5.3 Passive Voice, Causative Structures & Reported Speech

5.3 Passive Voice, Causative Structures & Reported Speech

Quick Answer: Passive voice, causatives, and reported speech form the syntactic core of Part 4. Examiners design items specifically to exploit three common candidate weaknesses: (1) Impersonal reporting passives, which require choosing between It is said that... and Subject + is said + to-infinitive (using to have done for prior actions); (2) The emergence of to in passive causatives, where active make someone do converts to passive be made TO do; and (3) Specialized reporting verbs, which eliminate said that in favor of precise prepositional and gerund frames like deny + -ing, congratulate + on + -ing, or blame + for + -ing.

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Advanced Passive Voice Transformations

At CEFR Level B2, passive transformations rarely involve simple agent demotions (The chef cooked the meal -> The meal was cooked by the chef). Instead, Cambridge items evaluate complex verb structures incorporating modal auxiliaries, multi-word prepositional verbs, and impersonal reporting frames.

1. Passive Voice with Modal Verbs

When transforming active sentences containing modal auxiliaries (must, should, can, ought to, may, might), the modal verb remains unchanged while the lexical verb converts into a passive infinitive:

• Present Modal Passive (modal + be + past participle):
  • Lead-in: All candidates must submit their application forms before midday on Friday. (BE)
  • Transformation: All application forms must be submitted before | midday on Friday.
  • Marking Split: must be submitted before [Mark 1] | midday [Mark 2].
• Past Modal Passive (modal + have been + past participle):
  • Lead-in: The management should have informed the employees about the restructuring earlier. (BEEN)
  • Transformation: The employees should have been informed | about the restructuring earlier.
  • Marking Split: should have been informed [Mark 1] | about [Mark 2].

2. Prepositional and Phrasal Verbs in the Passive

A frequent source of lost marks in Part 4 is the accidental omission of the dependent preposition or adverbial particle when converting a phrasal verb into the passive voice:

• Lead-in: The organizers decided to call off the outdoor festival due to torrential rain. (CALLED)
• Transformation: The outdoor festival was called off by | the organizers due to torrential rain.
• Lead-in: Everyone in the department looked up to Dr. Harrison. (LOOKED)
• Transformation: Dr. Harrison was looked up to | by everyone in the department.
• Examiner Trap: Candidates often believe a sentence cannot naturally end with a stranded preposition such as to or off and mistakenly delete it. In English, prepositional verbs cannot function in the passive without their governing particles.

3. Impersonal Reporting Passives: The Two Distinct Formats

When reporting rumors, widespread beliefs, or claims made by unspecified groups (People say..., Scientists believe..., Witnesses reported...), English uses two distinct formal passive constructions:

Pattern A: Anticipatory It + Passive Reporting Verb + that-clause

$\mathbf{It} + \text{Passive Verb (is thought / was reported)} + \mathbf{that} + \text{Clause}$

• Lead-in: People believe that the medieval castle was destroyed by an earthquake. (BELIEVED)
• Transformation: It is believed that the | medieval castle was destroyed by an earthquake.

Pattern B: Subject + Passive Reporting Verb + to-infinitive

$\text{Subject} + \text{Passive Verb} + \mathbf{to\text{-}infinitive}$ In Pattern B, the form of the infinitive depends strictly on the time relationship between the reporting verb and the reported event:

1. Simultaneous Action / Present State (Simple Infinitive: to + verb):
   • Lead-in: People say that the tech billionaire lives in an underground bunker. (SAID)
   • Transformation: The tech billionaire is said to live | in an underground bunker.
2. Ongoing Action (Continuous Infinitive: to be + -ing):
   • Lead-in: Journalists report that the prime minister is negotiating a new trade deal. (REPORTED)
   • Transformation: The prime minister is reported to be negotiating | a new trade deal.
3. Prior / Anterior Action (Perfect Infinitive: to have + past participle):
   • Lead-in: Police believe that the jewelry thief escaped through a ventilation shaft. (THOUGHT)
   • Target Sentence: The jewelry thief ____________________________________ through a ventilation shaft.
   • Analysis: The reporting verb is in the present (believe -> is thought), but the escape occurred in the past (escaped). Therefore, the sentence requires a perfect infinitive (to have escaped).
   • Transformation: The jewelry thief is thought to have escaped | through a ventilation shaft.
   • Marking Split: is thought to have escaped [Mark 1] | through [Mark 2].
   • Examiner Trap: Writing *is thought to escape* uses a simple infinitive, implying an ongoing or future action, which forfeits Mark 1.
4. Prior Passive Action (Passive Perfect Infinitive: to have been + past participle):
   • Lead-in: Experts think that the lost painting was sold at an auction in 1985. (CONSIDERED)
   • Transformation: The lost painting is considered to have been | sold at an auction in 1985.

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Causative Constructions: Have/Get Something Done & Make/Let

Causative constructions describe situations where a subject arranges for another party to perform an action, or experiences an involuntary event (often a misfortune).

1. Have / Get Something Done

$\text{Subject} + \mathbf{have\ /\ get} + \text{Object} + \mathbf{Past\ Participle}$

• Arranged Professional Services:
  • Lead-in: A professional decorator painted our living room last week. (HAD)
  • Transformation: We had our living room painted | by a professional decorator last week.
• Involuntary Misfortunes:
  • Lead-in: Vandals smashed the shopkeeper's display window during the night. (HAD)
  • Transformation: The shopkeeper had his display window smashed | during the night.

2. Active vs. Passive Make: The Emergence of To

One of the most famous grammar traps in Cambridge B2 examinations is the structural change that occurs when the verb make moves from active to passive voice:

• Active Make governs a BARE infinitive (without to):

  • "The coach made the players run five miles."

• Passive Be Made REQUIRES a FULL to-infinitive (with to):

  • "The players were made TO run five miles by the coach."

• Lead-in: The flight attendant made everyone turn off their electronic devices. (MADE)

• Target Sentence: Everyone ____________________________________ off their electronic devices by the flight attendant.

• Transformation: Everyone was made to turn | off their electronic devices by the flight attendant.

• Marking Split: was made [Mark 1] | to turn [Mark 2].

• Examiner Trap: Candidates regularly write *was made turn*, carrying over the bare infinitive from the active sentence. This loses Mark 2 immediately.

3. Let vs. Be Allowed To

The verb let cannot be used in the passive in standard English. When transforming a sentence where someone is given or denied permission, let converts to be allowed to:

• Lead-in: The security guards did not let us enter the VIP lounge. (ALLOWED)
• Transformation: We were not allowed to enter | the VIP lounge.

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Reported Speech and Advanced Reporting Verbs

In Part 4, direct speech is rarely converted using mundane reporting verbs like said that or told someone that. Instead, Cambridge tests specialized reporting verbs that synthesize the function of the utterance into concise syntactic patterns.

Taxonomy of Specialized Reporting Verbs

Deictic and Temporal Backshifting

When direct speech is transformed into reported speech governed by a past-tense reporting verb, grammatical tenses and spatial/temporal markers backshift systematically:

• Present Simple -> Past Simple ("I live here" -> lived there)
• Present Continuous -> Past Continuous ("I am working" -> was working)
• Past Simple / Present Perfect -> Past Perfect ("I bought this car" -> had bought that car)
• Will / Can / May -> Would / Could / Might
• Yesterday -> the day before / the previous day
• Tomorrow -> the following day / the next day
• Here / This / These -> There / That / Those

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Worked Transformation Drills

Drill 1: Impersonal Passive with Anterior Perfect Infinitive

• Lead-in: Historians believe that the ancient Egyptians built this monument over four thousand years ago.
• Key Word: THOUGHT
• Target Sentence: This monument ____________________________________ by the ancient Egyptians over four thousand years ago.
• Analysis: Subject is This monument. Reporting verb is present (believe -> is thought). The reported action is in the past passive (was built -> to have been built).
• Drafting: is thought to have been built (6 words? Count: is [1] thought [2] to [3] have [4] been [5] built [6] -> 6 words! Exceeds word limit!).
• Refining: Look at the target sentence: This monument ____________________________________ by the ancient Egyptians... The word built is NOT printed. But wait: if the prompt has built in the gap, 6 words is too long! Let's examine: can we use is thought to have been? The printed text after the gap can include built!
• Let's format the prompt cleanly:
• Lead-in: Historians believe that the ancient Egyptians built this monument over four thousand years ago.
• Key Word: THOUGHT
• Target Sentence: This monument ____________________________________ built by the ancient Egyptians over four thousand years ago.
• Drafting: is thought to have been (5 words: is [1] thought [2] to [3] have [4] been [5]).
• Marking Split: is thought | to have been [1 mark | 1 mark].
• Result: Exactly 5 words. Full 2 marks.

Drill 2: Prepositional Reporting Verb

• Lead-in: "It was your fault that we lost the contract!" said the director to Martin.
• Key Word: BLAMED
• Target Sentence: The director ____________________________________ the contract.
• Analysis: Blame requires blame + object + for + -ing.
• Drafting: blamed Martin for losing (4 words)
• Marking Split: blamed Martin | for losing [1 mark | 1 mark].
• Result: 4 words. Full 2 marks.