Transcript Language Information

English VI
Unit 2
Emphasizing objects
Language Information
PASSIVE VOICE

Passive voice is used in English to focus the
attention on the action.
For example:
The telephone was invented in 1876.
Note that we are not mentioning who invented the
telephone but the action itself.
Form of passive voice
+ a form of vb. to be + past participle
Example: A letter was written.
A form of verb be is used in passive statements. It’s singular
or plural to agree with the subject, and it also tells the tense of
the passive construction.

Check this table to make clear the differences between active
voice and passive voice.
ActiveVoice
Voice
Active
Alexander Graham Bell invented the
telephone.
Passive Voice
The telephone was invented by Alexander
Graham Bell.
To rewrite active voice sentences take into account these:
1. The object of the active sentence becomes the subject
of the passive sentence.
2. The subject of the active sentence becomes the object
of the passive sentence (or is dropped).
Active
SUBJECT
VERB
DIRECT
OBJECT
Millions of people use the Internet everyday.
Passive
AGENT
The Internet is used by millions of people every day.
Passive with by + agent
The agent of the a verb is the person, people or thing which
performs the action. If it is necessary to mention it, use the
preposition by.
For example:
The paper was invented by the Chinese.
FOR DESCRIBING OBJECTS:
When we describe objects, we usually use the following expressions:
Describing what something is used for
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It’s something you use to …
It’s a machine you use to …
It’s an object you use to...
It’s a type of ( paper ) you use to …
It’s a type of (device) you use to…
It’s a thing for …
It’s stuff for …
Describing what something looks
like




It’s a type of …
They are made of …
It looks like …
They have …
EXAMPLES:
Sewing machine: It’s something you use to sew your clothes or design new ones.
Refrigerator: It’s a machine you use to keep your food fresh.
Dustpan: It’s an object you use to pick up the garbage or the dust.
Mop: It’s a thing for cleaning the floor.
Stain remover: It’s stuff for getting marks off your clothes.
Antibacterial gel: It’s a type of liquid that we use to clean our hands from bacteria.
Screws: They are made of metal
Charger phone: It looks like a black box.
Drawing pins: They have a round end.
Look again the previous examples and analyze the grammar rule.
After “… use to… ” we use the verb in infinitive.
It is something we use at home to give light.
It is an object we use to clean the floor.
After “… use for …” we use the verb in gerund form.
It is a type of device that we use for sharpening a pencil’s writing point.
It is a tool that we use for opening bottles of wine.
ADJECTIVES:
Adjectives describe nouns. They have the same form in the singular and plural.
Examples:
Singular
A blue car
An intelligent woman
A metal corkscrew
A modern computer
Plural
two blue cars
some intelligent women
three metal corkscrews
some modern computers
ORDER OF ADJECTIVES:
Order of adjectives
When there are two or more fact adjectives in a statement, they usually go in the
following order:
Opinion: wonderful, interesting, boring, horrible, difficult, easy, etc.
Size: small, big, short, long, etc.
Weight: heavy, light, etc.
Shape: triangular, round, rectangular, square, oval, etc.
Color: yellow, blue, dark, pink, red, green, etc.
Origen: American, Chinese, Mexican, etc.
Material: cotton, metal, plastic, paper, wool, steel, cardboard, wood, tin, rubber,
glass, silk, canvas, nylon, velvet, leather, etc.
Examples:
Yesterday ,I bought an expensive, brown, leather suitcase.
My mother lent me a small, old, metal hammer.
Daniel gave me as a present a metal corkscrew.
REFERENCES
http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/passive
Patricia K. Werner (2007) Mosaic 1 Grammar McGraw-Hill
Sue Kay & Vaughan Jone (2000) Inside Out Intermediate Macmillan
Sue Kay & Vaughan Jone (2000) Inside Out Upper Intermediate Macmillan
Virginia Evans, Jenny Dooley, Enterprise Student’s book Grammar 2, Express Publishing, 2000. USA
Chris Redston and Gillie Cunningham, face2 face Intermediate Student’s book. Cambridge University
Press. 2006. United Kingdom
Jack C. Richards with Jonathan Hull and Susan Proctor. New interchange 2 ( 1997) Cambridge
Univeristy Press. United Kingdom
Consultada el día 16 de Julio del 2010
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/adjord.htm
Pictures taken from
Sewing machine:
http://ngfl.northumberland.gov.uk/dt/dtclip/textiles_alb/images/sewing%20machine%20col_JPG.jpg
Dustpan: http://www.bluestonegarden.com/images/P/p-16182.jpg
Pins: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_6Pck9l4hGE8/SBBZLdzOcqI/AAAAAAAAAZY/nGS7C_f568/s400/thumbtack.jpg
Mop: http://meltyourfaceoff.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/string_mop.jpg
Hammer: http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/hammer1.gif