1. The Usage of the Passive Voice
I. Find out the tense of the verb.
1. English is spoken here. 2. Excuse the mess: the house is being painted. 3. I wasn't invited, but I went. 4.
I felt I was being watched. 5. Has Mary been told? 6. I knew I had been forgotten. 7. You'll be told soon. 8.
Everything will have been done by Tuesday. 9. Who is going to be invited?
II. Make 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. I realized I (follow). 6. (You invite) to Andy's party? 7. He found that all his
money (steal). 8. These computers (make) in Korea. 9. Passengers (ask) not to speak to the driver. 10.
Sorry about the noise – the road (mend). 11. The village church (burn down) last year. 12. A Roman
pavement (just find) under Oxford Street.
III. Use the verbs in the passive making the second variant of the passive construction.
1. Nothing was sent to me. 2. Papers were brought to us to sign. 3. A clock was given to Henry when he
retired. 4. Stories were read to the children. 5. $ 5,000 is owed to me. 6. A new job has been offered to me.
7. French is taught to us by Mrs. Lee. 8. A car has been lent to me for the week. 9. A full explanation was
promised to us. 10. A lot of lies were told to me by the secretary.
IV. Translate into English.
1.Ее часто посылают на почту.2. Это сочинение было написано на прошлой неделе. 3.Эта
работа будет закончена на будущей неделе? 4. За этим мужчиной шла огромная толпа. 5. Когда
мама пришла, обед был уже сварен. 6. Наш дом сейчас ремонтируют. 7. Я думала, что хлеб и
масло купит моя сестра.
V. Translate into Russian.
1.I was shown. 2. We were being shown. 3. You will now be told. 4. I want to be told. 5. They have been
asked. 6. You might be sent. 7. He is not allowed to. 8. He was talked about. 9. They were sent for. 10.
You were waited for. 11. She was looked at. 12. The professor was being listened to. 13. Tom was laughed
at.
VI. Which sentences cannot be turned from Active into Passive?
1. They didn't ask her name. 2. Michael saw Mary in the park. 3. Has anyone answered your question? 4.
They danced all night. 5. On Sunday evening we all met at my friend's. 6. Someone told us a funny story
yesterday. 7. You can't park your car in the street before this office. 8. This kind of flowers doesn't bloom
very often. 9. His parents have brought him up to be very polite. 10. The plane from Los Angeles was
several hours late.
VII. Choose the right variant.
1.America's first college, Harvard, … in Massachusetts in 1636.
a) is being founded b) had been founded c) was founded
2. The story of the first Thanksgiving feast … among the Americans.
a) is well-known b) have been well-known c) would have been well-known
3. In more than 200 years the USA Constitution … 26 times.
a) is amended b) is being amended c) has been amended
4. The bridge … by tomorrow morning.
a) will have been reconstructed b) is being reconstructed c) will be reconstructed
5. The book … everywhere.
a) is looked for b) must be looked c) has been looked for