Looka Yonder

Here are some rules and exercises. Scroll down to find the key (correction) to the exercises

You'll also find all the rules and exercises on the following link:

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/passive

Use of Passive

Passive voice is used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action.

Example: My bike was stolen.

In the example above, the focus is on the fact that my bike was stolen. I do not know, however, who did it.

Sometimes a statement in passive is more polite than active voice, as the following example shows:

Example: A mistake was made.

In this case, I focus on the fact that a mistake was made, but I do not blame anyone (e.g. You have made a mistake.).

Form of Passive

Subject + finite form of to be + Past Participle (3rd column of irregular verbs)

Example: A letter was written.

When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:

• the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence

• the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)

• the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)

Examples of Passive Level: lower intermediate

Examples of Passive (upper intermediate level)Level: upper intermediate

Passive Sentences with Two Objects (see exercises J and K)

Rewriting an active sentence with two objects in passive voice means that one of the two objects becomes the subject, the other one remains an object. Which object to transform into a subject depends on what you want to put the focus on.

.

As you can see in the examples, adding by Rita does not sound very elegant. That’s why it is usually dropped.

Personal and Impersonal Passive (see exercise L)

Personal Passive simply means that the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence. So every verb that needs an object (transitive verb) can form a personal passive.

Example: They build houses. – Houses are built.

Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence). If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal construction – therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.

Example: he says – it is said

Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g. German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of perception (e. g. say, think, know).

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – It is said that women live longer than men.

Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common.

Example: They say that women live longer than men. – Women are said to live longer than men.

The subject of the subordinate clause (women) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped).

Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.

A/ Write passive sentences in Simple Present.

1. the documents / print: __________________________________________________________

2. the food / eat / not: ______________________________________________________________

B/ Rewrite the sentences in passive voice. Simple Present

1. He opens the door. The door is opened (by him).

2. We set the table. ________________________________________________________________

3. They don't help you. _____________________________________________________________

4. Does your mum pick you up? ______________________________________________________

C/ Rewrite the sentences in passive voice. Simple Past

1. She sang a song. A song was sung (by her).

2. Somebody hit me. _______________________________________________________________

3. They didn't make their beds. _______________________________________________________

4. Did he send the letter? ____________________________________________________________

D/ Rewrite the sentences in passive voice. Present Perfect

1. Kerrie has paid the bill. The bill has been paid (by Kerrie).

2. I have opened the present. _________________________________________________________

3. You have not sent the parcel. ______________________________________________________

4. Have they noticed us? ____________________________________________________________

E/ Rewrite the sentences in passive voice. Future Simple Will

1. Jane will buy a new computer. A new computer will be bought (by Jane).

2. Her boyfriend will install it. _________________________________________________________

3. You will not do it. ________________________________________________________________

4. They will not show the new film. ____________________________________________________

5. Will the company employ a new worker? ______________________________________________

F/ Passive Voice - Exercise with Auxiliary Verbs

1. I can answer the question. The question can be answered (by me).

2. You should open the window. ___________________________________________________

3. He must fill in the form. _______________________________________________________

4. He could not read the sentence. __________________________________________________

5. Will the teacher test our English? ________________________________________________

G/ Mixed Exercise on Passive Voice Rewrite the sentences in passive voice.

1. John collects money. - ________________________________________________________________

2. Anna opened the window. - ____________________________________________________________

3. We have done our homework. - _________________________________________________________

4. I will ask a question. - _______________________________________________________________

5. Did Sue draw this circle? - ____________________________________________________________

10. Could you feed the dog? - ____________________________________________________________

H/ Exercise on Passive Voice - Present Progressive Rewrite the sentences in passive voice.

1. My father is washing the car. - The car is being washed (by my father)

2. Farmer Joe is milking the cows. - _______________________________________________________

3. Is she preparing the party? - ___________________________________________________________

I/ Exercise on Passive Voice - Conditional II Rewrite the sentences in passive voice.

1.They would have told you. - You would have been told (by them)

2.She would have called the police. - _______________________________________________________

3.We would have painted the walls green. - __________________________________________________

4.She would not have noticed the mistake. - _________________________________________________

5.Would you have accepted that offer? - ____________________________________________________

J/ Passive Voice with two Objects: Build sentences in the passive and use the word in bold as a subject:

1. Rachel will give you some advice._______________________________________________________

2. I sent him a letter. ___________________________________________________________________

3. She told me a lie. ______________________________________________________________________ 4. They did not offer her a seat. ______________________________________________________________

K/ Passive Voice with two Objects: Build sentences in the passive and use the word in bold as a subject:

1. Rachel will give you some advice.________________________________________________________

2. I sent him a letter._____________________________________________________________________

3. She told me a lie. ____________________________________________________________________

4. They did not offer her a seat.____________________________________________________________

L/ Personal Passive Rewrite the sentences in passive voice. Use Personal Passive.

1. People know that she is a good swimmer.

→ She is known to be a good swimmer.

2. They say that Francis is in hospital.

→ ___________________________________________________________________________________

3. They thought that the children were in bed.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

4. People believe that the robber has worked in the bank.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

5. People will believe that nuclear power stations are dangerous.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

6. His colleagues thought that he was on holiday.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

7. People may know that cars pollute the environment.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

8. They had supposed that the new product would come out soon.

→ __________________________________________________________________________________

M/ Complete the sentences (Active or Passive Voice). Use Present Perfect Simple.

1. The car (steal)____________________________ 2. I (bake)___________________________ a cake.

3. Trees (plant)_____________________ in the street. 4. The boy (fall / not) _______________ off his bike.

5. I (bite / not) ______________________ by a snake. 6. She (pick up / not)________________ by a friend.

N/ Complete the sentences (Active or Passive Voice). Use Simple Past.

1. Antony (grow up)_______________ in the country. 2.The new shopping mall (build)__________ last year.

3. The film (produce / not) _________________ in Hollywood. 4 Barbara (know)_________ James very well.

5. The jewels (hide / not) _______________________ in the cellar.

O/ The Statue of Liberty

Complete the sentences (Active or Passive Voice). You must either use Simple Present or Simple Past.

1.The Statue of Liberty (give)______________________________ to the United States by France.

2.It (be) _______________________ a present on the 100th anniversary of the United States.

3.The Statue of Liberty (design) ___________________________ by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi.

4.It (complete) _____________________________ in France in July 1884.

5.In 350 pieces, the statue then (ship) _______________ to New York, where it (arrive) on 17 June 1885.

6.The pieces (put)_________________ together and the opening ceremony (take) ______________ place on 28 October 1886.

7.The Statue of Liberty (be)______________________ 46 m high (93 m including the base).

8.The statue (represent) ______________________ the goddess of liberty.

9.She (hold) ___________________________ a torch in her right hand and a tablet in her left hand.

10.On the tablet you (see / can)________________ the date of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776).

11.Every year, the Statue of Liberty (visit) ______________________by many people from all over the world.

Here are some rules and exercises. You'll find similar exercises on the website "ego4u"

If we report what another person has said, we usually do not use the speaker’s exact words (direct speech), but reported (indirect) speech. Therefore, you need to learn how to transform direct speech into reported speech. The structure is a little different depending on whether you want to transform a statement (I), question (II) or request (III).

I/ Statements

When transforming statements, check whether you have to change:

■pronouns ■present tense verbs (3rd person singular) ■place and time expressions ■tenses (backshift)

a) Pronouns

In reported speech, you often have to change the pronoun depending on who says what.

Example

She says, “My mum doesn’t have time today.” – She says that her mum doesn’t have time today.

b) Tenses

No backshift [cf. exercise A]

Do not change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Present (e. g. He says). Note, however, that you might have to change the form of the present tense verb (3rd person singular).

Example

He says, “I speak English.” – He says that he speaks English.

Backshift [cf. exercise B]

You must change the tense if the introductory clause is in Simple Past (e. g. He said). This is called backshift.

Example

He said, “I am happy.” – He said that he was happy.

The verbs could, should, would, might, must, needn’t, ought to, used to do not normally change.

Example:

He said, “She might be right.” – He said that she might be right.

c) Place and Time expressions [cf. exercise C]

You always have to think which place and time expressions are logical in a certain situation.

In the following table, you will find ways of transforming place and time expressions into reported speech.

II/ Questions in Reported Speech [cf. exercise D]

For pronouns, tenses and place / time expressions see statements in reported speech.

Besides, note that instead of ‚that‘ you use the interrogative. If there is no interrogative, use ‚whether‘ / ‚if‘.

It is also important that you use an indirect question in reported speech, i.e. after the interrogative or ‚whether‘ / ‚if‘ you continue the sentence as if it were a statement (subject-verb etc.). The auxiliary verb ‚do‘ is not used in indirect questions.

Example:

He asked: “Where does she live?“ – He asked where she lived.

III/ Requests in Reported Speech [cf. exercises E & F]

For pronouns and place / time expressions see statements in reported speech. Tenses are not relevant for requests – simply use ‚to‘ + infinite verb.

Example:

She said, “Say hello to your mum.“ – She asked me to say hello to my mum.

For negative requests, use ‚not to‘ + infinite verb.

Example:

He said, “Don’t give up, Bob.“ – He advised Bob not to give up.

Advise expressions with must, should and ought are usually reported using advise / urge.

Example: “You must read that book.“ He advised / urged me to read that book.

The expression let’s is usually reported using suggest. In this case, there are various possibilities for reported speech: gerund or statement with should. Example: “Let’s go to the cinema.“

He suggested going to the cinema.

He suggested that we should go.to the cinema.

EXERCISES

A/ Reported Speech without backshift – Change of Pronouns

Helen is in front of the class holding a presentation on London. As Helen is rather shy, she speaks with a very low voice. Your classmate Gareth does not understand her, so you have to repeat every sentence to him.

Complete the sentences in reported speech (no backshift). Note the change of pronouns and verbs.

 Helen: I want to tell you something about my holiday in London.

 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that _________________________________________________________________

 Helen: I went to London in July.

 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that ________________________________________________________________

 Helen: My parents went with me.

 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that ________________________________________________________________

 Helen: We spent three days in London.

 Gareth: What does she say?

 You: She says that ________________________________________________________________

B/ backshift - Rewrite the sentences in reported speech. Change pronouns and time expressions where necessary.

1. She said, "I am reading." → She said that________________________________________________

2. They said, "We are busy."→ They said that _____________________________________________

3. He said, "I know a better restaurant."→ He said that _______________________________________

4. She said, "I woke up early."→ She said that _____________________________________________

5. He said, "I will ring her."→ He said that ________________________________________________

6. They said, "We have just arrived."→ They said that__________________________________________

C/ backshift and Place expressions

Imagine you want to repeat sentences that you heard two weeks ago in another place. Rewrite the sentences in reported speech. Change pronouns and expressions of time and place where necessary.

1. She said, "I went to the cinema yesterday." → She said ___________________________________________________________________________

2. She said, "I am not hungry now."

→ She said ___________________________________________________________________________

6. They said, "We have never been here before."

→ They said___________________________________________________________________________

7. They said, "We were in London last week."

→ They said __________________________________________________________________________

D/ Questions - Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note the change of pronouns and tenses.

1. "Where is my umbrella?" she asked.

→ She asked _____________________________________________________________________________

2. "How are you?" Martin asked us.

→ Martin asked us ________________________________________________________________________

3. He asked, "Do I have to do it?"

→ He asked _____________________________________________________________________________

4. "Where have you been?" the mother asked her daughter.

→ The mother asked her daughter ____________________________________________________________

5. "Which dress do you like best?" she asked her boyfriend.

→ She asked her boyfriend _________________________________________________________________

6. "What are they doing?" she asked.

→ She wanted to know _____________________________________________________________________

7. "Are you going to the cinema?" he asked me.

→ He wanted to know ______________________________________________________________________

8. The teacher asked, "Who speaks English?"

→ The teacher wanted to know _______________________________________________________________

9. "How do you know that?" she asked me.

→ She asked me __________________________________________________________________________

"Has Caron talked to Kevin?" my friend asked me.

→ My friend asked me ______________________________________________________________________

E/ – Requests (positive)

Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note the change of pronouns in some sentences.

1. "Stop talking, Joe," the teacher said. → The teacher told Joe __________________________________

2. "Be patient," she said to him. → She told him _______________________________________

3. "Go to your room," her father said to her. → Her father told her___________________________________

4. "Hurry up," she said to us. → She told us ________________________________________

F/ Requests (negative)

Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note the change of pronouns in some sentences.

1. "Don't touch it," she said to him. → She told him ____________________________________

2. "Don't do that again," he said to me. → He told me _____________________________________

3. "Don't talk to me like that," he said. → He told her _____________________________________

4. "Don't repair the computer yourself," she warned him.→ She warned him____________________________

G/ Mixed Exercise

Complete the sentences in reported speech. Note whether the sentence is a request, a statement or a question and whether you have to change the tenses or not.

1. "I was very tired," she said. → She said ____________________________________________

2. "Be careful, Ben," she said. → She told Ben ________________________________________

3. "I will get myself a drink," she says. → She says ________________________________________

4. "Why haven't you phoned me?" he asked me. → He wondered ________________________________________________________________________

5. "I cannot drive them home," he said. → He said ____________________________________________________________________________

6. "Peter, do you prefer tea or coffee?" she says.

→ She asks Peter________________________________________________________________________

7. "Where did you spend your holidays last year?" she asked me.

→ She asked me ________________________________________________________________________

8. He said, "Don't go too far." → He advised her______________________________________

9. "Have you been shopping?" he asked us.

→ He wanted to know ___________________________________________________________________

10. "Don't make so much noise," he says.

→ He asks us ___________________________________________________________________________