Page 136 - New Grammar with a Smile 8

C. Rewrite the following passages in the passive voice.

1. Someone broke into the Central Museum last night. The thieves had broken
the alarm system before they climbed through a window. They stole some
priceless works of art. They used a red convertible to escape. The police have
rounded up and questioned some suspects. They haven’t been able to catch the
thieves yet.

2. Yesterday morning, a volcanic eruption destroyed an entire city. Mount
Phelps, which experts had thought was dormant, erupted at 9:50 a.m. Tourists
had seen smoke rising from the mouth of the volcano three days before. The
police evacuated the city for the safety of its inhabitants. Tons of lava and rock
emerged from the volcano and wrecked trees, houses and roads. Although the
blast injured only a few, many are being treated for shock in the hospitals in the
nearby towns. The authorities are keeping the area around the mountain clear
in case there are any more eruptions.

The passive voice is used—

1. when we want to focus attention on the person or thing affected by the action.
Normally, the performer of the action, or the agent, comes first and is made the
subject of the verb and then we use the active form of the verb. The other person
or thing is made the object of the verb. For example,

• Sheila invited her to the party.
• The binding company on High Road employs one hundred people.

However, if you want to focus on the person or thing affected by the action, you
make the person or thing the subject of the sentence and use the passive voice.
For example,
• She was invited to the party by Sheila.

• One hundred people are employed by the binding company on High Road’.

2. when narrating an incident or event. For example,
• Many people were knocked down by the cyclone Phailin and were taken to
hospital, where they were declared dead.

3. when describing a social or historical incident. For example,
• Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated on the 30th of January, 1948.

4. for making requests and invitations. For example,
• You are requested not to pluck the flowers.

5. for making announcements. For example,
• The Rajdhani Express to Delhi will be delayed due to fog.

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