Grammar: Where does it come from?

The passive: present simple and past simple

1Read the text and complete the sentences below. 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.

Thomas Edison - superstar inventor

Thomas Edison was born in Ohio, USA, in 1847. As a child, he wasn't a good student and only spent three months at school.

When he was twelve, Edison got a job selling newspapers and sweets on a train. At fifteen, he was the manager of a telegraph office, and by the time he died in 1931, he had become one of the greatest inventors of all time. We still use many of his inventions today. In 1877, he invented a type of record player, called the 'phonograph'. Then, he built the world's first independent research laboratory in New Jersey.

Edison didn't invent the first light bulb, but in 1879 his company manufactured the first practical light bulbs. In the 1890s, the company designed the 'kinetoscope', an early movie camera. It also developed a machine for taking X-rays. Today, people know Edison's electric company as General Electric. It's the sixth largest company in the USA.

• 1Many of Thomas Edison's inventions  today.

• 2The phonograph  by Edison in 1877.

• 3The world's first research laboratory  in New Jersey.

• 4The first light bulb  by Edison.

• 5The first practical light bulbs  by Edison's company in 1879.

• 6The kinetoscope  by Edison's company in the 1890s.

• 7Other machines, including an X-ray machine,  during the 1890s.

• 8Edison's electric company  as General Electric today.

The passive: present simple and past simple

2Write questions about the fluoroscope. Use the present or past simple active or passive. 

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

• 1what / be / the fluoroscope / ? 

  It was a machine that used X-rays to make light.

• 2when / invent / it / ? 

  In the 1890s.

• 3who / invent / it / ? 

  Thomas Edison.

• 4where / build / the first one / ? 

  In New Jersey.

• 5the fluoroscope / use / today / ? 

  No, it isn’t.

 The passive: present perfect

3Complete the sentences about the Mars chocolate company with the correct form of the verbs in brackets. Use the present perfect active or passive. 

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

• 1The Mars family  (own) a factory for making sweets and chocolate since 1911.

• 2The family's company  (manufacture) chocolate bars since the 1920s.

• 3Mars products, such as M&Ms and Orbit gum,  (sell) all over the world for over eighty years.

• 4Mars bars  (make) in the UK since the 1930s.

• 5Snickers bars used to be called Marathons in the UK. However, they  (not call) Marathons since 1990.

• 6The Mars company  (produce) pet food as well as chocolate for many years.

• 7One of Mars' British factories  (close) by the company in recent years.

• 8The Mars company  (start) making more products in the Czech Republic recently.

The passive: present perfect

4Choose the correct answers. 

Toothpaste ¹usesis usedusedwas used by billions of people every day, but how much ²knowhave knowndo we knowwe know about its history and the way it’s made? The Romans ³cleanedis cleanedare cleanedwere cleaned their teeth with crushed shells, and a type of toothpaste ⁴hadhaswasis invented by a Persian musician called Ziryab in the ninth century. We don’t know exactly what was in his toothpaste, but it tasted really nice. However, modern toothpastes have only really ⁵bearebeenwere manufactured since the nineteenth century. Nowadays, calcium fluoride ⁶addsis addedhas addedadded to toothpaste to help protect your teeth. However, some experts say that toothpaste isn’t really necessary. It ⁷makesmadehas madeis made your breath smell nice, but your teeth ⁸cleanscleanedare cleanedis cleaned by the mechanical action of your toothbrush!

5 CHALLENGE! Think about three products that you use every day. What are they used for? How are they made? Where are they made? Speak for no longer than one minute.

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