METU/SFL
DBE
Spring 2016-2017
PRE-INTERMEDIATE-A GROUP
GRAMMAR HANDOUT 2
PASSIVES (II)
Part A. Choose the correct word. You need to guess the answers. When you finish, check the
answers online.
1. The word “aluminum” is also spelled as “aluminium” / “alumini” in English.
2. The metal aluminum was first discovered and named by a/n English / Danish scientist.
3. Aluminum was added to the periodic table with the symbol Al / Ag.
4. Aluminum can be fully / partially recycled.
5. Aluminum is used in food containers / toys for small children.
6. Aluminum has recently been reported to be highly toxic / non-toxic.
7. Aluminum should not / must be used near electrical power sources because it may be dangerous.
8. Aluminum can / must not be used when alloys are added to pure aluminum.
9. Aluminum is used to make tin cans, and these cans are used to store food like fish and beverages
like Cola. These cans need to / don’t have to be kept away from heat in order not to become
toxic.
10. Aluminum will probably be used less / more by the food industry in the future.
Part B. Almost all of the statements above are in the Passive Voice. The Passive Voice allows you to
shift the focus from the subject (the doer of the action) to the object (the receiver of the action).
Study the subjects of the sentences above. All the sentences are about the same subject: aluminum.
Uses of the Passive Voice: Remember that the Passive Voice has the following uses (see GHO 1,
BG-A Group, Fall 2016-2917):
 when the DOER of the action is not known
 when it isn’t necessary to mention the DOER of the action because the DOER is
obvious.
 when we are more interested in the action than the DOER.
 when we want to avoid placing direct ‘blame’ on the DOER.
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The use of BY+AGENT: In some cases, the Passive Voice is necessary, but you still want to mention the
active agent (DOER) of the action although the DOER of the action is not the focus. Remember that this
“DOER of the action” may be a person or a thing. You can mention the doer of the action using “by”. See
the possible uses below:
USE
when the DOER is necessary to the meaning of the
sentence
EXAMPLE
The metal aluminum was first discovered and
named by an English scientist.
Form: All passive forms contain a form of the verb BE + Past Participle (V3) form of the main verb.
Study the examples below:
ACTIVE
(Simple Present)
They spell the word “aluminum” also as “aluminium” in English.
PASSIVE
(Simple Present)
The word “aluminum” is also spelled as “aluminium” in English.
ACTIVE
(Simple Past)
An English scientist first discovered and named the metal aluminum.
PASSIVE
(Simple Past)
The metal aluminum was first discovered and named by an English scientist.
ACTIVE
(Present Perfect)
They have recently reported aluminum to be highly toxic.
PASSIVE
(Present Perfect)
Aluminum has recently been reported to be highly toxic.
All tenses and modals have a passive form. In this handout, we are focusing on the passive forms of the
Present Simple, Past Simple, and the Present Perfect Tenses. See the summary of the forms below:
Present Simple Passive form
am/is/are + V3
Past Simple Passive form
was/were + V3
Present Perfect Simple Passive form
has/have been + V3
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PRACTICE 1. Write the correct forms of the verbs given in parentheses.
o Silver (Ag) (1)___________________ (have) an atomic number of forty-seven. This highly valuable
metal (2)___________________ (be) slightly harder than gold.
o Silver (3)___________________ (use) by civilizations for more than 2,000 years.
o It (4)___________________ (be) a better conductor of electricity than copper. However, it is very
expensive, so it (5)___________________ (be) an attractive option for electrical wiring.
o Of all the metals, silver also (6)___________________ (have) the highest thermal conductivity.
o Silver (7)___________________ (play) an important role in folklore.
o Throughout history, silver (8)___________________ (use) in coin making, jewelry, mirrors, and
photo-optics, musical instruments, dentistry, medications, and photography.
o In many countries, most coins (9)___________________ (make) of silver today.
o In several ancient civilizations, silver (10)___________________ (associate) with magical powers.
o Silver (11)___________________ (can/recycle) very easily.
Form: Study the example sentences with modal verbs in the Passive Voice below. The passive form of
the modals follows one basic rule:
“can”
Aluminum can be fully recycled.
“should”
Aluminum should not be used near electrical power sources
“need to”
Aluminum cans need to be kept away from heat so that they do not become toxic.
Modal verbs:
PASSIVE FORMS:
can/can’t + V
will /won’t + V
may / may not + V
might / might not + V
should / shouldn’t + V
must / mustn’t + V
could / couldn’t + V
---------------------need/s to+ V
have / has to + V
-----------------------had to + V
used to + V
can/can’t + be + V3
will /won’t + be + V3
may / may not + be + V3
might / might not + be + V3
should / shouldn’t + be + V3
must / mustn’t + be + V3
could / couldn’t + be + V3
---------------------need/s to+ be + V3
have / has to + be + V3
-----------------------had to + be + V3
used to + be + V3
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PRACTICE 2. Change the following sentences into passive.
1. Visitors mustn’t feed the animals in the cages.
____________________________________________________________.
2. All students should read the Rules and Regulations booklet.
____________________________________________________________.
3. They had to answer all the questions.
____________________________________________________________.
4. Somebody must clean this room today.
____________________________________________________________.
5. They may ask a lot of questions about this topic during the conference.
____________________________________________________________.
6. You can’t take these books out of the library.
____________________________________________________________.
7. You need to repair that TV set.
____________________________________________________________.
8. Somebody has to take these articles to the publisher.
____________________________________________________________.
9. You don’t have to pay the bill in cash.
____________________________________________________________.
10. We will invite a few reporters to the party.
____________________________________________________________.
11. People didn’t use to paint buildings with bright colors in the past.
____________________________________________________________.
12. Some types of cheese might seriously affect people with allergies.
____________________________________________________________.
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Part C. Important notes.
1. The passive form is possible if the verb is followed by an object. The verbs that do not take an object
(i.e. intransitive verbs) do not have a passive form. Some of the intransitive verbs are:
go, come, live, happen, sleep, arrive, die, become, collapse, occur, appear, disappear
2. Some verbs are usually used in the passive form. Study the examples below:
She was born in England.
A band-aid is composed of two main parts.
Istanbul is located in the center of northern Eurasia.
PRACTICE 3. Read the following fact-sheet about GOLD. Write the correct forms of the verbs given in
parentheses. The modal verbs are provided in parentheses where necessary. You need to decide on the
correct tense, voice (active/passive) and form (positive/negative).
o Gold (1) ______________(be) a chemical element with the symbol Au (Latin: aurum) and atomic
number 79.
o Gold (2) ______________(traditionally/ use) since ancient times because of its good resistance to
oxidative corrosion.
o The gold content of gold alloys (3) ______________(measure) in carats (k).
o Since governments turned to silver coins, gold (4) ______________(use) in daily commerce.
o White gold is an alloy. White gold alloys (5) ______________(can/use) for different purposes; a
nickel alloy is hard and strong, and therefore, good for rings and pins, gold-palladium alloys are
soft, pliable and good for white gold gemstone settings.
o Rose gold is a gold and copper alloy. It (6) ______________(widely/use) for specialized jewelry
due to its reddish color. It (7) ______________(also/call) pink gold and red gold. It
(8)______________ (be) popular in Russia at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Therefore,
today, it (9)____ ______________(also/know) as Russian gold.
o Green gold alloys (10) ______________(make) by leaving the copper out of the alloy mixture,
and just using gold and silver. It actually (11)______________(appear) as a greenish yellow, rather
than as green. Eighteen carat green gold (12) ______________(contain) a mix of gold 75 percent
and silver 25 percent.
o Gold (13) ______________(can/use) in food. Chefs (14)______________(may/decide) to use
gold dust or gold leaves on their dishes in order to add some glitter. Unfortunately, it does not have
any taste.
o Gold alloys (15) ________________ (used to/place) over teeth as dental treatment. This use is not
popular today.
Gold (16) ______________(probably/lose) its value and use in our lives for many years in the future.
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