The passive voice (страдательный залог)

To be + V3/Ved (PII)

	Simple	Continuous	Perfect
Present	am is + Ved/V3 are	am is being + V3/Ved are	have has been + V3/Ved
Past	was were +V3/Ved	was were being + V3/Ved	had been + V3/Ved
Future	will be + V3/Ved	-	will have been + V3/Ved

Exercise 1. Use the following phrases in all the tenses of the Passive Voice.

To process information, to mend an engine, to cook dinner, to wash dishes, to make experiments, to manage a team, to buy a book, to generate electric power, to supply goods, to mix substances, to send telegrams, to find a notebook, to break the rules, to eat cakes, to write a report, to discuss the problem, to show a magazine.

Exercise 2. Make the sentences negative and interrogative, and then give the short answers.

1. Tea is sold by the grocer. 2. Cotton is grown in Egypt. 3. The room was warmed by an electric fire. 4. Our work will be corrected by the teacher. 5. The article will be finished in a month. 6. The window has been broken. 7. The dinner is being cooked by Mary. 8. New students are being examined now. 9. The letter was being typed. 10. The article will have been translated. 11. The light had been left on all night. 12. The cakes have been eaten. 13. The poem was much spoken about.

Exercise 3. Answer the questions using the Passive Voice.

Example: Who wrote the book “The Adventures of Tom Soyer?”

The book was written by Mark Twain.

1. In what towns did Shostakovich compose his Seventh Symphony? 2. Who painted “the Ninth Wave”? 3. Who invented the telephone? 4. Who sang the song “Yesterday”? 5. Who built St.Paul’s Cathedral? 6. Who wrote “Romeo and Juliet”? 7. Who created Mickey Mouse? 8. Where did they make Fiat? 9. Who painted Mona Lisa? 10. Who discovered radium? 11. Who invented the safety razor? 12. Who discovered X-rays? 13. Who invented the ballpoint pen? 14. Who developed the first sign language alphabet? 15. Who invented dynamite? 16. Who developed the electric cell? 17. Who developed the personal stereo? 18. Who produced the first pneumatic tyre? 19. Who invented the photocopier? 20. Who designed Lego?

(King Camp Gillette; a Hungarian Laszlo Biro; Shakespeare; Kuibyshev and Leningrad; Wilhelm Röntgen; Alexander Graham Bell; Akio Morita; Leonardo da Vinci; the Beatles; Alessandro Volta; Marie Curie; Alfred Nobel; Walt Disney; G.C. Beidler; Sir Christopher Wren; John Boyd Dunlop; Aivazovskiy; Italy; Ole Kirk Christiansen; J. P. Bonnet)

Exercise 4. Say these sentences with the adverbs from brackets. Use the correct tense.

1. Morning papers are sold every day. (an hour ago, in five minutes, just, now) 2. A new story is written by this author. (last year, next month, recently, still) 3. Miss Brown is sent for letters. (yesterday, in a week, already) 4. They were given the information. (always, tomorrow, at the moment) 5. The guest will be shown many things. (usually, 2 days ago, lately) 6. The clothes are packed in a case. (yesterday, tomorrow) 7. The passenger is given a ticket. (last week, in five days, now)

Exercise 5. Choose the sentences in the Passive Voice.

1. We visited many museums. 2. A very rich harvest of fruit is gathered every year. 3. He has been seen in the garden. 4. They’ll meet me at the station. 5. The town is often visited by tourists. 6. I’ll be dressed in a minute. 7. My father is on business in Moscow. 8. A letter was written in German. 9. There are different ways of cooking meat. 10. I am told to stop. 11. They were afraid she had missed the plane. 12. He was pleasant to look at.

Exercise 6. Define the tense and the voice of the underlined verbs.

1. People asked me a lot of questions. 2. He has been given six months to live. 3. Many cars will be produced next year. 4. The workers are building a new road. 5. The dog was left in the garden. 6. I will have brought the book by Tuesday. 7. All the information is usually given by him. 8. Children were playing with their toys. 9. They had been given good marks. 10. He will receive my letter in a week. 11. The boys have broken a glass. 12. Mother always makes breakfast for me. 13. The fire is being put out by the firemen. 14. They had left the port by the time we arrived. 15. His music was being played the whole evening. 16. The report will have been written by September. 17. The students will be conducting experiment at two o’clock tomorrow.

Exercise 7. Translate the sentences into Russian.

1. I was told he had left school. 2. We were told to stop and cross the street. 3. They are usually asked a lot of questions. 4. He will be shown the way to the museum. 5. That day she was seen a little of. 6. She will be given a new book to read. 7. We will be forbidden to smoke. 8. I have been shown my room. 9. He is always invited to parties. 10. You will be asked nothing difficult. 11. They were asked to come later. 12. Are they allowed playing here? 13. Nick was advised to wait.

Exercise 8. Translate the sentences into English.

1. Почему вам не дали эту книгу? 2. Ему пообещали хорошую работу в фирме. 3. Им продиктовали новые слова. 4. Детям велели идти спать. 5. Вам разрешат съесть по мороженому. 6. Ей покажут эту статью. 7. Мне не дали никаких объяснений. 8. Никому не разрешают курить в корпусе. 9. Их попросили подождать. 10. Ему не позволяют приходить домой поздно. 11. Мне опишут этого человека. 12. Нам только что объявили оценки. 13. Их сейчас экзаменуют. 14. Их не станут слушать.

Exercise 9. Give all possible translations of the sentences.

1. The translation will be done by students. 2. The article is being written by me. 3. The words were repeated twice by her. 4. St.Petersburg was founded by Peter I. 5. The houses have been surrounded by a high wall. 6. The town is often visited by foreign tourists. 7. The game will be won by our team. 8. The letter will have been written by me by tomorrow. 9. The door was opened by the servant. 10. Mary was met at the station by her son. 11. The hall is being decorated by the children. 12. The report was being listened to by them.

Exercise 10. Translate the sentences.

1. She is often spoken about. 2. I will be taken care of. 3. He is often laughed at. 4. The bed hasn’t been slept in. 5. The lecturer was not listened to. 6. The children have been well looked after. 7. The doctor will be sent for. 8. Why don’t you answer when you are spoken to? 9. After a long discussion the agreement was arrived at. 10. Nothing was heard from him. 11. The time of the exam will be agreed upon.

Exercise 11. Translate the sentences into English.

1. За такси уже послали. 2. Об этой статье много говорили на прошлой неделе. 3. Ее не слушали. 4. Над этим мальчиком часто смеются. 5. За парками города хорошо ухаживают. 6. За нами посылали вчера. 7. Об этих проблемах будут говорить на собрании. 8. Меня выслушают завтра. 9. За больными хорошо ухаживают в этой больнице. 10. Над его шутками всегда смеются. 11. На английском языке разговаривают во всем мире.

Exercise 12. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Passive Voice.

Example: You must do it at once. → It must be done at once.

1. You must do it at once. 2. They must leave their hats and coats in the cloakroom. 3. What can they do about it? 4. She can say nothing at present. 5. You should wear this dress with a belt. 6. We may change the day of the exam. 7. Should I learn the poem by heart? 8. We must boil the mushrooms before frying them. 9. You must find this book. 10. He may write the note in pencil.

Exercise 13. Use the correct tense of the Passive Voice.

1. Our flat always (clean) on Thursdays by Mrs. Bright. 2. A speech (give) by the President tomorrow. 3. The missing girl (not see) since yesterday morning. 4. The printing press (invent) by Johan Gutenberg. 5. My friend (interview) for the job at the moment. 6. A film (record) when the video recorder broke down. 7. When he came out of the shop his car (steal). 8. A new theatre (build) last year. 9. The work (do) by 3 o’clock tomorrow. 10. Bread (make) from wheat. 11. Martin (find) yesterday by police. 12. The new sports center (open) at 11 o’clock tomorrow. 13. The woman (follow) by the detective the whole way. 14. The prices of the items (check) already. 15. She found that all her money (steal).

Exercise 14. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Present Simple Passive Voice.

1. People speak English all over the world. 2. The teacher praises students when they work hard. 3. They make progress every day. 4. She takes her daughters to the kindergarten. 5. She covers the table with a cloth. 6. They collect much material every month. 7. This plant produces many cars every year. 8. People send millions of letters every day. 9. He gives us the necessary information. 10. We publish articles in this magazine.

Exercise 15. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Past Simple Passive Voice.

1. The scientists knew all the details. 2. They allowed her ten minutes to get ready. 3. My friend told me the news. 4. He hurt his leg in an accident. 5. I left the dog in the garden. 6. We gave a party in his honour. 7. She washed the floor only in the morning. 8. They ate all the cakes yesterday. 9. Somebody left the lights on. 10. Our team won the game.

Exercise 16. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Future Simple Passive Voice.

1. Ben will look after the dog well. 2. They will hold the meeting in this hall. 3. Ann will teach Richard to dance. 4. Kate will clean the rooms after lunch. 5. We shall make the flat comfortable for you. 6. The waitress will serve tea and coffee. 7. People will enjoy this play. 8. They will allow each child the second ice cream. 9. Someone will meet the visitors at the station. 10 Mother will bake the cake tomorrow.

Exercise 17. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Present Continuous Passive Voice.

1. The firemen are putting the fire out. 2. Our teacher is checking our essays. 3. The shop is selling toys. 4. Workers are building a new road. 5. They are trying a new medicine. 6. He is still asking questions about it. 7. People are reading his books all over the world. 8. Mother is cooking dinner. 9. He is writing an article. 10. They are making fun of him.

Exercise 18. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Past Continuous

Passive Voice.

1. They were tidying up the whole house. 2. Her sons were flying a kite. 3. Granny was putting the children to bed. 4. Kate was doing the washing. 5. The committee was discussing our proposals. 6. We were packing our things. 7. He was listening to the story. 8. The artist was painting a picture. 9. Workers were constructing a new metro line. 10. He was interviewing Mr. Smith for the job.

Exercise 19. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Present Perfect Passive Voice.

1. Friends have invited me for dinner. 2. Mrs. Reece has already paid the bill. 3. Someone has checked the computer printout for mistakes. 4. Jim has painted all the walls green. 5. The tourist office has provided a city map and a guide. 6. A mechanic has just checked my car. 7. They have informed him of the change of the plan. 8. I have posted the letters. 9. He has found fault with the fridge. 10. The postman has brought mail recently.

Exercise 20. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Past Perfect Passive Voice.

1. Someone had spilt wine on the table. 2. She had boiled the kettle. 3. Sister had left the window open. 4. The student had lost his books. 5. They had locked the door of the house. 6. The master had changed the timetable. 7. We had met friends at the station. 8. He had never broken a promise in his life. 9. The earthquake had destroyed many villages. 10. My friend had sent the parcel to the wrong address.

Exercise 21. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Future Perfect Passive Voice.

1. She will have cooked the meal by 8 o’clock. 2. They will have announced about their marriage by June. 3. I will have made the report by tomorrow. 4. They will have made a decision by 2 o’clock. 5. Students will have passed their exams by the beginning of June. 6. She will have received your letter by tomorrow morning. 7. You will have missed the most interesting dialogues. 8. They will have finished the conversation by this time. 9. We will have written the test by 10 o’clock. 10. I shall have read the book by the exam.

Exercise 22. Use the verbs in the sentences in the Passive Voice.

1. They showed me the house. 2. The father gave her a doll for her birthday. 3. Will they give us any instructions? 4. Do they send you photos? 5. He is showing them how to do it. 6. Someone lent me two priceless volumes. 7. Have they offered him the job? 8. My friend had recommended us a new doctor. 9. She asked our names. 10. They allowed him ten minutes to rest.

Exercise 23. Retell the text in the Active Voice.

The Great Wall of China is one of the largest structures, which has ever been made by men. The oldest parts of the wall were built in the 4^th century by the Chinese. Different parts of the wall were connected by the Emperor Shin Huang-ti. During the 15^th and 16^th centuries the wall was rebuilt. Today it is visited by thousands of people.

Exercise 24. Rewrite the sentences in the Passive Voice. Start with the underlined words.

1. Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa. 2. Smoking can cause cancer. 3. Microsoft produces the Windows operating system. 4. A terrorist has shot the president. 5. The company employs 600 people. 6. The Romans published the first newspaper in 59 BC. 7. Marconi invented radio communication in 1894. 8. They have published The Times in London since 1788. 9. Digital technology is changing the media. 10. Paparazzi follow the Royal Family everywhere. 11. A lot of people around the world use the Internet.

Exercise 25. Choose the correct form of the verb.

1. The disposable razor invented/ was invented by King Camp Gillette about 100 years ago. 2. Hungarian journalist Laszlo Biro invented/ was invented the world’s first ballpoint pen in the 1930s. 3. The DVD player is now the world’s number one entertainment product. The first one manufactured/ was manufactured in 1997. 4. Singer Alison Krauss was worn/ wore a pair of $2 million shoes at the Oscar ceremony. The shoes contain more than 500 diamonds and designed/ were designed by US designer Stuart Weitzman. 5. The world’s first robot dog, Sony Corporation’s ERS-110, went on sale in 1999. 3,000 sold/ were sold in the first twenty minutes! 6. In March 2004, 2.1 billion text messages sent/ were sent in the UK alone. That’s 36 text messages for each person! 7. In 2003, Google voted/ was voted the world’s most popular Internet search engine. 8. Ingvar Kamrad started/ was started the Swedish furniture company IKEA more than fifty years ago. He named/ was named the company after his first initials (IK), his parents home (Elmtaryd=E), and his home village (Agunnaryd=A). 9. Magellan sailed/ was sailed around the world about 500 years ago.

Exercise 26. Name the tense and the voice of the predicates. Translate the sentences.

1. She has a little café in London. 2. The house will have been built by August. 3. Students were taking exams when the Dean came into the classroom. 4. They will be in time. 5. Samara was founded in 1586. 6. She has just arrived and is having a rest. 7. The hall was being decorated the whole day. 8. Usually we are asked a lot of questions. 9. The enemy had been defeated. 10. Our team won the game yesterday. 11. The experiment is being carried out at the moment. 12. Don’t call them in July. They will be having rest in Italy. 13. They are waiting for you in the next room. 14. He has been to Rome lately. 15. Titanic was going to New York when it hit an iceberg. 16. The window has been broken by the boys. 17. Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.

Exercise 27. Imagine that you return to your home town after thirty years. A lot of things have changed. Make sentences, using words from the boxes and the Present Perfect Passive.

Cafes new car parks new schools opera house old fire station ring road station streets town centre cinema your house

Build modernize rebuild widen theatre turn into casino/ supermarket/cafe

Exercise 28. Write passive sentences.

1. Chinese (speak) in Singapore. 2. The Taj Mahal (build) around 1640. 3. The new hospital (open) next year. 4. She (interview) now. 5. The computers (make) in Korea. 6. Passengers (ask) not to speak to the driver. 7. Sorry about the noise – the road (mend). 8. You (invite) to Andy’s party? 9. The village church (burn down) last year. 10. He found that all his money (steal). 11. A Roman pavement just (find) under Oxford Street.

Exercise 29. Translate the sentences. Pay attention to the tenses and voices.

1. Ваш багаж уже отправили на станцию. 2. Он жил в Москве до того, как приехал сюда. 3. Они все еще читают этот рассказ. 4. Лавки были выкрашены полчаса назад. 5. Мои родители живут за городом летом. 6. Новую станцию метро построят к следующему году. 7. Возле нашего дома строится спортивная площадка. 8. Вам заплатят за вашу работу. 9. В следующем году мы будем изучать два языка. 10. Завтра они целый день будут готовиться к экзаменам. 11. Я не люблю чай с сахаром. 12. Когда он вернулся домой, его родители уже спали. 13. Мы ждем вас с десяти часов утра. Почему вы всегда опаздываете? 14. Им потребовался час, чтобы добраться до вокзала. 15. Вы знаете, что он недавно опубликовал свой рассказ?

Exercise 30. Use the correct tense and voice of the verb in brackets.

1. The article (finish) in a month. 2. Children (play) in the garden the whole evening yesterday. 3. The telegram (send) by the next holiday. 4. The question still (discuss) when I came. 5. Cases (pack) by eleven o’clock yesterday. 6. The picture (paint) in the 18^th century. 7. My father usually (go) to work by car. 8. Mail (deliver) every morning. 9. I (not decide) yet what to do. 10. The airport (close), as it (snow) heavily the whole week. 11. The best news always (publish) in morning newspapers. 12. I believe you (make) good progress in English soon. 13. There (not be) many people on the train during my last journey. Some of the passengers (read), children (look) through the window. 14. You’ll have to wait. The last student (examine). 15. Thank you for the information. I (use) it in my work. 16. When the sun (rise) in Paris, it is still night in Mexico.

Exercise 31. Use the correct passive form of the verb in brackets.

The Titanic (1) ___ (build) in 1912. It (2) ___ (design) in a new way and it (3) ___ (think) to be unsinkable. Because of this, it (4) ___ (not provide) with enough lifeboats for the passengers and crew. The hull (5) ___ (damage) by a collision with a huge iceberg and it sank very fast. A total of 1,513 people (6) ___ (drown) that day. Because of this disaster, new international safety laws (7) ___ (pass) and the Ice Patrol (8) ___ (establish). In 1985 the wreck (9) ___ (locate) on the seabed and the ship (10) ___ (explore). Several successful movies (11) ___ (make) about the Titanic since then, and the most recent (12) ___ (release) in 1997.

Exercise 32. Find Russian equivalents to these proverbs and quotations.

1. What is done cannot be undone. 2. Marriages are made in heaven. 3. A tree is known by its fruit. 4. What can’t be cured must be endured. 5. The devil is not so black as he is painted. 6. Rome was not built in a day. 7. A bird may be known by its song. 8. Don’t count chickens before they are hatched. 9. Well begun is half done. 10. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. 11. A man is known by the company he keeps. 12. To whom nothing is given of him nothing can be required. (J Fielding) 13.Genius must be born, and never can be taught. (J Dryden) 14. It’s too late to lock the stable when the horse has been stolen.