unit9:passive voice

unit:9   passive voice 
the tower eftiel is built in france by gustav eftiel 

conversation:towers 
sue:wow , watch at the eiffel tower isn't it  wonderful?
david :yeah . it is  amazing . who designed it ?
sue :it was  designed  by gustave  eiffel , a french architect  that  built  her in the nineteenth  century 
david:i know  the view  from the  top is  amazing  will we  climb to the top 

Passive Voice

The passive voice is less usual than the active voice. The active voice is the "normal" voice. But sometimes we need the passive voice. In this lesson we look at how to construct the passive voice, when to use it and how to conjugate it.

Construction of the Passive Voice

The structure of the passive voice is very simple:

subject + auxiliary verb (be) + main verb (past participle)

The main verb is always in its past participle form.

Look at these examples:

subject	auxiliary verb (to be)		main verb (past participle)
Water	is		drunk	by everyone.
100 people	are		employed	by this company.
I	am		paid	in euro.
We	are	not	paid	in dollars.
Are	they		paid	in yen?

Use of the Passive Voice

We use the passive when:

• we want to make the active object more important
• we do not know the active subject

	subject	verb	object
give importance to active object (President Kennedy)	President Kennedy	was killed	by Lee Harvey Oswald.
active subject unknown	My wallet	has been stolen.	?

Note that we always use by to introduce the passive object (Fish are eaten by cats)

Examples

Active	Peter	builds	a house.
Passive:	A house	is built	by Peter.

Active:	Peter	built	a house.
Passive:	A house	was built	by Peter.

.

negative form 
the negative form is formed by 
1-subject 
2-auxiliary be in negative form 
3-verb in past participle 
4-object 
for example :
beer isn't  drunk by everyone 
math isn't studied by  tha classmates 
interrogative form 
is formed by :
auxiliary be +subject +verb in past participle +object +sign

is soccer played by f.c chelsea 
the agent in passive voice 

AGENT

To say who did the action that we are talking about, ie. to refer to the agent, we use the preposition by

and the name (by Peter) , noun (by the teacher) or pronoun (by him) at the end of the sentence.

We usually only refer to the agent when it gives us some important information which otherwise would be 

missing from the sentence. 

Our house was designed by a famous architect.

We don’t mention the agent:

1. if we don’t know who has done what we are talking about.

Our car was stolen last night. (We don’t know who stole it)

2. if we are not interested in who has done what we are talking about or it is not important to 

mention it.

He has been taken to hospital. (What we are interested in is the fact that he has been taken 

to hospital and not who has taken him.)

3. if it is easy to understand who did something without it being mentioned.

The murderer was arrested last night. (It is not necessary to mention that he has been 

arrested by the police because it is self-evident.)

4. if the subject of the active voice sentence is something like somebody, people, they, you, etc.

Someone broke the window. → The window was broken.

ACTIVE TO PASSIVE

To change a sentence from the active voice to the passive voice:

 the object of the active voice sentence becomes the subject of the passive voice sentence.

Agatha Christie wrote this book.

This book was written by Agatha Christie.

 we change the main verb of the active voice sentence into the passive voice. The tense remains 

unchanged.

 the subject of the active voice sentence becomes the agent of the passive sentence. It is placed 

after the past participle and it is preceded by the preposition by

print exercise 
Rewrite these sentences in the passive voice.
a. Someone built this house 200 years ago.
_________________________________________________________________________________
b. A thief stole my purse.
_________________________________________________________________________________
c. The police will arrest the robbers.
_________________________________________________________________________________
d. They produce cars in this factory.
_________________________________________________________________________________
e. They serve breakfast at eight o’clock every day.
_________________________________________________________________________________
f. People throw away tones of rubbish every day.
_________________________________________________________________________________
g. They make coffee in Brazil.
_________________________________________________________________________________
h. Someone stole Jim’s bike lat night.
_________________________________________________________________________________
6. Rewrite these sentences in the passive voice.
a. They will build a new bridge next year.
_________________________________________________________________________________
b. Brian Brody directed The Ultimate Space Adventure.
_________________________________________________________________________________
c. Pierre Matie will design her costume.
_________________________________________________________________________________
d. Someone found my wallet.
_________________________________________________________________________________
e. One of the students broke the window.
_________________________________________________________________________________
f. They will deliver my computer on Monday.
_________________________________________________________________________________
g. Mary invited Paul to her birthday party.
_________________________________________________________________________________
h. British astronomers discovered a new planet.

_________________________________________________________________________________

passive voice in past tense 

in this past  tense is formed by :

1-subject 
2-verb to be  in past tense (was were)
3-verb in past participle 
4-object 

The kitchen was cleaned by Adam 
SUBJECT+ ACTION+ OBJECT
ACTIVE: Alan wrote a letter to me. 

PASSIVE: A letter was written to me by Alan.
The person who makes the action is introduced by the preposition by in the passive 
sentence. But in some cases the subject of the passive sentence is omitted, this happens 
when who or what causes the action is unknown or unimportant. Look at the examples: 
Active                                      Passive                       
Mary bought a book. A book was bought by Mary. 
A thief stole my car. My car was stolen (by a thief). 
I read the message. The message was  read (by me). 

note :
the form interrogative and negative in past tense  have the same structure   that  the  passive  voice in present  adding the particle "not" and  in the interrogative form investing  the auxiliary  with subject 

unit 8:auxiliaries modals

 
unit:8 we 'd  like to play  baseball with the dodgers 
modal auxiliaries 

1.

modal auxiliary

The definition of a modal auxiliary is a verb that is used with another verb to express a mood or tense.

uses of auxiliaries 

normally the stucture  of a modal auxiliary is 
afirmative
subject +modal auxiliary +verb in base form +complement

negative form 

subject + modal auxiliary with particle not+ verb in base form +complement 

interrogative form 

modal auxiliary + subject +verb in  base form + complement 

Normally, we use can for the present. But it is possible to use can when we make present decisions about future ability.Can

Can is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use can to:

• talk about possibility and ability
• make requests
• ask for or give permission

Structure of Can

subject + can + main verb

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to").

	subject	auxiliary verb	main verb
+	I	can	play	tennis.
-	He	cannot	play	tennis.
		can't
?	Can	you	play	tennis?

Notice that:

• Can is invariable. There is only one form of can.
• The main verb is always the bare infinitive.The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to"). We cannot say:
• 

Use of Can

can: Possibility and Ability

We use can to talk about what is possible, what we are able or free to do:

• She can drive a car.
• John can speak Spanish.
• I cannot hear you. (I can't hear you.)
• Can you hear me?

1. Can you help me with my homework? (present)
2. Sorry. I'm busy today. But I can help you tomorrow. (future)

can: Requests and Orders

We often use can in a question to ask somebody to do something. This is not a real question - we do not really want to know if the person is able to do something, we want them to do it! The use of can in this way is informal (mainly between friends and family):

• Can you make a cup of coffee, please.
• Can you put the TV on.
• Can you come here a minute.
• Can you be quiet!

can: Permission

We sometimes use can to ask or give permission for something:

1. Can I smoke in this room?
2. You can't smoke here, but you can smoke in the garden.

(Note that we also use could, may, might for permission. The use of can for permission is informal.)

Could

"Could" is used to express possibility or past ability as well as to make suggestions and requests. "Could" is also commonly used inconditional sentences as the conditional form of "can."

Examples:

• Extreme rain could cause the river to flood the city. possibility
• Nancy could ski like a pro by the age of 11. past ability
• You could see a movie or go out to dinner. suggestion
• Could I use your computer to email my boss? request
• We could go on the trip if I didn't have to work this weekend. conditional

Could

• Could is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use could to:
  • talk about past possibility or ability
  • make requests

Structure of Could

• subject + could + main verb
  The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to").

  	subject	auxiliary verb	main verb
  +	My grandmother	could	swim.
  -	She	could not	walk.
  		couldn't
  ?	Could	your grandmother	swim?

  
  

Use of Could

could: Past Possibility or Ability

• We use could to talk about what was possible in the past, what we were able or free to do:
  • I could swim when I was 5 years old.
  • My grandmother could speak seven languages.
  • When we arrived home, we could not open the door. (...couldn't open the door.)
  • Could you understand what he was saying?
  We use could (positive) and couldn't (negative) for general ability in the past. But when we talk about one special occasion in the past, we use be able to (positive) and couldn't (negative). Look at these examples:

  	Past
  	General	Specific Occasion
  +	My grandmother could speak Spanish.	A man fell into the river yesterday. The police were able to save him.
  -	My grandmother couldn't speak Spanish.	A man fell into the river yesterday. The police couldn't save hi

could: Requests

• We often use could in a question to ask somebody to do something. The use of could in this way is fairly polite (formal):
  • Could you tell me where the bank is, please?
  • Could you send me a catalogue, please?
  
  

Would

• Would is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use would mainly to:
  
  

  • talk about the past
  • talk about the future in the past
  • express the conditional mood

  We also use would for other functions, such as:
  
  

  • expressing desire, polite requests and questions, opinion or hope, wish and regret...

Structure of Would

• subject + would + main verb
  The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to").
  

  	subject	auxiliary verb	main verb
  +	She	would	like	tea.
  		'd
  -	She	would not	like	whisky.
  		wouldn't
  ?	Would	she	like	coffee?

  Notice that:
  
  • Would is never conjugated. It is always would or 'd (short form).
  • 
    

Use of Would

would: Talking about the past

• We often use would as a kind of past tense of will or going to:
  
  • Even as a boy, he knew that he would succeed in life.
  • I thought it would rain so I brought my umbrella.
  Using would as as a kind of past tense of will or going to is common in reported speech:
  
  • She said that she would buy some eggs. ("I will buy some eggs.")
  • The candidate said that he wouldn't increase taxes. ("I won't increase taxes.")
  • Why didn't you bring your umbrella? I told you it would rain! ("It's going to rain.")
  We often use would not to talk about past refusals:
  
  • He wanted a divorce but his wife would not agree.
  • Yesterday morning, the car wouldn't start.
  We sometimes use would (rather like used to) when talking about habitual past behaviour:
  
  • Every weekday my father would come home from work at 6pm and watch TV.
  • Every summer we'd go to the seaside.
  • Sometimes she'd phone me in the middle of the night.
  • We would always argue. We could never agree.

would: Future in past

• When talking about the past we can use would to express something that has not happened at the time we are talking about:
  
  

  • In London she met the man that she would one day marry.
  • He left 5 minutes late, unaware that the delay would save his life.

would: Conditionals

• We often use would to express the so-called second and third conditionals:
  
  • If he lost his job he would have no money.
  • IfI had won the lotteryI would have bought a car.
  Using the same conditional structure, we often use would when giving advice:
  
  • I wouldn't eat that if I were you.
  • If I were in your place I'd refuse.
  • If you asked me I would say you should go.
  Sometimes the condition is "understood" and there does not have to be an "if" clause:
  
  • Someone who liked John would probably love John's father. (If someone liked John they would probably love John's father.)
  • You'd never know it. (for example: If you met him you would never know that he was rich.)
  • 
    

would: Desire or inclination

• • I'd love to live here.
  • Would you like some coffee?
  • What I'd really like is some tea.

would: Polite requests and questions

• • Would you open the door, please? (more polite than: Open the door, please.)
  • Would you go with me? (more polite than: Will you go with me?)
  • Would you know the answer? (more polite than: Do you know the answer?)
  • What would the capital of Nigeria be? (more polite than: What is the capital of Nigeria?)

would: Opinion or hope

• • I would imagine that they'll buy a new one.
  • I suppose some people would call it torture.
  • I would have to agree.
  • I would expect him to come.
  • Since you ask me I'd say the blue one is best.

would: Presumption or expectation

• • That would be Jo calling. I'll answer it.
  • We saw a police helicopter overhead yesterday morning. | Really? They would have been looking for those bank robbers.

would: Uncertainty

• • He would seem to be getting better. (less certain than: He seems to be getting better.)
  • It would appear that I was wrong. (less certain than: It appears that I was wrong.)

would: Derogatory

• • They would say that, wouldn't they?
  • John said he didn't steal the money. | Well, he would, wouldn't he?

would that: Regret (poetic/rare) - with clause

• This rare, poetic or literary use of would does not have the normal structure:
  • Would that it were true! (If only it were true! We wish that it were true!)
  • Would that his mother had lived to see him become president.
  
  
                                        Must
  

  It is most commonly used to express certainty. It can also be used to express obligation or strong recommendation. "Must not" can be used to prohibit actions, but this sounds very severe.

  • This must be the correct answer! Certainty

  • Visitors must buy a ticket to entrance to the park. Obligation

  • You must take some medicine for that sickness. Strong recommendation

  • Students, you must not play in the classroom. 

MAY
Talking about things that can happen in certain situations

If the monitors are used in poorly lit places, some users may experience headaches.
Each nurse may be responsible for up to twenty patients.
With a similar meaning to although

The experiment may have been a success, but there is still a lot of work to be done. (= Although it was a success, there is still ...)
MIGHT
Saying that something was possible, but did not actually happen

You saw me standing at the bus stop! You might have stopped and given me a lift!
SHOULD
Giving advice

I think you should go for the Alfa rather than the Audi.
You shouldn't be drinking if you're on antibiotics.
You shouldn't have ordered that chocolate dessert - you're not going to finish it.

Obligation: weak form of must

The university should provide more sports facilities.
The equipment should be inspected regularly.

Deduction

The letter should get to you tomorrow - I posted it first class.
Things which didn't or may/may not have happened

I should have renewed my TV licence last month, but I forgot.
You shouldn't have spent so much time on that first question.

unit 7:past perfect

         unit 7:past perfect 
had  mark visited to his mom ?

conversation:trips 

A: You were in Level 7 last semester, weren't you?

B: Yes, but I had never studied English how  in a 

language  before.

A: Sylvia has lived in San Francisco for several years, 

hasn't she?

B: Yes, she has. But there are a lot of places.did  she 

visit  to some famous  place 

A: She visited Mission Dolores last week, didn't she?

B: Yes, she did. And she had never visited Mission 

Dolores before. 

past perfect

Past perfect is a tense that shows that an event happened prior to

 another event.

(noun)

An example of past perfect is saying that you drove once when 

you were twelve years old, but didn't get your license until you were sixteen.

The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action in the past. It can also show that something happened before a specific time in the past.

the  past perfect is similar to the present perfect, but it is used 
differently.
STRUCTURE
To form the past perfect, use this structure:

Subject        +        Had              +            Past Participle

Here are some examples:

• I had tried sushi before I went to Japan.
  
• I had done my homework already.
  

The past perfect always uses "had", which is the verb "have" 
in the past.  It is common to use a contraction with "had":

For negative sentences in the past perfect tense, we insert not between the auxiliary verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary verb. Look at these example sentences with the past perfect tense:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
-	I	had	not	finished	my work.
-	You	had	not	stopped	before me.
-	he	had	not	gone	to school.
-	she	had	not	left.
-	we	had	not	arrived
-	they	had	not	eaten	dinner

interrogative form 

auxiliar had +subject+verb in past participle +complement +sign 

Interrogative
Had	they	arrived?
Interrogative negative
Hadn't	you	finished?

USES
Actions in the past that happen before another action.  The 
1st action is in past perfect and the second action is in
simple past.   

Take a look at this situation and how past perfect is used:

7:00        I ate dinner.
9:00        She invited me to a restaurant.

• She invited me to a restaurant but I had eaten dinner.
  

Here are some examples of the past perfect:

• I had never been to his house before I went to his party.
  
• I arrived at the station at 9:00 am, but the train had left.
  
• I had not met his girlfriend before.
  
• He had not studied English before he came to Canada.
  

print exercise 

Exercise on Past Perfect 

Negative Sentences in Past Perfect 

Write the verbs in Past Perfect Simple. Use the negative 

form.

1. In the shopping centre, I met a friend who I (see / not)  for ages.
2. The thief could walk right into the house because you (lock / not)  the door.
3. We lost the match because we (practise / not)  the days before.
4. At school, Jim quickly copied the homework that he (do / not) .
5. We ate at a restaurant last night because I (buy / not)  anything for dinner.
6. When we came back, it was cold in the house because Alice (close / not)  the windows.
7. All day long, Phil was angry with me just because I (greet
8.  / not)  him first.
9. When I met Jane at eleven o’clock, she (have / not)  breakfast yet.
10. I couldn’t go to the cinema with my friends last night because I (finish / not)  my homework yet.
11. Fred answered my question although I (ask / not)  him.