Advanced Passive – English Grammar Exercises for B2
The New Year is fast approaching! You and your spouse are sitting at the kitchen table, looking at a long to-do list and a tight budget to renovate your old house. To save time and avoid disaster, you need to clearly decide which tasks you will outsource to professionals using the budget, and which ones you will do yourselves.
Choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
1 We definitely don’t have the time to paint the exterior of the house ourselves, so we are going to ______ by professional painters next week.
(A) get painted the house
(B) make the house painted
(C) get the house painted
(D) get the house paint
2 The roof has been leaking since last autumn. Are we going to ______ before the heavy rains start?
(A) have it repaired
(B) have repaired it
(C) get it to repair
(D) have it repair
3 Look at this interior design blog! ______ that renovating the kitchen adds the highest resale value to a property.
(A) It says
(B) There is said
(C) They are said
(D) It is said
4 I am absolutely not scrubbing those dirty living room carpets by myself! I am going to ______ by a professional cleaning service.
(A) have them washed
(B) have washed them
(C) have them washing
(D) get them to wash
5 According to the real estate magazine we read, an open-plan living room ______ to make the entire space look twice as big.
(A) believes
(B) is believed
(C) is believing
(D) is believed that
6 We desperately need new curtains for the bedroom. Instead of buying ready-made ones, we are going to ______.
(A) get them custom-make
(B) have custom-made them
(C) have them custom-made
(D) get custom-made them
7 I read the inspection report. The old plumbing system ______ to have caused the severe mold issue in the basement.
(A) suspects
(B) is suspected having
(C) is suspected that it
(D) is suspected
8 Are you still going to ______ next month, or are we going to save money and keep the old bathroom tiles?
(A) have the bathroom floor retiled
(B) have retiled the bathroom floor
(C) get retiling the bathroom floor
(D) have the bathroom floor retiling
9 It’s far too dangerous to fix the electrical wiring ourselves. We are going to ______ by a licensed electrician.
(A) get it check
(B) make it checked
(C) get checked it
(D) get it checked
10 ______ to be a severe shortage of skilled carpenters right now, so we really should book one for the cabinets early.
(A) It is reported
(B) There is reported
(C) They are reported
(D) There reports
11 I just called the landscaping company. We are going to ______ before we host the New Year’s Eve party.
(A) have the garden redesign
(B) have the garden redesigned
(C) have redesigned the garden
(D) have the garden redesigning
12 To make sure it’s safe to use, we are going to ______ by an antique expert.
(A) have to evaluate the vintage chandelier
(B) have the vintage chandelier evaluate
(C) have the vintage chandelier evaluated
(D) get evaluated the vintage chandelier
13 Be careful when tearing down that wall! The previous owners ______ to have hidden a safe somewhere behind it.
(A) are rumored
(B) are rumored that they
(C) rumor
(D) are rumored having
14 Look at this ridiculous quote! To stay within our budget, we aren’t going to ______. We’ll just repaint the old ones.
(A) have replaced the kitchen cabinets
(B) get the kitchen cabinets replace
(C) get the kitchen cabinets replacing
(D) have the kitchen cabinets replaced
15 We can’t afford a massive overhaul right now. Our neighbor’s recent renovation ______ to have cost over fifty thousand dollars!
(A) is estimated
(B) estimates
(C) is estimating
(D) is estimated that it
16 If we truly want the house to be smart-home ready, we are going to ______ in every single room.
(A) have installed new sensors
(B) have new sensors to install
(C) have new sensors installed
(D) get new sensors to be installed
17 We can’t lift the heavy oak furniture ourselves to install the floor. We are going to ______ by the delivery guys tomorrow.
(A) have it to move
(B) get it moved
(C) have it moving
(D) get moved it
18 Not only ______ to significantly increase energy efficiency, but double-glazed windows will also block the annoying street noise.
(A) are they known
(B) they are known
(C) do they know
(D) are known they
19 Because the foundation of the house might be settling, we are definitely going to ______ by a qualified structural engineer.
(A) have assessed it
(B) make it assessed
(C) have it assessed
(D) get it assess
20 The old stone fireplace ______ to have been built in the 1920s, so we are going to have it carefully restored rather than destroying it.
(A) thinks
(B) was thought
(C) is thought that it
(D) is thought
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (C) get the house painted
- Why it’s correct: The causative passive structure get/have + object + V3/ed describes hiring professional painters. Combined with “are going to,” it forms a future plan to outsource the work.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Incorrect word order). (B) Strong Distractor (“make” is not used in this specific causative structure). (D) Common Mistake (“paint” lacks the -ed suffix).
2 (A) have it repaired
- Why it’s correct: The structure have sth V3/ed refers to hiring a roofer to fix the leak.
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Present Perfect Active implies you have already repaired it yourself). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect active meaning). (D) Structural Error (Missing the -ed suffix).
3 (D) It is said
- Why it’s correct: Impersonal passive expressing a general consensus or rule of thumb: It is + V3 + that…
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice; the pronoun “It” cannot physically speak). (B) Strong Distractor (“There” cannot act as a dummy subject for a “that” clause). (C) Structural Error (“They” cannot precede “that”).
4 (A) have them washed
- Why it’s correct: Deciding to hire a carpet cleaning service requires the have sth done structure.
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Active voice means washing them yourself). (C) Structural Error (Uses a gerund V-ing). (D) Strong Distractor (Active meaning implies forcing the carpets to wash something else).
5 (B) is believed
- Why it’s correct: Impersonal passive with a raised subject: Subject + be believed + to V.
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (The living room cannot actively “believe” something). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect continuous tense). (D) Structural Error (Unnecessary “that” when the subject has already been raised to the front).
6 (C) have them custom-made
- Why it’s correct: Using have sth V3/ed to order custom curtains from a tailor.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (“make” is not in the V3 form “made”). (B) Common Mistake (Active voice implies sewing them yourself). (D) Structural Error (Incorrect word order).
7 (D) is suspected
- Why it’s correct: The plumbing system “is suspected” of having caused the mold in the past (is suspected to have caused).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice). (B) Strong Distractor (Must use a To-Infinitive, not a gerund, after this passive structure). (C) Structural Error (Unnecessary “that it”).
8 (A) have the bathroom floor retiled
- Why it’s correct: Planning to hire a tiler to do the work (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Active voice means you will do the retiling yourself). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect use of V-ing). (D) Structural Error.
9 (D) get it checked
- Why it’s correct: Hiring a licensed electrician to inspect the wiring (get sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (“check” lacks the -ed suffix). (B) Strong Distractor (“make” is incorrect here). (C) Structural Error (Incorrect word order).
10 (B) There is reported
- Why it’s correct: A variation of the impersonal passive indicating existence: There is reported to be… (People report that there exists a shortage…).
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (If using “It is reported,” it must be followed by “that there is,” not directly by “to be”). (C) Structural Error (Wrong dummy subject). (D) Common Mistake (Active voice).
11 (B) have the garden redesigned
- Why it’s correct: Hiring a landscaping company (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Missing the -ed suffix on redesign). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice implies designing it yourself). (D) Strong Distractor (Uses V-ing).
12 (C) have the vintage chandelier evaluated
- Why it’s correct: Getting an expert to appraise the chandelier (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Active meaning implies forcing the chandelier to evaluate something). (B) Structural Error (Missing the -d suffix). (D) Common Mistake (Incorrect word order).
13 (A) are rumored
- Why it’s correct: The previous owners “are rumored” to have hidden a safe in the past (are rumored to have hidden).
- Error Analysis: (B) Structural Error (Cannot use “that they” after raising the subject). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice). (D) Strong Distractor (Must use a To-Infinitive instead of V-ing).
14 (D) have the kitchen cabinets replaced
- Why it’s correct: The negative form of the causative plan: We are NOT going to hire someone to replace the cabinets (aren’t going to have sth done).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice). (B) Structural Error (Missing the -d suffix). (C) Strong Distractor (Uses V-ing).
15 (A) is estimated
- Why it’s correct: The neighbor’s renovation “is estimated” to have cost fifty thousand dollars (is estimated to have cost).
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Active voice implies the renovation itself is doing the estimating). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect continuous tense). (D) Structural Error (Incorrect “that” clause structure).
16 (C) have new sensors installed
- Why it’s correct: The plan to hire technicians to install smart sensors (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice implies installing them manually). (B) Strong Distractor (Incorrect causative structure). (D) Structural Error (Unnecessary “to be”).
17 (B) get it moved
- Why it’s correct: Asking the delivery staff to move the heavy furniture (get sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Incorrect structure). (C) Structural Error (Uses V-ing). (D) Common Mistake (Incorrect word order).
18 (A) are they known
- Why it’s correct: Subject-verb inversion is required when “Not only” is placed at the beginning of the sentence -> The passive auxiliary “are” is placed before the subject “they”.
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Failing to invert the subject and verb). (C) Structural Error (Using the active auxiliary “do” instead of the passive “are”). (D) Strong Distractor (Incorrect inversion syntax).
19 (C) have it assessed
- Why it’s correct: Hiring a structural engineer to evaluate the foundation (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice implies assessing it yourself). (B) Strong Distractor (“make” is not used in this context). (D) Structural Error (Missing the -ed suffix).
20 (D) is thought
- Why it’s correct: A present belief (is thought) about an event that occurred in the 1920s (to have been built).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (The fireplace cannot actively “think”). (B) Strong Distractor (Using the past tense “was thought” is incorrect because the belief is held now). (C) Structural Error (Unnecessary “that it”).
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 Future Intention + Causative Passive (Planning to Outsource)
- Structure: Subject + am/is/are going to + have / get + Object (thing) + Past Participle (V3/ed)
- Usage: This structure is extremely common in daily conversation when planning a budget or preparing to hire a professional/service (e.g., home repairs, car maintenance, beauty services) in the future, rather than doing the task yourself to save time.
- Example: We are going to have the roof repaired (We plan to call a roofer).
2 Impersonal Passive (Reporting, Rumors, and Estimations)
- Usage: Used to make objective statements about a property’s value, history, or features based on expert opinions, magazines, or general neighborhood rumors.
- Structure 1 (Dummy Subject It / There): – It + is + V3 + that + Clause (It is said that…)
- There + is + V3 + to be… (There is reported to be a shortage…)
- Structure 2 (Raised Subject): Subject + be + V3 + To-Infinitive
- Simultaneous/Future action: Use to V (The room is believed to look bigger).
- Past action: Use to have V3/ed (The fireplace is thought to have been built in the 1920s).