ENGLISH 205

I. ACTIVE AND PASSIVE VOICE

EXERCISE 1. Decide whether each of the following sentences below is

in the active or passive voice. Write AV for sentences in active voice or
PV for those in passive voice. Write your answers on the space
provided.
_________ 1. A rib was taken out of Adam.
_________ 2. God had made all the wild animals.
_________ 3. Both Adam’s and Eve’s eyes were opened.
_________ 4. Humankind had been created from the earth by God.
_________ 5. The brothers quarreled over who is worthy to marry the
princess.
_________ 6. The youngest brother performed the greatest good deed by
giving up something of his own.
_________ 7. The selection was made by the princess herself.
_________ 8. The bow had been hoisted easily from its casing by the King.
_________ 9. The wedding ceremony was held in the palace.
_________ 10. Arnold was pleased by Angela’s decision to make Rance the
leader of their group.

EXERCISE 2. Convert the verb voice of the following sentences into

passive. Rewrite the sentence on the space provided.
1. The priests devoted their lives to studying the sacred texts.
________________________________________________________
2. The rulers and warriors governed and protected the city.
________________________________________________________
3. The Goddess decided to be born as a human to defeat her enemy.
________________________________________________________
4. Rance and Arnold willingly helped the sage.
________________________________________________________
5. The queen exceptionally defeated the demons.
________________________________________________________

EXERCISE 3. Convert the verb voice of the following sentences into

active. Rewrite the sentence on the space provided.
1. Sita was adopted by King Roman.
________________________________________________________
2. Prayers were recited by the holiest sages during the King and Queen’s
wedding.
________________________________________________________
3. Solomon was banished from his own kingdom.
________________________________________________________
4. Lance was convinced to be accompanied in his exile by his brother
Roland and his loving wife Susan.
________________________________________________________
5. She was served by her faithful followers.
________________________________________________________
II. VERBALS: Gerunds

EXERCISE 1. Underline the gerund or gerund phrase in each sentence.

On the blank before each number, identify its function(subject, direct
object, subject complement, object of preposition) in the sentence.

_________ 1. Swimming keeps me in shape

_________ 2. The college recommends sending applications early.
_________ 3. The English Renaissance dates from the beginning of the
Protestant Reformation.
_________ 4. Classical learning experienced a rebirth.
_________ 5. Gutenberg’s invention, printing, changed the lives of many
people, most especially writers.
_________ 6.Before Gutenberg’s invention, making books became easier and
less expensive.
_________ 7. With the invention of printing, producing books became easier
and less expensive.
_________ 8. Her most important achievement was winning the national
championship.
__________9.Going to work today took all my energy.
__________10.Fighting for a losing cause made them depressed.

EXERCISE 2. Use the gerunds in each number to write sentences with

gerund phrases. Circle the gerund phrase in the sentence, and write its
function below the sentence.
1. Texting
________________________________________________________
Function:
________________________________________________________
2. Chatting
________________________________________________________
Function:
________________________________________________________
3. Blogging
________________________________________________________
Function:
________________________________________________________
4. Proofreading
________________________________________________________
Function:
________________________________________________________

EXERCISE 3. On the blank before each number, write G if the underlined

word is a gerund, PP if it is present participle, or PG if it is a verb in the
progressive tense.
_________ 1. The dirt roads connecting the two villages are narrow and
rough.
_________ 2. Travelling through these roads at night is not safe.
_________ 3. A small group of workers are covering portions of the roads
with asphalt.
_________ 4. Heavy rains have been eroding the soil and filling potholes with
heavy mud.
_________ 5. The village folks bear the discomfort of wading in the mud
every time it rains.

EXERCISE 4. Use each of the following phrases in a sentence as (a)

gerund, (b) present participle, and (c) verb in the progressive tense.
1. protecting the environment
(a)
________________________________________________________
(b)
________________________________________________________
(c)
________________________________________________________

2. saving endangered animals

(a)
________________________________________________________
(b)
________________________________________________________
(c)
________________________________________________________

3. celebrating nature’s beauty

(a)
________________________________________________________
(b)
________________________________________________________
(c)
________________________________________________________

4. preserving theme parks

(a)
________________________________________________________
(b)
________________________________________________________
(c)
________________________________________________________

III. VERBALS: INFINITIVE

EXERCISE 1. Complete the sentence with an appropriate infinitive or

infinitive phrase to make them meaningful. Select your answers from the
list found inside the box.
to be given to hear to reject the idea to see to speak
to joke to tell the cook to do my homework to focus to say
1. Hurip says that once and for all, we need the courage
 _______________________.
2. When Hurip raised his voice _______________________, everybody
listens.
3. When I remained standing there, expecting an answer, she told me
again ________________.
4. I had understood her _______________________ that Hurip was a
“policeman.”
5. I was always delighted _______________________ Hurip speak.
6. It seems scary _______________________ policemen riding by our
house.
7. I was very happy _______________________ spending money by
strangers who knew my father.
8. I went to the kitchen _______________________ the cook what Father
had said.
9. Whenever I’d be around, Hurip would suddenly switch to another topic
and start ___________.
10. The sole aim of the ruling class is _______________________ on their
own rise in position, power, and wealth.

EXERCISE 2. Construct your own sentences using the following

infinitives and infinitive phrases in the functions indicated.
1. to live (direct object)
________________________________________________________
2. to serve (predicate nominative)
________________________________________________________
3. to empower (appositive)
________________________________________________________
4. to love (adjective)
________________________________________________________
5. to be happy (adverb)
________________________________________________________

IV. VERBALS: Participles

EXERCISE 1. Encircle the participle or the participial phrase used in the

following sentences. On the space provided before each number,
indicate whether the participle or the participial phrase is in the present
participle form, simple past form, or past participle form.
_________ 1. Our business career, made up entirely of critical customers,
was a losing venture.
_________ 2. The sales from our bargained wares did not add up right.
_________ 3. Managing to get employment in one of the government offices,
we settled at last in a ramshackle shed in the suburbs.
_________ 4. Cooking oil coming from Upper Burma could not be secured.
_________ 5. Having resigned myself to using animal fat, I invented various
ways of cooking eatable dishes.

EXERCISE 2. Underline the participial phrase(s) in each of the following

sentences, and draw a line to the noun or pronoun modified.
1. Getting up at five, we got an early start.
2. Facing college standards, the students realized that they hadn't worked
hard enough in high school.
3. Statistics reported by the National Education Association revealed that
seventy percent of American colleges offer remedial English classes
emphasizing composition.
4. The overloaded car gathered speed slowly.
5. Gathering my courage, I asked for a temporary loan