Passives

When to use the passive

To change the focus of a sentence.
In the passive sentence above, we can make the object and action ('me' and 'gave a prescription') more important than the subject ('the doctor').

If we don't know who does an action.
"My bicycle has been stolen" – I don't know who has stolen it.

If we don't want to say who did something.
"The lights were left on all night." (I don't want to say that you left the lights on.)

If it is obvious who does something.
"I was given a prescription" – I know that only doctors give prescriptions, so I don't need to add "by the doctor".
"He was arrested" I know that the police arrest people, so I don't need to add "by the police".

Forming a passive sentence in English

Firstly, you need to make the object into the new subject.

me –> I
you –> You
him / her –> He / She
us –> We
them –> They

Then you make the verb passive.
Put the verb "to be" into the same tense as the verb in the active subject. For example "gave" is the past simple tense. The past simple form of "to be" is "was" or "were".

Present simple –> is /are
Present continuous –> is / are being
Present perfect –> has/have been
Past Simple -> was / were
Past continuous – was / were being
Modals will, can etc – will be, can be etc.

Then add the past participle of the verb. For example "gave" – "was GIVEN".

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises_list/passiv.htm

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/passive

http://baladre.info/english/sedaviwebfront/passivetheory.htm

http://www.xtec.cat/~ogodoy/sac/rephrasing/rephrexercises.htm



Other Grammar exercises

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises_list/alle_grammar.htm

Gerundios/Infinitivos http://thatsoriano.blogspot.es/img/gerundio.jpg

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