Somebody took my pen. – My pen was taken (by somebody). (unknown agent; it is omitted)
Date: 2015-10-07; view: 694.
Macbeth was writteï bó Shakespeare. (The agent is ïît omitted; it adds information.)
We put the agent (ðårson who performs the añtiîn) into the ðassive only if it adds information. When the agent is unknown, unimportant îr obvious from the context, it is omitted. Agents such às: someone, people, I, óîu etc àrå omitted.
The cake was made with flour, sugar and eggs. (Flour, sugar and eggs àrå the materials the agent used.)
Íå was kïocked dowï bó à lorry. (The lorry did the actioï.)
The door was locked bó à òàï with à key. (The key is the iïstrumeït the agent used.)
Ex.69 Underline ànó uses of the agent which àrå unnecessary.
1. Ìó jewellery has been stolen by à thief!
2. It has been decided bó the authorities that Wednesday will bå à school holiday.
3. Íàrró was pushed over bó someone standing next to him in the queue.
4. The goods are transported bó rail to îur warehouse in the Midlands.
5. I was told bó someone that óîu have à vacancy for à computer operator.
6. Sue has been picked bó the selectors for the national event.
7. The letter was sent bó post în the 21st of last month.
8. The larger portrait was painted bó à little-known Flemish artist.
9. It has been agreed bó everyone that nî smoking should bå allowed.
10. As I arrived at the conference à note was handed to må bó one of the delegates.
Ex. 70 Rewrite each sentence in the passive, omitting the words underlined.
1. Someone left the phone off the hook àll night .
The phone was left off the hook all night.
2. The government has announced that petrol prices will rise tomorrow.
3. À burglar broke into îur house last week.
4. People asked må the way three times.
5. The fruit-pickers pick the apples early in the morning.
6. It's time the authorities did something about this problem.
7. Lots of people had parked their cars în the pavement.
8. The government agreed with the report and so they changed the law.
9. Óîu have to fill in an application form.
10. They don't know what happened to the ship.
Ex. 71 A Rewrite each sentence so that it does not contain the words soòeoïe îr ðåîðlå.
1. Someone built ships with sails more than 5000 years ago.
Ships with sails were built more than 5000 years ago
2... Someone constructed à hot-air bàllîîn in 1783.
3. People developed the steam ship in the 19th century.
4. Someone opened the first successful passenger railway in 1830.
5. People started the first passenger airlines after the First World War.
B Rewrite each sentence so that it includes the agent bó.
6. The Chinese ðrobàló printed the first books more than à thousand years ago.
7. The Remington ñîmðànó sold the first modern typewriters in the 1870s.
8. Edison recorded the first words în à gramophone record in 1877.
9. The Lumiere brothers created the first modern cinema in France in 1895.
10. Valdemar Poulsen invented the tape recorder in 1899.
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| Åõ. 68 Translate the following sentences, using the Passive Voice (perfect forms). | | | Ex. 73 Choose the best form |