Advanced Passive – English Grammar Exercises for B2
You are a senior financial advisor consulting a wealthy client. The client wants to buy land in a booming suburban area based on some market rumors. Your job is to present these forecasts and rumors to guide their investment strategy, while carefully using passive structures so you are not held legally liable if the rumors turn out to be false!
Choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence in the consultation.
1 Let’s discuss the new infrastructure plan. ______ that the city council will approve the new highway project next month.
(A) They are rumored
(B) It rumors
(C) It is rumored
(D) There is rumored
2 According to our internal market analysis, the eastern suburban area ______ to become the next major commercial hub in the next five years.
(A) is expected that
(B) is expected
(C) expects
(D) is expecting
3 Before making any massive deposit on that plot, you absolutely must ______ by an independent property lawyer.
(A) have the land title to check
(B) make the land title checked
(C) have checked the land title
(D) get the land title checked
4 You should avoid dealing with that specific real estate agency. The previous developers of this plot ______ to have gone bankrupt during the 2008 financial crisis.
(A) are known going
(B) are known that they went
(C) are known to have gone
(D) know to have gone
5 Last year, ______ that the international airport would be relocated to this district, which caused prices to artificially double.
(A) it was widely speculated
(B) was widely speculated
(C) it widely speculated
(D) there was widely speculated
6 If you decide to proceed with the purchase, we will ______ before signing the final contract to avoid any boundary disputes.
(A) get surveyed the boundaries
(B) have the boundaries surveyed
(C) get the boundaries to survey
(D) have surveyed the boundaries
7 You need to act fast. Right now, several foreign investment funds ______ to be buying up large residential plots in secret.
(A) are rumored to buy
(B) rumor to be buying
(C) are rumored buying
(D) are rumored to be buying
8 The current owner is asking for a premium price because he ______ by a renowned architect last month to increase the property’s market value.
(A) got the zoning blueprints redraw
(B) had redrawn the zoning blueprints
(C) got to redraw the zoning blueprints
(D) had the zoning blueprints redrawn
9 We can be fairly confident in this investment because ______ that a massive infrastructure budget has already been allocated for the eastern suburbs.
(A) it has been confirmed
(B) it has confirmed
(C) there has been confirmed
(D) has been confirmed
10 You should be extremely careful, as that specific industrial zone ______ to have been heavily polluted by the old textile factories.
(A) is alleged to have polluted
(B) is alleged to have been polluted
(C) is alleged that it was polluted
(D) alleges to have been polluted
11 You definitely shouldn’t buy this countryside estate until you ______ by a certified property appraiser.
(A) have assessed its true value
(B) make its true value assessed
(C) get its true value assessed
(D) have its true value assess
12 Based on the leaked urban planning documents, ______ to be a significant spike in suburban land prices next spring.
(A) there is projected
(B) it is projected
(C) there projects
(D) they are projected
13 Be cautious with this seller. The strict zoning laws in this neighborhood ______ to have been secretly revised by a corrupt planning committee.
(A) suspect to have been revised
(B) are suspected to have revised
(C) are suspected to have been revised
(D) are suspected that they were revised
14 A previous client of mine ignored the rumors, bought a cheap plot there, and unfortunately ______ by the city for a public park.
(A) got his land confiscate
(B) had confiscated his land
(C) got his land to confiscate
(D) had his land confiscated
15 Not only ______ to attract a new underground metro station, but the suburb is also getting a massive shopping mall.
(A) does the area expect
(B) is the area expected
(C) the area is expected
(D) is expected the area
16 If the previous buyer had done proper due diligence, he wouldn’t ______ by the fraudulent broker.
(A) have his deposit stolen
(B) have got stolen his deposit
(C) have had his deposit stolen
(D) had had his deposit stolen
17 The local real estate syndicate ______ to have been artificially inflating the property prices for the last three years.
(A) is believed that they have been inflating
(B) is believed to have inflated
(C) believes to have been inflating
(D) is believed to have been inflating
18 To protect your investment capital entirely, you will need ______ before the zoning laws officially change next month.
(A) having all the legal paperwork finalized
(B) to get all the legal paperwork finalized
(C) to have finalized all the legal paperwork
(D) to get all the legal paperwork finalize
19 The controversial high-rise luxury apartment project next door ______ by the mayor due to environmental concerns.
(A) is rumored to have been canceled
(B) rumors to have been canceled
(C) is rumored to have canceled
(D) is rumored that it was canceled
20 Despite ______ by a top-tier engineering firm, the soil quality report still completely missed the hidden underground water stream.
(A) getting the land to survey
(B) having surveyed the land
(C) to have the land surveyed
(D) having the land surveyed
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (C) It is rumored
- Why it’s correct: The impersonal passive structure It is + V3 + that… is used to introduce a rumor without specifying who said it.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (“They” cannot act as a dummy subject for a “that” clause). (B) Common Mistake (Active voice implies the pronoun “it” is spreading rumors). (D) Strong Distractor (“There is” cannot precede a “that” clause here).
2 (B) is expected
- Why it’s correct: Personal passive structure with the subject raised to the front: Subject + be expected + to V.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (You cannot use “that” once the subject “the eastern suburban area” has been moved to the beginning of the sentence). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice implies the area itself is actively expecting something). (D) Strong Distractor (Incorrect tense and voice).
3 (D) get the land title checked
- Why it’s correct: The causative passive get/have + object + V3/ed indicates hiring a professional (the lawyer) to do the work for you.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Unnecessary “to”). (B) Strong Distractor (“Make” is not used in this causative structure). (C) Common Mistake (Present Perfect Active implies the client checked the title themselves).
4 (C) are known to have gone
- Why it’s correct: The bankruptcy happened in the past (2008), prior to the present knowledge (“are known”). Therefore, the Perfect Infinitive (to have V3/ed) must be used.
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Incorrect gerund usage). (B) Structural Error (Cannot use a “that” clause after the subject is raised). (D) Common Mistake (Missing the passive auxiliary “are”).
5 (A) it was widely speculated
- Why it’s correct: The speculation happened in the past (“Last year”), so the impersonal reporting verb must be in the past tense: It was + V3 + that…
- Error Analysis: (B) Structural Error (Missing the dummy subject “it”). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice). (D) Strong Distractor (“There” is the wrong dummy subject for this “that” clause).
6 (B) have the boundaries surveyed
- Why it’s correct: Arranging for professionals to measure the land (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Incorrect word order). (C) Strong Distractor (Active meaning implies getting the boundaries to survey something else). (D) Common Mistake (Active voice means the advisor and client will manually survey the land).
7 (D) are rumored to be buying
- Why it’s correct: The phrase “Right now” indicates an ongoing action. Therefore, the Continuous Infinitive (to be V-ing) must follow the passive reporting verb.
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (“To buy” indicates a general or future action, failing to capture the “right now” context). (B) Common Mistake (Active voice). (C) Structural Error (Missing “to”).
8 (D) had the zoning blueprints redrawn
- Why it’s correct: The owner hired an architect to redo the blueprints (have sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (“Redraw” is not the V3 form; it must be “redrawn”). (B) Common Mistake (Past Perfect Active implies the owner redrew them himself). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect causative structure).
9 (A) it has been confirmed
- Why it’s correct: Impersonal passive in the present perfect tense (It has been V3 + that) is used to report recent, verified news.
- Error Analysis: (B) Common Mistake (Active voice). (C) Strong Distractor (“There” cannot be used with a “that” clause in this manner). (D) Structural Error (Missing the subject “It”).
10 (B) is alleged to have been polluted
- Why it’s correct: A complex passive structure: The allegation is present (is alleged), the pollution happened in the past (to have), and the industrial zone was the victim of the pollution (been polluted).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active perfect infinitive implies the industrial zone polluted something else). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect grammatical mix of a raised subject and a “that” clause). (D) Structural Error (Missing passive “is”).
11 (C) get its true value assessed
- Why it’s correct: Hiring an appraiser to evaluate the house (get sth V3/ed).
- Error Analysis: (A) Common Mistake (Active voice implies you will assess the value yourself). (B) Strong Distractor (“Make” is invalid here). (D) Structural Error (“Assess” lacks the -ed suffix).
12 (A) there is projected
- Why it’s correct: A variation of the impersonal passive indicating existence: There is projected to be… (Analysts project that there will be…).
- Error Analysis: (B) Strong Distractor (If using “It is projected”, it must be followed by “that there will be”). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice). (D) Structural Error (Invalid dummy subject).
13 (C) are suspected to have been revised
- Why it’s correct: The suspicion is current (are suspected), but the revision happened in the past (to have) and the laws received the action (been revised).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Missing “are”). (B) Common Mistake (Active voice implies the laws revised something else). (D) Strong Distractor (Grammatically flawed structure).
14 (D) had his land confiscated
- Why it’s correct: The causative passive have/get + object + V3/ed is used here to describe falling victim to a negative event or misfortune (the city taking the land).
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (“Confiscate” lacks the -d suffix). (B) Common Mistake (Past Perfect Active implies the client confiscated his own land). (C) Strong Distractor (Incorrect structure).
15 (B) is the area expected
- Why it’s correct: When starting a sentence with the negative adverbial phrase “Not only,” the subject and the passive auxiliary verb must be inverted.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Uses the active auxiliary “does” instead of the passive “is”). (C) Common Mistake (Fails to apply inversion). (D) Strong Distractor (Incorrect inversion syntax).
16 (C) have had his deposit stolen
- Why it’s correct: Nested inside a Third Conditional sentence (wouldn’t have + V3), the main verb “have” from the have sth done misfortune structure turns into “had”.
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Lacks the past perfect aspect required by the third conditional). (B) Structural Error (Incorrect word order). (D) Common Mistake (Incorrect grammatical structure following a modal verb like “wouldn’t”).
17 (D) is believed to have been inflating
- Why it’s correct: “For the last three years” requires the Perfect Continuous Infinitive (to have been V-ing) to show an ongoing past action that is still relevant to the present belief.
- Error Analysis: (A) Structural Error (Cannot use a “that” clause here). (B) Strong Distractor (Simple perfect doesn’t emphasize the ongoing duration of the inflation). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice).
18 (B) to get all the legal paperwork finalized
- Why it’s correct: The verb “need” is followed by an infinitive (“to get”), nesting the causative passive structure (get sth V3/ed) to indicate hiring a lawyer to finish the documents.
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Cannot use a gerund after “need” in this context). (C) Common Mistake (Active voice implies you will finalize them yourself). (D) Structural Error (“Finalize” lacks the -d suffix).
19 (A) is rumored to have been canceled
- Why it’s correct: The rumor is present (is rumored), the cancellation is past (to have), and the project is the passive receiver of the action (been canceled).
- Error Analysis: (B) Structural Error (Missing “is”). (C) Common Mistake (Active perfect implies the project canceled something else). (D) Strong Distractor (Incorrect grammatical mix).
20 (D) having the land surveyed
- Why it’s correct: The preposition “Despite” must be followed by a gerund (V-ing). Here, the causative passive structure (have sth V3/ed) is converted into a gerund (having sth done).
- Error Analysis: (A) Strong Distractor (Active meaning implies making the land survey something). (B) Common Mistake (Active perfect gerund implies the investor surveyed the land themselves). (C) Structural Error (“Despite” cannot be followed by an infinitive “to have”).
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 The “Consultant’s Shield”: Impersonal Passive
- Function: In business, finance, and real estate, you often need to share forecasts, rumors, or unverified data without taking legal responsibility for it. Instead of saying “I guarantee the price will rise,” you use the Impersonal Passive to distance yourself: “It is expected that the price will rise.”
- Structure 1 (The Dummy ‘It’): It + is/was + rumored/expected/speculated + that + Clause
- Example: It is rumored that a new mall will open.
- Structure 2 (The Raised Subject): Subject + be + rumored/expected + Infinitive
- Simultaneous/Future Action: Use to V. (The area is expected to boom).
- Current Ongoing Action: Use to be V-ing. (Funds are rumored to be buying land).
- Past Action: Use to have V3/ed. (The developer is known to have gone bankrupt).
- Past Passive Action: Use to have been V3/ed. (The laws are suspected to have been revised).
2 The Causative Passive: Services & Misfortunes
- Structure: Subject + have / get + Object + Past Participle (V3/ed)
- Usage 1 (Professional Services): To indicate that your client should hire a professional (lawyer, surveyor, appraiser) rather than doing it themselves.
- Example: You must have the land title checked (by a lawyer).
- Usage 2 (Misfortunes): To describe a negative event where the subject was the victim.
- Example: He had his land confiscated. (He didn’t do it; the government did it to him).