had been bought

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "had been bought" is correct and usable in written English.
It is typically used to indicate that something was purchased in the past and emphasizes the completion of that action before another past event. Example: "By the time the meeting started, the supplies had been bought and were ready for use."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

after it had been bought.

The New Yorker

"eBay confirmed that it had been bought.

The Guardian - Money

Houses had been bought and lost.

The New York Times

The drugs had been bought by Americans.

The New York Times

Everyone knew that the honour had been bought.

Independent

His play "Caligula" had been bought for N.Y.

The New Yorker

Regional warlords had been bought off, the borders supposedly sealed.

The New Yorker

(It had been bought by Warner Brothers in 1967).

The New York Times - Arts

Half of them, he reckons, had been bought or pilfered from state armouries.

The Economist

The photographs had been bought from a London gym owner who took them with hidden cameras.

The New York Times

The poet Robert Burns wrote that Scotland had been "bought and sold for English gold".

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When describing a situation where the item or entity was bought with a specific intention or purpose, using "had been bought" can effectively highlight the motive behind the purchase. This adds depth to your explanation.

Common error

Avoid using "was bought" when you need to emphasize that the buying action was completed before another event in the past. "Was bought" simply describes a past action without specifying its relation to another past time.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "had been bought" functions as a verb phrase in the past perfect passive voice. It indicates that a subject received the action of being bought sometime before another point in the past. Ludwig AI shows numerous examples across various contexts confirming this usage.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

70%

Science

15%

Wiki

5%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

5%

Formal & Business

3%

Reference

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "had been bought" is a grammatically sound and frequently used construction in English, serving as a past perfect passive verb phrase. It's employed to signify that the action of buying was completed before another event in the past, effectively establishing a clear sequence of events. As confirmed by Ludwig AI, this phrase is versatile and appears across various contexts, with particularly high usage in news and media. While alternatives like "was purchased" or "was acquired" exist, "had been bought" provides a specific emphasis on the completion of the buying action within a past timeline.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

was purchased

Focuses on the act of purchasing, often interchangeable, but may lack the extended implication of "had been bought".

was acquired

Suggests a more formal or complex process of obtaining something, such as a company or property.

had been obtained

Implies a broader range of methods for getting something, not necessarily through purchase.

was under new ownership

Highlights the change in ownership status following the buying event.

had changed hands

Emphasizes the transfer of possession from one entity to another.

had been procured

Suggests that something was obtained, often through special effort or means.

had been secured

Highlights the act of making something safe or certain to be possessed, implying a prior risk or uncertainty.

was now owned by

Directly states the current ownership, focusing on the present state as a result of the past purchase.

had come into possession of

Formal and legalistic phrasing indicating how someone obtained something.

was now the property of

Emphasizes the legal aspect of ownership after the transaction.

FAQs

How do I use "had been bought" in a sentence?

Use "had been bought" to describe an action of buying that was completed before another event in the past. For example, "The house "had been bought" before the market crashed."

What are some alternatives to "had been bought"?

Depending on the context, you could use alternatives like "was purchased", "was acquired", or "had been obtained".

Is it correct to say "was bought" instead of "had been bought"?

While "was bought" is grammatically correct, it doesn't convey the same sense of completion before another past action as ""had been bought"" does. The choice depends on the specific nuance you want to express.

What's the difference between "had been bought" and "had been purchased"?

The phrases are largely interchangeable. "Had been purchased" is a more formal synonym for ""had been bought"", but they both indicate a completed buying action in the past before another event.