Pronunciation insight 10

 The passive: pronunciation of be

To form the passive, we use the correct form of the verb be and the past participle of the main verb. The pronunciation of the verb be in affirmative passive sentences is different from its pronunciation as a main verb or in short answers to questions.

1Complete the sentences with the words in the box. Then play the recording, listen and check. 

MOVE
• has been stolen
• was invented
• is produced
• have been sold
• are made
• were reduced

• 1A lot of silk   in Asia.

• 2Jeans   of denim.

• 3The television   by a Scottish engineer in the 1920s.

• 4The shoes I bought last week   to ten euros in the sales.

• 5My expensive Swiss watch  !

• 6I want to buy a new coat, but all the coats  .

2Study the strong and weak forms of be. Then play the recording, listen and repeat. 

	strong	weak
is are was were has been have been	/ɪz/ /ɑ:/ /wɒz/ /wɜ:/ /hæz bi:n/ /hæv bi:n/	/z/ or /s/ /ə/ /wəz/ /wə/ /həz bɪn/ /həv bɪn/

3Play the recording, listen to the sentences and choose the correct answer. Then listen and repeat. 

We use the strong formweak form of be in affirmative passive sentences.

4Complete the text about Minis with the correct form of be. 

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

The first Minis 

¹ 

made by the British Motor Corporation in 1959. The car 

² 

designed by Sir Alec Issigonis and his design 

³ 

used until the year 2000. The most popular model of the car was the Mini Cooper, which 

⁴ 

driven by many famous celebrities in the 1960s and 70s. Important car races 

⁵ 

won by the Mini, too, such as the Monte Carlo Rally. Today, Minis 

⁶ 

manufactured in the UK, but the company 

⁷ 

owned by BMW. The factories 

⁸ 

modernized and the design 

⁹ 

improved since the German company took over. Millions of Minis 

¹⁰ 

sold over the years, and the Mini is still one of the world's most popular cars.

5Play the recording, listen and check your answers to exercise 4. Then practise reading the text aloud. Pay attention to your pronunciation of the passive verb forms.