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PASSIVE VOICE
FORM:
Remember that when we use passive voice, tense falls on the verb BE, which is followed by
an -ed participle.
The school
Present Simple is decorated every summer.
Present Continuous is being decorated at the moment.
Present Perfect has been decorated recently.
Past Simple was decorated last month.
Past Continuous was being decorated until the bad weather
started.
Past Perfect had been decorated only once before.
Will will be decorated soon.
Going to is going to be decorated next month.
Modal verb may be decorated in the next few months.

FUNCTIONS:
 The passive is used to talk about processes.
The cars are taken from the factory and then they are transported all over
Europe.
 The passive is used when we don’t want to say or we can’t say who performed the action.
This book was written in the 17th century but the author is unknown.
 The passive is used when it’s obvious who performed the action.
The fire has finally been put out.
 The passive is also used to put the main focus at the beginning of the sentence. If we want
to say who carried out the action, we introduce the person’s name with the preposition by.
These emails have been sent by someone in this office and I want to know
who!

1- Write passive sentences:

1- Chinese is spoken in Singapore.

2- The Taj Mahal was built around 1640.
3- The new hospital will be opened next year.
4- She is being interviewed now.
5- I realized I was being followed.
6- Have you been invited to Andy’s party?
7- He found that all his money had been stolen.
8- These computers are made in Korea.
9- Passengers are asked not to speak to the driver.
10- Sorry about the noise – the road are being mended.
11- The village church was burnt down last year.
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12- A Roman pavement has just been found under Oxford Street.
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2- Provide the right form of the verbs in brackets:

Here is an extract from a cookery book describing how chocolate used to be processed.

• Chocolate comes from cocoa beans, the seeds of the cacao tree, which were originally
cultivated by the Mayas and Aztecs over 3,000 years ago.

• After being harvested, the cocoa pods were left to ferment and split open.

• Next, the beans were removed and left to dry in the sun.

• The dried, shelled beans were roasted in clay pots and then ground to a paste over a small
fire.

• The paste was mixed with spices, then shaped into small cakes or loaves before being dried
in the sun.

• The dried cakes were broken up, melted with hot water and maize, then beaten until frothy.

• The chocolate was then ready to drink.

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3- Match up the beginning of each sentence in column A with its ending in column B and add
a suitable passive verb form in the space provided. The first one is shown as an example.
A B
1-In the past, small amounts of cocaine used to be A to mean different things in different countries.
used + G B to direct sunlight.
2-Salt is spread on roads + F C much more widely in Scotland than it is today.
3-Central heating was invented + D D by the Romans.
4-In the future, many of today´s hereditary E so quickly that they may all have gone by 2050!
diseases will be wiped out + L F when there is snow and ice.
5-Not long ago, teeth were pulled out + J H as sacred animals.
6-In my grandfather´s time, a driving licence I at a post office without having to take a test!
was obtained + I J without any anaesthetic!
7-Undeveloped film mustn’t be exposed + B K so that learners can read them more easily
8- 150 years ago, Gaelic was spoken + C L through genetic engineering.
9-“Graded readers” are books in which the
language is simplified + K
10-Hand gestures are used + A
11-The world´s tropical rainforests are being destroyed + E
12-In India, cows are regarded + H G in the production of Coca-Cola.
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4- Complete the gaps in the following passage by putting the verbs in brackets into an
appropriate passive form. You will also have to put any other words in brackets in the correct
place. Look at the example given.

Well, last month most of the lambs (1) (sell) were sold at the market, although we’ve still got ten, which
(2) will probably be sent next week. When all the lambs have gone, the sheep (3) are taken to another
part of the farm. After that, we usually start on the fruit, although the blackcurrants (4) have already
been picked because it was an early season this year. The plums can’t (5) be picked for another three
weeks by law as they (6) were sprayed only seven weeks ago. Of course, they still have (7) to be
gathered by hand, unlike the blackcurrants, which (8) are harvested by machine nowadays. The plums
and blackcurrants (9) are both made into jam and preserve. Then we have what is called the ‘bag fruit’,
which is apples and pears. Since the fruit does not have to be in good condition (10) to be made into
cider and perry, it (11) is treated pretty badly. For example, there are no skilled pickers involved, the
trees (12) are just shaken until the fruit drops to the ground, where it (13) is collected and (14) put into
bags. As you can imagine, handling the bags is a very dirty job as the juice leaks out everywhere. But I
hope the whole process (15) will be automated before much longer.
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5- Complete the article with the correct passive form of the verb in brackets.

A study into the future of the world’s monkeys has been carried out recently by animal experts, the
results of which were released at an international conference last month. During the survey it was found
that 303 of the 634 primates studied may soon become extinct in the wild. 69 species have been
classified as critically endangered since the results became known. The main reason for the rapid
decline in numbers is identified in the report as deforestation. However, in some areas more damage is
done by local people who hunt the animals for food. Monkeys are eaten in several regions of Africa and
Asia. Conservationists want world leaders to take urgent measures to protect these animals in the hope
that they will be saved from extinction in the near future.
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Passives: Complex structures

Note these passive structures. They are mostly rather formal.

A active object complement → passive subject complement

Active: The Queen considered him a genius.

Passive: He was considered a genius.
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B structure with introductory it: It is thought / believed etc. that …

At the time, it was believed that illnesses were caused by evil spirits.

C subject + passive verb + infinitive

↓
…is / are / was / were etc. thought / believed / said / asked / seen / made etc. to …
She is thought to have left home.
They are said to be millionaires.
Pirates were reported to have invaded the city in the 16th century and stolen all the gold and silver
from the churches.

1- Rewrite the following statements in the same way, using the passive.
1- Iceland is claimed to have a very pleasant climate.

2- The cathedral in Florence is regarded as one of the most imposing in the world.

3- Sweden is believed to have one of the richest economies in Europe.

4- Mr Evans was appointed secretary.

5- She was called a witch.

6- The man holding the hostages is thought to be heavily armed.

7- Fresh air was believed to be bad for sick people.

8- He is said to be in an agitated state.

9- She was considered to be strange.

10- The rate of inflation is expected to rise.

11- Harris was seen leaving the plane in Ontario.

12- She is thought to have died in a plane crash.

13-The earth was believed to be the centre of the universe.

14- I was made to give them details of my bank accounts.

15- Pirates were reported to have invaded the city in the 16th century and to have stolen all the gold
and silver from the churches.

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2- Rewrite the sentences in the passive using the words in brackets. Mind word order.
1- National security is of paramount importance. (believe firmly)
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It is firmly believed that national security is of paramount importance.

2- Human actions are responsible for global warming. (accept widely)
It is widely accepted that human actions are responsible for global warming.
3- Monsoons are a tropical phenomenon. (regard usually)
Monsoons are usually regarded as a tropical phenomenon.
4- Wind power is the best solution to the global energy crisis. (say often)
It is often said that wind power is the best solution to the global energy crisis.
5- Oil is running out. (consider generally)
Oil is generally considered to be running out.
6- Public transport is very unreliable. (see usually)
Public transport is usually seen as very unreliable.
7- Air travel causes a great deal of pollution. (acknowledge widely)
Commercial flights are widely acknowledged to cause a great deal of pollution.
8- Flooding has worsened in recent years. (report frequently)
It is frequently reported that flooding has worsened in recent years.

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3- Rephrase using HAVE SOMETHING DONE in the correct tense.

1-Our lawn has recently been mown.

We’ve recently had our lawn mown.

2- I’d like someone to do up my bedroom.

I´d like to have my bedroom done up.

3-That charming lady used to do the housework for them.

They used to have their housework done (by that charming lady).

4-Tom will paint our facade.

We´ll have our façade painted (by Tom),

5-Mum isn´t at home now. She´s at the hairdresser´s. Her hair is being cut.

Mum isn’t at home now. She’s having her hair cut.

6-John takes all my neighbours´ dogs for a walk every afternoon.

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My neighbours have their dogs walked every afternoon.

7-A wonderful childminder looked after Jenny´s children when they were very young.

Jenny had her children looked after when they were very young.

8-Our roof had just been re-tiled when a ferocious hailstorm destroyed everything.

We’d just had our roof re-tiled when a ferocious hailstorm destroyed everything.

9- Our holiday photos were being developed and printed when the computer system crashed.

We were having our holiday photos developed and printed when the computer system crashed.

10- The house should be refurbished before we move in.

We should have the house refurbished before we move in.