Can the passive voice be used for sentences in the present perfect continuous?
I understand the present perfect and its passive voice (have/has built, has been built). However, the passive voice of present perfect continuous is unclear:
- Active: They have been building this house for years.
- Passive: ???
I have seen suggestions of “This house has been being built for years,” but it sounds awkward and I don't recall anywhere else where two be verbs follow one another. Is this the right form to use?
Best Answer
I think "has been being built" is grammatical, but few people would say it. I think most people would use the impersonal active form you gave.
An alternative in some dialects is "This house has been a-building for years", but that's not in any standard variety as far as I know.