Adults|Grammar|Intermediate|27. Passive 3

Read the rules

I don’t like being…

The passive of doing/seeing etc. is being done / being seen etc. Compare:

active: I don’t like people telling me what to do.

passive: I don’t like being told what to do.

1. I remember being taken to the zoo when I was a child.

(= I remember somebody taking me to the zoo)

2. Steve hates being kept waiting. (= he hates people keeping him waiting)

3. We managed to climb over the wall without being seen. (= without anybody seeing us)

Read the rules

I was born…

We say «I was born…» (not I am born):

1. I was born in Chicago. (past)

2. Where were you born? (not Where are you born?) (past)

but

How many babies are born every day? (present)

Read the rules

You can use get instead of be in the passive:

1. There was a fight at the party, but nobody got hurt. (= nobody was hurt)

2. I don’t often get invited to parties. (= I’m not often invited)

3. I’m surprised Liz didn’t get offered the job. (= Liz wasn’t offered the job)

You can use get only when things happen. For example, you cannot use get in the following sentences:

1. Jill is liked by everybody. (not gets liked — this is not a «happening»)

2. He was a mystery man. Very little was known about him. (not got known)

We use get mainly in informal spoken English. You can use be in all situations.

We also use get in the following expressions (which are not passive in meaning):

• get married, get divorced
• get lost (= not know where you are)
• get dressed (= put on your clothes)
• get changed (= change your clothes)

Write these sentences in another way, beginning in the way shown

Complete the sentences using being + the following verbs (in the correct form):

Use the construction ‘be born’ and complete the gaps with it in the Past Simple

Complete the sentences using get/got + the following verbs (in the correct form):

If you open the lesson plan you will be able to assign separate pages as homework or all the homework pages at once.