Mastering Passive Voice Exercises on Discoveries

Mastering Passive Voice Exercises Related to Discoveries

Passive voice is a grammatical construction that shifts the focus from the subject performing an action to the object receiving the action. This emphasis makes passive voice particularly useful when discussing discoveries, where the focus is often on the entity that was discovered rather than the person or entity doing the discovering.

Forming Passive Sentences

To form a passive sentence, you'll follow this structure:

Subject + BE + Past Participle (by Actor)

For example, "The structure of DNA was discovered (by Watson and Crick)," becomes "DNA's structure was discovered (by Watson and Crick)."

Exercises for Passive Voice Practice

Intermediate Exercises

Distinguish between active and passive sentences by identifying which one is structurally passive:

1. I have never been to Wichita.
2. I have never been arrested.
3. The tower was built in 1802 by a French Artist.
4. Nothing happened.
5. No one was injured by the fire.
6. The award was given to the top student.
7. We decided not to hire anyone.
8. The pizza was delicious.
9. The pizza was ordered.
10. I was made sick by the pizza.

Advanced Exercises

1. Change active sentences to passive form for present simple and past simple:

   "Someone had broken the window by 3:00 p.m." becomes "The window had been broken by 3:00 p.m."

2. Distinguish between active and passive voice structures:

   "The company was shut down by the police." "We had been given the wrong tickets." "She wishes she had been there." "He might not have been paying attention." "He should not have been asked to pay."

Additional Exercises

1. Form passive sentences for present simple and past simple:

   "I didn't fix the problem." becomes "The problem wasn't fixed (by me)."

2. Write passive sentences in the Simple Present:

   "The documents print." becomes "Documents are printed." "The window open." becomes "The window is opened."

Passive Voice and Discoveries

Passive voice is particularly useful for discussing discoveries because it helps to:

1. Emphasize the discovery itself, rather than the person making the discovery.
2. Focus on the impact or effect of the discovery, rather than the process of making the discovery.
3. Highlight the evolution of knowledge, rather than the actions of individuals.

By practicing passive voice exercises, you'll strengthen your ability to write and communicate effectively about discoveries, whether you're writing a research paper, journal article, or popular science article.