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I don't understand why I can't use "to be locked up" instead of "to locked up" mentioned in this right sentence "I've often wondered what it would be like to locked up in a house for twelve weeks with ten strangers."

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  • You can lock yourself up (active), or you can be locked up (passive).
    – Davo
    Feb 13, 2020 at 13:28
  • "I've often wondered what it would be like to locked up in a house for twelve weeks with ten strangers" is wrong.
    – Hot Licks
    Feb 13, 2020 at 13:32
  • You can use it; be has obviously been left out of the sentence. Feb 13, 2020 at 13:47
  • You can discard both or neither of the highlighted words in I've often wondered what it would be like [to be] locked up in a house..., but you can't just discard one of them. Feb 13, 2020 at 16:07

1 Answer 1

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"to be locked up" The is the simple past passive form:

"He was locked up by the police."

"to locked up" - this is wrong = locked is the past participle.

"To lock up" this is the active form of the verb, "The police locked him up."

Compare

He was locked up by the police.

with

"The police locked him up."

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