2
LESSON
The passive voice
GRAMMAR
STUDY
Present and Simple Past Passive
A new tax
was added
to the bill.
Customer service calls
are
often
answered
by people
in other countries.
We
weren’t informed
about the changes to our account.
Were
you
told
about the new services?
When
was
the cable
installed
?
PRACTICE
A
Circle the correct verb forms.
1.
The cable company
sent / was sent
a bill to Diana.
2.
Diana
charged / was charged
more than she expected.
3.
Her phone call
answered / was answered
by a man named Raymond.
4.
Diana
asked / was asked
Raymond about the charges on her bill.
5.
Raymond
gave / was given
Diana an explanation of the charges.
6.
Diana’s amount due
adjusted / was adjusted
.
7.
The cable company
didn’t send / wasn’t sent
a new bill.
B
Complete the paragraph with the verbs. Use the active or passive simple past.
A few years ago, Raymond thought phone calls to a cable company
1. answer
by a cable company employee. Then he got the job at the call
center and
2. discover
that wasn’t true. Raymond
3. not employ
by the cable company at all. He
4. hire
by a call center company.
The call center
5. train
Raymond to answer calls for High-Speed Cable
Company. Other employees
6. teach
how to answer calls for different cable or telephone
companies. A lot of people
7. send
to
work in other countries, but Raymond works in the U.S.
PAIRS
Write 6 complaints about a bill. Use the present and simple past passive.
Share your sentences with a partner. Discuss whether you have the same problems
and what to do about them.
I’m charged a lot if I use my cell phone for too many minutes.
were answered
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
●
Use the passive to emphasize
something that happened
(or happens) rather than the
person or thing (the
agent
)
that caused it to happen.
●
Use
by
with the passive to
identify the agent.
Grammar Note
UNIT 6
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