Active & Passive Voice — Set 14

Correct Answer: C. There is no passive here; 'surprised' is used as an adjective

In 'He was surprised to find her there', 'surprised' functions as a predicate adjective (describing his emotional state), not as a passive verb. This is a subject-linking verb-adjective construction. The true passive would be 'He was surprised by the news' where 'by' introduces the agent — but 'to find' makes it adjectival.

Correct Answer: A. Glasses are worn by her.

Simple Present Passive = is/am/are + past participle. 'Wears' → 'are worn'. 'Glasses' (plural) → 'are'. The passive is grammatically correct but semantically unusual. 'Wear' past participle is 'worn'. This tests the rule even for state-expressing simple verbs in present tense.

Correct Answer: B. The car was being washed by him when she arrived.

Past Continuous Passive = was/were + being + past participle. 'Was washing' → 'was being washed'. The subordinate clause 'when she arrived' (Simple Past) is unchanged. 'He' → 'by him'. The continuous action in progress is captured by 'was being washed'.

Correct Answer: A. It is time for the house to be cleaned.

With 'It is time + to-infinitive', passive changes to 'It is time + for + object + to be + past participle'. 'It is time to clean the house' → 'It is time for the house to be cleaned.' The infinitive passive 'to be cleaned' correctly replaces 'to clean the house'.

Correct Answer: B. He was seen to enter the building by them.

Perception verb 'see' + bare infinitive (enter) in active → passive uses 'to-infinitive'. 'Saw him enter' → 'He was seen to enter.' Simple Past passive = was seen. 'To enter' replaces bare 'enter'. Compare: 'saw him entering' → 'was seen entering' (with -ing form preserved).

Correct Answer: C. He is known of everyone.

'He is known of everyone' is INCORRECT. With 'know' in passive, the correct preposition is 'to', not 'of'. Correct form: 'He is known to everyone.' Option A is correct (Simple Past Passive), B is correct (agent omitted), D is correct (Present Perfect Passive). 'Known of' is not standard English.

Correct Answer: B. All of us were shocked by the news.

Simple Past Passive: 'shocked' → 'were shocked'. 'All of us' takes 'were' (plural — us is plural). The subject 'news' becomes the agent 'by the news'. 'Us' → 'All of us' (retained). Emotion verbs (shock, surprise) take 'by' with the stimulus as agent.

Correct Answer: B. The concept will have been explained by the professor by then.

Future Perfect Passive = will + have + been + past participle. 'Will have explained' → 'will have been explained'. 'By then' (time reference) is retained. 'The professor' → 'by the professor'. Future Perfect indicates completion before a specified future time.

Correct Answer: A. The house had been broken into before we returned.

Phrasal verb 'break into' must stay intact in passive — preposition 'into' is not separated. Past Perfect Passive = had + been + past participle. 'Had broken into' → 'had been broken into'. 'Someone' (unknown agent) → omitted. Clause 'before we returned' is retained.

Correct Answer: B. This sentence cannot be converted to passive.

This sentence CANNOT be converted to passive because 'dance' used intransitively has no object. Passive voice requires a transitive verb with a direct object to act as the new subject. In this sentence, both 'sings' and 'dances' are used intransitively (no objects). Sentences with intransitive verbs do not have passive forms.