Exercise 1
Complete the sentences using one of these verbs in the correct form, present or past:
cause overtake damage show hold
surround invite translate make write
1) Many accidents ________ by dangerous driving.
2) Cheese ________ from milk.
3) The roof of the building ________ in a storm a few days ago.
4) You ________ to the wedding. Why didn't you go?
5) A cinema is a place where films ________
6) In the United States, elections for president ________ every four years.
7) Originally the book ________ in Spanish, and a few years ago it ________ into English.
8) Although we were driving fast, we ________ by a lot of other cars.
9) You can't see the house from the road. It ________ by trees.
Show answers
1)
1 are caused
2 is made
3 was damaged
4 were invited
5 are shown
6 are held
7 was written … was translated
8 were overtaken
9 is surrounded
Exercise 2
Write questions using the passive. Some are present and some are past.
1) Ask about glass. (how / make?) ________
2) Ask about television. (when / invent?) ________
3) Ask about mountains. (how / form?) ________
4) Ask about antibiotics. (when / discover?) ________
5) Ask about silver. (what / use for?) ________
Show answers
2)
1 How is glass made?
2 When was television invented?
3 How are mountains formed?
4 When were antibiotics discovered?
5 What is silver used for?
Exercise 3
Put the verb into the correct form, present simple or past simple, active or passive.
1) It's a big factory. Five hundred people ________ (employ) there.
2) _____ (somebody I clean) this room yesterday?
3) Water ________ (cover) most of the earth's surface.
4) How much of the earth's surface ________ (cover) by water?
5) The park gates ________ (lock) at 6.30 p.m. every evening.
6) The letter ________ (send) a week ago and it (arrive) ________ yesterday.
7) The boat hit a rock and ________ (sink) quickly. Fortunately everybody ________ (rescue).
8) Robert's parents ________ (die) when he was very young. He and his sister ________ (bring up) by their grandparents.
9) I was born in London, but I ________ (grow up) in Canada.
10) While I was on holiday, camera ________ (steal) from hotel room.
11) While I was on holiday, camera ________ (disappear) from hotel room.
12) Why ________ (Sue / resign) from her job? Didn't she enjoy it?
13) Why ________ (Ben / fire) from his job? Did he do something wrong?
14) The company is not independent. It ________ (own) by a much larger company.
15) I saw an accident last night. Somebody ________ (call) an ambulance but nobody ________ (injure), so the ambulance ________ (not I need).
16) Where ________ (these pictures / take)? In London?
________ (you / take) them, or somebody else?
17) Sometimes it's quite noisy living here, but it's not a problem for me – I ________ (not / bother) by it.
Show answers
3)
1 are employed
2 Did somebody clean
3 covers
4 is covered
5 are locked
6 was sent … arrived
7 sank … was rescued
8 died … were brought up
9 grew up
10 was stolen
11 disappeared
12 did Sue resign
13 was Ben fired
14 is owned
15 called … was injured … wasn't needed
16 were these pictures taken … Did you take
17 'm not bothered / am not bothered
Exercise 4
Rewrite these sentences. Instead of using somebody , they , people etc., write a passive sentence.
1) Somebody cleans the room every day.
________
2) They cancelled all flights because of fog.
All ________
3) People don 1t use this road much.
________
4) Somebody accused me of stealing money.
I ________
5) How do people learn languages?
How ________
6) People warned us not to go out alone.
________
Show answers
4)
1 The room is cleaned every day.
2 All flights were cancelled because of fog.
3 This road isn't used much.
4 I was accused of stealing money.
5 How are languages Learned/learnt?
6 We were warned not to go out alone.
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