Translating passive structures

Exercise 6. Change the following active constructions into passive omitting all mention of the agent of the action.

b) Someone started a fire in the Courtney National Park early yesterday morning. They had used a match and some petrol to start the fire. The fire had burnt a lot of trees before someone called the fire brigade. The police have arrested a man. They are still questioning him.

c) Someone broke into the National Gallery late last night. The thieves had broken the alarm system before they climbed through a window. They stole some priceless works of art. They used a getaway car to escape. The police have questioned some suspects. They have not caught the thieves yet.

d) Yesterday afternoon, a volcanic eruption destroyed an entire village. Mount Sirius, which experts thought was dormant, erupted at 3 p.m. Tourists had seen smoke rising from the mouth of the volcano two days before. The police moved the villagers away from the area for their own safety. Tons of lava and rock came out of the volcano and wrecked houses, roads and trees. Although the blast physically injured only a few people, doctors are treating many for shock. The authorities are keep­ing the area surrounding Mount Sirius clear in case of further activity.

e) Yesterday afternoon, the school held a sports day. John’s teacher entered him for the 100m race because people thought John was the fastest runner in the school. John’s teacher blew the whistle and the race started. Loud cheers filled the air as John’s friends cheered him on. John overtook all the other runners and, as people had expected, John won the race. The headmaster gave him a trophy as a prize.

f) Do you think that people will ever use electric cars? Someone has already invented the electric car, but at the moment they are too expensive for most people to buy. Also, you have to recharge their batteries frequently. However, if people drove electric cars instead of the cars we use today, the air we breathe would be cleaner, as they would not pump exhaust fumes into the atmosphere.

g) Last week, the Prime Minister visited Dawston. The Mayor of the town greeted him when he arrived and gave him a tour. He introduced the Prime Minister to some important businessmen and took him to lunch in a local restaurant. In the afternoon, the Mayor held a meeting and the Prime Minister addressed the citizens of Dawston. He told them that he had enjoyed his visit very much.

Exercise 11. Rewrite each sentence, starting with the words given, so that it means the same as the preceding sentence.

e.g. The corporation’s sales and service organization covers the country. The country is covered by the corporation’s sales and service organization.

1. We enclose payment together with our order. Payment______. 2. The customer should receive the delivery by Friday. The delivery _______. 3. They may have notified him before the invoice arrived. He ________. 4. FCS are only marketing their new dental equipment in Europe. FCS’s new dental equipment _______. 5. They have enlarged the premises since my last visit. The premises ________. 6. According to a recent report the group is making similar investments in other parts of the world. Similar investments _________. 7. The temporary clerk finally found the notes under the filing cabinet. The notes ________. 8. We will produce the components at our Sâo Paolo factory. The components _________. 9. We would reduce costs if we used less paper. Costs ________.

Exercise 12. Rewrite these passive sentences in the active form. Begin with the word(s) given.

e.g. The first fax machines were installed in 1988. The firm installed its first fax machine in 1988.

1. Further modifications will be made to this service to other customers. The suppliers _____. 2. The systems can easily be operated by ordinary office staff. Ordinary office staff ______. 3. The new software can be mastered easily in a couple of days. You ______. 4. Increased productivity has been achieved by using better trained staff. Using better trained staff ______. 5. The invoices are now sent out a week earlier. The department ______. 6. Better results can only be achieved if you work harder. You ______. 7. The new note-taking method will be introduced in our office. We ______. 8. You should be warned about the dangers of not co-operating with the personnel manager. I ______. 9. All relevant information about the meeting will be supplied in advance. The organizers ______.

Exercise 13. Rewrite the sentences in the active.

e.g. The actor was paid $10,000 to make the commercial. They paid the actor $10,000 to make the commercial.

a) 1. A new cinema is being built in the city center. 2. Breakfast will be served at eight in the morning. 3. All her best jewellery had been stolen by the burglars. 4. A lot of food was eaten at the party. 5. An old shipwreck has been discovered by drivers. 6. She is going to be sent to Germany on business. 7. The band’s latest video was made in Prague. 8. Designer clothes are sold in this shop. 9. The exam had been taken by all the children. 10. The experiment was being done by the scientists. 11. The exhibition will be opened by the mayor. 12. The Statue of Liberty was given to America by the French. 13. Chinese is spoken by more than one billion people.

b) 1. Her excuse may not be believed by her parents. 2. The painting has been valued by an expert. 3. He likes being given presents. 4. The bill must be paid immediately. 5. Hot water is provided by the hotel 24 hours a day. 6. Our newspaper is delivered by a boy every morning. 7. Her wedding dress will be made by a designer in Paris. 8. The meeting was attended by several important art critics. 9. Preparations are being made by the event organizers. 10. An interesting book has been published by the company.

Exercise 14. There are seven unnecessary words in the text below. Cross them out.

St Patrick’s Hospital, which was been completed last week, is to be opened this afternoon by the Minister of Health. The hospital it was built on the site of the old Opera House and is then the largest hospital in the county. The wards they are modern and spacious, and the building is filled by with the most up-to-date equipment. The money for the hospital was been raised by charity organizations and the Minister did congratulated them on their hard work.

 

VERBS WITH TWO OBJECTS

Verbs that have two objects (object + object or object + prepositional object) in active clauses can have two corresponding passive forms.

 

Bring

Buy

Owe

Read

Tell

Throw

Grant

Take

Send

Write

Allow

Offer

Show

Award

Feed

Give

Teach

Hand

Pass

Pay

Promise

Sell

Post

Lend

Active	Passive
She handed me the plate.	I was handed the plate.
She handed the plate to me.	The plate was handed to me.

 

Verbs that can’t be followed by object + object in the active have only one of these passive forms.

Describe

Introduce

Demonstrate

Mention

Suggest

Explain

Report

 

Active	Passive
He described the situation to me.	The situation was described to me.
He described me the situation.	I was described the situation.

 

Exercise 1. Find another way to write the sentences.

e.g. I was shown their letters of appointment. – Their letters of appointment were shown to me.

1. I was sent full details of the job. 2. They were all presented with signed certificates. 3. A free sightseeing trip is offered to all passengers. 4. Drinks and snacks have been given to everyone in this group. 5. He was brought the news of their success yesterday evening.

 

Exercise 2. Rewrite the sentences in the passive in both ways, as in the example.

e.g. His father gave Billy a new bicycle. – Billy was given a new bicycle by his father. A new bicycle was given to Billy by his father.

 

1. Fred has offered Mary a watch. 2. Lisa is sending Tim an invitation. 3. She brought me some oranges. 4. Sonia is going to lend me some money. 5. Jack will show me his new car. 6. They paid him a lot of money for the job.

 

Exercise 3. Rewrite the following active sentences using two passive forms, making the underlined words the subject. Omit the agent if it is not necessary.

e.g. The company sent him a letter. – He was sent a letter by the company. A letter was sent to him by the company.

They’ve just sent me a whole lot of junk mail. 2. The Credit Bank lent me two thousand pounds in 1999. 3. They gave each of the children a bottle of milk every day. 4. They showed us the sights of the city. 5. They will pay the workers $50 every Friday. 6. Someone had promised the children more food. 7. The magician told them the secret. 8. They offered her the job. 9. One of his uncles had taught him maths. 10. Someone gave the animal charity a lot of money.

Exercise 4. Make the following sentences passive, as in the example. Give two variants where possible.

e.g. They showed me a very interesting book. – I was shown a very interesting book. A very interesting book was shown to me.

 

1. My mother told me the news yesterday. 2. Their friends sent them their photographs last week. 3. Did they recommend you any good hotels? 4. The librarian showed the students how to find necessary books. 5. They allowed the children to go to the zoo. 6. They gave us a lot of money. 7. Her parents gave her a computer for her birthday. 8. They lent us some money. 9. My friend offered me a challenging job. 10. They pay him twice a month. 11. My mother teaches them English at school. 12. He promised me this book. 13. Did they show you that new Oxford Dictionary? 14. They sent presents to their relatives and friends. 15. The secretary gave the letter to her boss.

 

Exercise 5. Make one passive sentence or two, if possible.

e.g. Someone threw a lifebelt to me.

I was thrown a lifebelt. A lifebelt was thrown to me.

1. Someone mentioned the problem to me. 2. Someone had reported the theft to the police. 3. Someone told the story to me. 4. Someone has given $1,000 to the charity. 5. Someone will demonstrate the game to the children. 6. Someone was offering drinks to the guests. 7. Someone explained the procedure to me. 8. Someone sold the car to Tom.

 

 

To laugh at

To look for

To speak to

To think of

To look after

To ask for

To operate on

To listen to

To break into

To refer to

To rely on/upon

To take care of

To agree upon

To comment on

To wait for

 

When the verb of the active sentence is followed by a preposition, the preposition is kept in the passive sentence as well.

e.g. They sent for the doctor at once. – The doctor was sent for at once. – За доктором послали сразу же.

Some two- and three-word verbs are rarely used in the passive.

Get back

Let in

Put out

Let out

Take after

Get down

Show off

Exercise 1. Give answers to the following questions using the suggested words and word combinations.

ACTIVE OR PASSIVE?

Exercise 1. Put the verbs in brackets into the correct active or passive tense.

a) Floods ⁽¹⁾ ________ (cause) when a river ⁽²⁾ ________ (burst) its banks. This can happen if there ⁽³⁾ ________ (be) an unusual amount of rain, or if snow ⁽⁴⁾ ________ (melt) and the river ⁽⁵⁾ _________ (overflow). When a flood ⁽⁶⁾ ________ (take place), crops ⁽⁷⁾ ________ (destroy) and homes ⁽⁸⁾ _________ (damage).

b) Tony O’Connell ⁽¹⁾ ________ (work) for a large company. Last year, he ⁽²⁾ _________ (promote) to the position of manager. He ⁽³⁾ _________ (give) a large office and a company car. He now ⁽⁴⁾ _________ (have) a secretary who ⁽⁵⁾ ________ (answer) his calls, and he ⁽⁶⁾ _________ (pay) a lot more money than before. He ⁽⁷⁾ _________ (feel) very happy about his job now.

c) Dogs ⁽¹⁾ ________ (be) very loyal animals. They can ⁽²⁾ ________ (keep) you company and ⁽³⁾ ________ (protect) you. However, you must ⁽⁴⁾_________ (look after) your dog. They have to ⁽⁵⁾ ________ (take) for long walks and ⁽⁶⁾ ________ (feed) regularly. You may ⁽⁷⁾ ________ (find) that dogs are expensive pets, but they do ⁽⁸⁾ ________ (make) great companions.

Exercise 3. Put the verbs in brackets into the correct active or passive tense.

e.g. It is expected that he will win the race tomorrow. - He is expected to win the race tomorrow.

1. It is said that she speaks seven languages. She ________. 2. It is believed that the missing jewellery has been found. The missing jewellery _______. 3. It is thought that she is a talented pianist. She ________. 4. It is said that the athletes train for eight hours every day. The athletes ________. 5. It is expected that the American team will break the world record. The American team ________. 6. It is known that she is hiding somewhere in the city. She ________. 7. It is reported that the world leaders have reached an agreement. The world leaders ________. 8. It is reported that the thieves have escaped from prison. The thieves ________. 9. It is expected that they will give her the prize. She ________.

Exercise 2. Complete the following sentences.

e.g. It is said that this orchestra is the best in the world. This orchestra is said to be the best in the world.

1. It is believed that the thieves have left the country. The thieves ______. 2. The fire is reported to have started by accident. It ________. 3. He is known to be making a lot of money. It ________. 4. It is expected that they will arrive in time for dinner. They ________. 5. She is said to know a lot about gardening. It ________. 6. It is thought that he will be attending the meeting. He ________. 7. It is believed that we are able to win the competition. We _________. 8. The company is thought to be making a big profit. It _________. 8. It is reported that the government has reached a decision. The government ________. 9. It is said that they were responsible for the damage. They ________. 10. She is expected to break the world record. It _________. 11. He is known to have several foreign bank accounts. It ________. 12. They are reported to have financial problems. It ________.

Exercise 3. Make up situations of your own using the following common sentence openings in which the verbs are used in the passive voice.

e.g. You must get / have your hair cut this week.

2) Questions and negations of the verb have are formed with do<