Intermediate grammar · Unit 43 · B2

Passive 2 (be done / been done / being done)

Passive

Form the passive in other tenses and after modal verbs: (to) be done, (to) have been done, has been done, had been done, is being done and was being done.

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A Infinitive: (to) be done

Form Sentence
Active (to) do / mend / see Somebody will mend this fence tomorrow.
Passive (to) be + done / mended / seen This fence will be mended tomorrow.

This form follows modal verbs (will, must, can, could and so on), going to, and verbs such as want to.

  • These tablets must be taken with food.
  • Some of the noises in this old house can't be explained.
  • The fireworks were so loud that they could be heard in the next town.
  • A new leisure centre is going to be built near the park.
  • Leave me in peace, please. I'd like to be left alone for an hour.

B Perfect infinitive: (to) have been done

Form Sentence
Active (to) have + done / mended Somebody should have mended the fence.
Passive (to) have been + done / mended The fence should have been mended.
  • My suitcase hasn't turned up. It might have been put on the wrong plane.
  • If you'd chained your bike up, it wouldn't have been taken.
  • There was a leak at first, but it seems to have been fixed.

C Present perfect and past perfect: has been done, had been done

Active Passive
Present perfect The fence looks good. Somebody has mended it. The fence looks good. It has been mended. (have/has been + participle)
Past perfect The fence looked good. Somebody had mended it. The fence looked good. It had been mended. (had been + participle)
  • Have you heard? The match has been called off.
  • Have you ever been stung by a wasp?
  • "Are you going to Sian's party?" "No, I haven't been asked."
  • The rice was horrible. It had been left in the pan for too long.
  • The bike was ten years old, but it had hardly been ridden.

D Present continuous and past continuous: is being done, was being done

Active Passive
Present continuous Somebody is mending the fence at the moment. The fence is being mended at the moment. (am/is/are being + participle)
Past continuous Somebody was mending the fence when I got home. The fence was being mended when I got home. (was/were being + participle)
  • Please hold. Your call is being transferred.
  • A new footbridge is being built over the railway. It will be finished in the spring.
  • We couldn't use the church hall. It was being decorated.

Exercises

43.1 Complete the sentences. Use these verbs in the passive. Each verb is used once. Sometimes you need have (might have, should have and so on).

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  1. The kitchen is in a terrible state. Something must be done about it before the inspector comes.

    The kitchen is in a terrible state. Something must be done about it before the inspector comes.

  2. My order still hasn't arrived. It might have been posted to my old address.

    My order still hasn't arrived. It might have been posted to my old address.

  3. The winner won't until the judges have tasted every cake.

  4. Medicines should always out of the reach of children.

  5. This fence is falling to pieces. It should years ago.

  6. The old man had hurt his ankle on the fell and had to down.

  7. If you hadn't punched that doorman, you wouldn't .

  8. I'm not sure what time I'll get to Leeds tomorrow. My train may .

  9. Nobody knows why the canal turned green. It might by chemicals from the factory.

  10. A new library is being built. The old one is going to down.

  11. The exams finish next week. The results will in August.

  12. Two years ago they had a dreadful row. Now they're the best of friends again. The row seems to .

43.2 Make sentences from the words in brackets. Sometimes the verb is active, sometimes passive.

  1. A van with two men in it has been parked outside your house all day, and they keep looking at your front door.

    Those two men haven't moved all day. (I / watch)

    I'm being watched.

    Those two men haven't moved all day. I'm being watched.

  2. Your car looks very clean, doesn't it? (you / wash?)

    Have you washed it?

    Your car looks very clean, doesn't it? Have you washed it?

  3. The cash box is empty. (The money / steal!)

  4. My sandwich has gone from the fridge at work. (Somebody / eat)

  5. A man from our village went missing last year. (He / not / see / since then)

  6. I wonder how my old flatmate Ffion is these days. (I / not / hear from her / for years)

  7. My brother was bitten by a snake on holiday. (you / ever / bite / snake?)

  8. The pier was damaged in the storm. (It / repair / at the moment)

  9. Sophie's bike was stolen last week. (It / not / find / yet)

  10. When I got home, I saw that the sofa was under the window and the table was by the door. (The furniture / move)

43.3 Instead of using somebody, they and so on, write a passive sentence. Begin with the words in brackets.

  1. Somebody has fixed the boiler. (The boiler ...)

    The boiler has been fixed.

    The boiler has been fixed.

  2. They are building a new car park behind the station. (A new car park ...)

  3. They have opened two new restaurants on the high street. (Two ...)

  4. When I was last there, they were painting the church. (When I was last there, the church ...)

  5. The concert is now on 3 June. They have changed the date. (The date of ...)

  6. I didn't know that somebody was filming us. (I didn't know that we ...)

  7. Is anybody doing anything about the rubbish in the street? (Is anything ...)

  8. The car was filthy. Nobody had washed it for months. (The car was filthy. It ...)

See also