Grammar reference and practice 10.1

 

10.1 ■ The passive

The passive is formed with be + past participle of the main verb.

We use the passive:

• ■when we are more interested in the action than in the person or thing that performs the action.

  English is spoken by over 1.8 billion people around the world.

  America was discovered in 1492.

  ■when we don't know who performs the action, or when it is clear from the context who performs the action.

  These cars are made in Japan.

  My camera was stolen.

When we want to say who performs an action in a passive sentence, we use the preposition by.

active: John Logie Baird invented the television.

passive: The television was invented by John Logie Baird.

Passive verbs have the same tenses as active verbs, and the rules for tense usage are the same.

Present simple passive

present simple of be + past participle

Affirmative
This bag is made of real leather.
The children are paid very little.
Negative
The boy isn't paid a good wage.
The clothes aren't sold directly to shops.
Questions and short answers
Is this bag made of leather?		Yes, it is. No, it isn't.
Are lemons grown in Greece?		Yes, they are. No, they aren't.

The present simple passive is often used to describe a general process.

The clothes are washed and ironed. Then they are hung up in the shop.

Past simple passive

past simple of be + past participle

Affirmative
A lot of money was donated.
The clothes were made in China.
Negative
The price wasn't reduced.
We weren't given anything to eat.
Questions and short answers
Was all the money donated?		Yes, it was. No, it wasn't.
Were the clothes washed?		Yes, they were. No, they weren't.

We use the past simple passive to talk about specific actions.

On Thursday, the clothes were washed and ironed.

Note that some verbs in English, such as give, send and tell, can have two objects. Usually the first object is a person and the second is a thing.

John gave Mary some flowers.

They sent me a long letter.

Elsa told the children a story.

In the passive, we often make the person subject of the sentence, not the thing.

Mary was given some flowers.

I was sent a long letter.

The children were told a story.

1Complete the sentences with the past participle form of the verbs in brackets. 

You need to use normal letters and capital letters correctly in this task.

• 1The price tags are  (take) off straight away.

• 2The banners were  (carry) through the streets.

• 3Fur is still  (wear), although many people protest about it.

• 4The clothes were  (throw) away even though they were not damaged.

• 5The boy was  (wake) at 4 a.m. to begin work.

• 6Cocoa trees are  (grow) in countries like Brazil and Ghana.

2Complete the sentences with is, are, was or were. 

• 1The clothes isarewaswere exported to other countries and they are then sold for a higher price.

• 2The bridge isarewaswere built in only six months.

• 3In this country, I think children isarewaswere given too much pocket money nowadays.

• 4This T-shirt isarewaswere made of cotton.

• 5The children isarewaswere told to work in the factory. They didn't have a choice.

• 6During a demonstration, slogans isarewaswere often shouted.

3Rewrite the sentences in the passive without by. Use the present or past simple passive. 

You need to use normal letters and capital letters correctly in this task. You also need to use correct punctuation.

• 1Someone stole my mobile phone yesterday.

• 2Everyone finished lunch by 2 p.m.

• 3We freeze food products to conserve them.

• 4They publish daily newspapers every day.

• 5People met us at the station.

• 6The postman delivers the post before nine o'clock.

• 7My parents gave me an alarm clock for my birthday.

• 8Someone cleans the office every night.

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