Unit 8. Active and Passive Voice

A. Formation and Basic Meanings

B. Changing from Active into Passive

Exercise1. Turn the sentences from Active into Passive. Do it to the following scheme:

Student A: Student B:

1. Muslims celebrate Ramadan.

2. An expert is restoring the antique car.

3. Steven Spielberg has directed a lot of successful films.

4. The judge has fined him $300.

5. A famous designer is going to redecorate the President’s house.

6. Van Gogh painted “Sunflowers”.

7. Astronauts are exploring space.

8. The company gave her the first rise in April.

9. Mr Layton carried out an interesting experiment.

10. His colleagues started to respect Tom.

Exercise 2. Look at the signs, notices, headlines, etc. and make the sentences using the full form of the Passive.

Sample: Rare birds found in remote countryside. – A rare bird has been found in the countryside.

Exercise 3. Change each of the following sentences from the Active into the Passive Voice.

1. Someone typed the report last week.

2. Someone has sent all the letters today.

3. Someone was writing the information during the meeting.

4. Someone will write down the client’s telephone number.

5. Someone is repairing the computer.

Exercise 4. Do the General Knowledge Quiz “Guess Who?” asking and answering questions as in the example.

Student A: Student B:

Penicillin The “Mona Lisa” The radio The pyramids America The telephone The song “Imagine” Mickey Mouse “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” The electric bulb The revolver The Pacific Ocean The television Paper Radioactivity dynamite

Discover Paint Invent Build Discover Invent Write Create Write Invent Invent Discover Invent Invent Discover Invent

Leonardo da Vinci Lewis Carol The Ancient Egyptians Walt Disney John Lennon Marconi Alexander Fleming Alexander Graham Bell Thomas Edison Christopher Columbus Vasco Nunez de Balboa Samuel Colt The Chinese John L. Baird Alfred Nobel Becquerel

Exercise 5. Use “by or “with”. Justify your choice.

1. The window was broken…a hammer.

2. He was knocked down…a car.

3. The lion was shot…a rifle.

4. That novel was written…D.H. Lawrence.

5. The garden was dug…a spade.

6. The city was attacked…the enemy.

7. The pudding was made…fruit and chocolate.

8. He was hit…a handbag.

9. The picture was painted…Jackson Pollack.

10. The house was built…wood and bricks.

11. The busy shopping street was crowded…people.

12. All through January the fields were covered…snow.

13. The island was inhabited…people of mainly Chinese origin.

14. The emergency exit was concealed…a red curtain.

15. The room was crammed…furniture of all descriptions.

Exercise 6. Turn the following into the Passive in two ways. Do it to the following scheme:

Student A: Student B:

1. They gave him a watch when he retired.

2. They have offered him a job.

3. She will send you a fax.

4. They are going to show me a new technique.

5. Someone gave her a book.

6. They give the students extra lessons.

7. They have shown her the plans for the house.

8. They should have sent you a receipt.

9. The secretary told me a lot of lies.

10. Mrs Lee teaches us French.

11. My friend owes me $5000.

12. My dad has lent me a car for the week.

13. The manager promised us a full explanation.

14. The referee gave Mary the first prize.

15. The controller will give you another ticket.

Exercise 7. Make the following active sentences passive. Remember that the postposition or preposition should follow the verb immediately.

Student A:

1. We are dealing with your complaint.

2. They gave up the search after three hours.

3. No one brought up that question at the meeting.

4. Someone should look into the matter.

5. We had to put off our visit until later.

6. I was shocked to hear that someone had broken into your house.

7. Don’t speak until someone speaks to you.

8. You must account for every penny you spent.

9. Someone hasn’t stuck this lamp on very firmly.

10. No one can rely on him.

11. You should look after the children better.

12. They will deal with the matter as soon as possible.

13. They have done away with many dangerous diseases.

14. All the ministers will see him off at the airport.

15. Nobody objected to his proposal.

Exercise 8. Use passive constructions with “get” where possible. Comment on your choice.

Example: The plants (damage)…by the cold weather. – The plants got damaged by the cold weather. (“Get” is used here to emphasize an unfortunate action that happened unexpectedly.)

1. I never found the book we were looking for. It (lose)…when we were moving.

2. After the way he behaved last time he never (ask)…to their house again.

3. I phoned to explain what had happened but I (cut off)…before I could finish.

4. The book (tear)…when the children started fighting over who should read it first.

5. She was quite friendly at first, then she (promote)…and now she doesn’t care about us any more.

6. They were only married a year before they (divorce)…

7. There isn’t any cheese left; I’m afraid, it (eat)…in the morning.

8. Without a map we soon (loose)…

9. He was a well-known expert on animal diseases and his opinion (respect)…greatly.

10. He (kill)…in a plane crash.

Exercise 9. Make the following active sentences passive where appropriate. Justify its use.

Student A: Student B:

1. Nobody has used this room for ages.

2. We have to give the books back.

3. John enjoyed seeing his native town.

4. Martin is writing the company report this year.

5. They put fresh flowers in the hotel rooms every day.

6. Glass breaks easily.

7. Bad weather may delay your flight.

8. She washed herself and combed her hair.

9. The advertisement reads that the swimming-pool is free.

10. I hate people staring at me.

Exercise 10. Which sentences can be changed with the verb underlined in the Passive Voice?

Example: What happened to your team yesterday? = Cannot be changed.

1. Johnson scored the first goal in the second half.

2. The team refused to obey the referee’s decision.

3. Three competitors complained that Smith had taken a short cut.

4. The judges awarded the first prize to Denise Long.

5. She couldn’t run because her new shoes didn’t fit properly.

6. I really love the excitement involved in basketball.

7. The BBC broadcast the whole match live last season.

8. Both teams arrived late at the stadium.

Exercise 11. Change the words underlined. Use the passive voice, and make any other necessary changes.

Student A:

Nobody really knows how people invented the game of basketball. People say that some ancient Greek vases show the game and people playing it. People generally think, however, that the game began in the United States quite recently. Somebody thought of the game in a YMCA club. Nobody can prove this of course, so perhaps it did begin earlier. Wherever people first played the game, basketball is now very popular, and many thousands of people play it, as people can play it outdoors and indoors. Personally, I wish nobody had ever invented it, because people keep me awake when a big game is on TV. The noise is terrible.

Exercise 12. Read the information about a town, and complete the guidebook entry underneath it.

Student A:

Railway station – closed (to be demolished, site to become sports centre). Dobson Gallery bought from Major Dobson (1923). Many gifts of paintings from private collectors. 4,000 visitors (double this expected this year). Local traders hold market on Tues. Town Hall (called by the Great Britain Guide a fine example of late Victorian architecture). St. Mary’s Church (1472), restored to original condition.

St. Mary’s Church, which [a] _____ , stands in Wellington Square, where a fruit and vegetable market [b] _______ . The church [c] _______ to its original condition. On the south side of the square, the railway station (disused) [d] ________ next year, and a sports centre [e] _______ . Opposite St. Mary’s is the Dobson Gallery, which [f] _____ by Major J. Dobson in 1923. It contains many paintings which [g] ________ to the gallery over the years. The gallery [h] _______ last year, and this number [i] ________ to rise to eight thousand this year. Next to the gallery is the Town Hall, which [j] _____a perfect example of late-Victorian civic architecture.

Exercise 13. Complete the following dialogues that might be used in the conversation between workmates. Use the verbs to give, to fire and to type by making them correspond to the passive forms. Then make your own dialogues using different passive forms.

· Have you heard about John?

· No, I haven’t. What happened?

· He … a raise last week.

· That’s great! That’s the second time he … a raise this year.

· Have you heard about Mary?

· No, I haven’t. What happened?

· She … last week.

· What a shame! That’s the second time she … this year.

· Hello, this is Mr. Jones.

· I’m calling about my report. Has it … yet?

· Not yet. It’s … right now.

· When can I pick it up?

· It’ll be ready by 4 o’clock.

Exercise 14. Turn the following into the Passive using the constructions “It + Passive + that-clause” and “Subject (person) + Passive + to-infinitive”.

Student A: Student B:

1. People expect him to win.

2. The newspapers expect that prices will fall in the spring.

3. Scientists have proved that smoking has some relation to lung cancer.

4. An official spokesman announced that 150 people had lost their lives in the disaster.

5. Journalists have reported that the President is ill.

6. Everyone knows that the statement was untrue.

7. Many people believe that the climate is changing.

8. Everyone knows that he has been in prison.

9. Many people say that the new prices are too high.

10. They claim that this diamond is the largest in the world.

Exercise 15. Answer the following questions using the passive form of the verbs in brackets.