In this series, you will have the chance to practise these structures so that you will feel more confident using them on test day. Today, we will look at the passive voice. When you're ready, open a Word document (or grab a pen and paper) to complete the exercises, and make sure you go through the tasks in order. When you’ve finished, you can scroll down to the answer key section at the bottom of the page to check your answers.
Task 1
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences.
1. All the music in those albums _______________ by famous artists.
a. was composed and produced
b. were composed and produced
2. Someone _______________ my passport and gave it to the security guard.
a. was found
b. had found
3. A lot of people _______________ since the start of the outbreak.
a. are fired
b. have been fired
4. My classmates and I believe that a lot of time _______________ on reviewing the same vocabulary over and over.
a. is wasted
b. has wasted
5. They said the book _______________ by the end of the year.
a. has been published
b. will be published
Task 2
Complete the sentences with the passive form of the verbs in brackets. Use contractions where possible.
1. I don't have my phone on me at the moment. It _______________ (repair).
2. The article seemed outdated. I’m not sure when _______________ (it/write).
3. I went in for an interview last week, but I _______________ (not contact) yet.
4. To our surprise, his car wasn’t in the parking lot. It _______________ (steal).
5. English _______________ (not teach) at the school I went to as a child.
Task 3
Improve the following paragraph by changing sentences into the passive voice where appropriate.
The diagram illustrates the way in which people produce olive oil. Initially, farmers harvest the olives from trees and take them to a washing machine where they rinse the olives in cold water. A conveyor belt then transfers the olives to a grinding machine. During this stage, the grinding machine removes the olive stones so that it can safely ground the olives into a paste.’
Note that the passive structure is used more often in writing. In IELTS, you will probably use the passive voice more often in Writing Task 1, especially if you are asked to describe a process. If you think you need more practice in this area, search for processes online and write short descriptions of these using the passive.
Task 1 Answer Key
1. a - All the music in those albums was composed and produced by famous artists.
2. b - Someone had found my passport and gave it to the security guard.
3. b - A lot of people have been fired since the start of the outbreak.
4. a - My classmates and I believe that a lot of time is wasted on reviewing the same vocabulary over and over.
5. b - They said the book will be published by the end of the year.
Task 2 Answer Key
1. I don’t have my phone on me at the moment. It is being/getting repaired.
2. The article seemed outdated. I’m not sure when it was written.
3. I went in for an interview last week, but I haven’t been contacted yet.
4. To our surprise, his car wasn’t in the parking lot. It had been stolen.
5. English wasn’t taught at the school I went to as a child.
Task 3 Answer Key
The diagram illustrates the way in which olive oil is produced. Initially, the olives are harvested from trees by farmers and taken to a washing machine where they are rinsed in cold water. The olives are then transferred to a grinding machine via a conveyor belt. During this stage, the olive stones are removed so that the olives can be safely ground into a paste.
Note that this paragraph is an example answer and is intended as a guide only. There are other variations of the same paragraph.
We wish you all the best with your IELTS test!