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PASSIVE VOICE extra

People /they say / think / believe that he is lazy.

It is said / thought / believed that he is lazy.

He is said / thought / believed to be lazy.

“Main clause + noun clause” can be made passive in two ways.

Example 1:

Active: People say that he lives abroad now.

Passive 1: It’s said that he lives abroad now.


Passive 2: He is said to live abroad now.

Example 2:

Active: People believe that he is the hero of the town.

Passive 1: It’s believed that he is the hero of the town.


Passive 2: He is believed to be the hero of the town.

Present "Be":
Active: They say (that) the man is a thief.

Passive 1: It’s said that the man is a thief.


Passive 2: The man is said to be a thief.

Simple Present Noun Clause:


Active: We understand that he dislikes children.

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Passive 1: It’s understood that he dislikes children.
Passive 2: He is understood to dislike children.

Past "Be":
Active: They say that he was very rich in the past.

Passive 1: It’s said that he was rich in the past.


Passive 2: He is said to have been very rich in the past.

Simple Past Noun Clause :


Active: People claim that he left the country two months ago.

Passive 1: It’s claimed that he left the country two months ago.
Passive 2: He is claimed to have left the country two months ago.

Present Perfect Noun Clause :


Active: People think that he has deserted his family.

Passive 1: It’s thought that he has deserted his family.


Passive 2: He is thought to have deserted his family.

Present Continuous Noun Clause :


Active: We think he is waiting there now.

Passive 1: It’s thought that he is waiting there now.


Passive 2: He is thought to be waiting there now.

Past Continuous Noun Clause :


Active: People say he was working very hard.

Passive 1: It’s said that he was working very hard.


Passive 2: He is said to have been working very hard.

Future Tense(will or going to) Noun Clause :


Active: People expect that the rate of exchange will go down soon.

Passive 1: It’s expected that the rate of crime will go down soon.
Passive 2: The rate of crime is expected to go down soon.

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Note :

Common verbs similar to “believe, say” are claim, understand,


think, suppose, expect, report, acknowledge, assume, estimate,
consider etc.

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