the passive voice formed with foi encontrado instead of using encontrou-se?

Portuguese offers two passive/impersonal constructions:
• True passive: ser + past participle (foi encontrado). Focuses on what happens to the subject.
• Impersonal passive: verb + -se (encontrou-se o documento). More neutral/impersonal.
Here, foi encontrado is the true passive, emphasising that “the document was found.”

Why is ser (foi) used instead of estar (esteve) in the passive?

By rule, the true passive voice always uses ser + past participle. Using estar would suggest a resulting state, not the action of finding. O documento está encontrado is incorrect for “the document was found.”

Why does encontrado agree in gender and number with documento?

In the true passive, the past participle behaves like an adjective and must agree with the subject. Documento is masculine singular, so encontrado is masculine singular. If it were feminine plural (e.g. as cartas), it would be foram encontradas.

Why is there a definite article before documento (i.e. O documento) when English might drop “the”?

Portuguese routinely uses definite articles before singular countable nouns (especially in contexts where English omits them). Thus O documento is natural, whereas omitting the article sounds odd in Portuguese.

Why is it no armário? What does no stand for?

No is the contraction of em + o, so no armário means “in the cupboard/closet.” Portuguese contracts prepositions with definite articles:
• em + o → no
• em + a → na
• de + o → do
• de + a → da

Could I say num armário instead? What’s the difference?

Yes—num is em + um, meaning “in a cupboard” (indefinite). No armário (em + o) means “in the (specific) cupboard.” Use num when you don’t have a particular cabinet in mind.

Can I replace the past participle phrase with a relative clause, e.g. O documento que foi removido?

Absolutely. You can say
O documento que foi removido foi encontrado no armário.
This is a bit more wordy but means the same: “The document that was removed was found in the closet.”

How would I add the agent (who found it) in the passive voice?

Introduce por + the agent. For example:
O documento removido foi encontrado por mim.
(“…was found by me.”) or
…foi encontrado por alguém.