GUIDE ENGLISH GRAMMAR BOOK

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110 Passive + to-infinitive or active participle
NOTE
We can use the pattern with the subject there.
There is considered to be little chance of the plan succeeding.
3 It + passive verb + to-infinitive
Active:
Passive:
The committee agreed to support the idea.
It was agreed to support the idea.
We can use this pattern only with the verbs agree, decide and propose.
4 The agent with verbs of reporting
We can express the agent in all three patterns.
It was reported by the BBC that the army was crossing the frontier.
The theory has been shown by scientists to be correct.
It was agreed by the committee to support the idea.
110 Passive + to-infinitive or active participle
Some patterns with a verb + object + infinitive/active participle have a passive
equivalent.
1 Infinitive
a Active: Police advise drivers to use an alternative route.
Passive: Drivers are advised to use an alternative route.
We can use this passive pattern with verbs like tell, ask, persuade, warn, advise,
• 122(2a); and verbs like force, allow, • 122(2b).
NOTE
We can also use a finite clause after the passive verb.
Drivers are advised that an alternative route should be used.
b Active: The terrorists made the hostages lie down.
Passive: The hostages were made to lie down.
In the passive pattern we always use a to-infinitive (to lie) even if in the active there
is a bare infinitive (lie). This happens after make and after verbs of perception such
as see.
NOTE
We do not often use let in the passive. We use be allowed to instead.
The hostages were allowed to talk to each other.
2 Active participle
Active: The detective saw the woman putting the jewellery in her bag.
Passive: The woman was seen putting the jewellery in her bag.
Active: The officials kept us waiting for half an hour.
Passive: We were kept waiting for half an hour.
In this pattern we can use verbs of perception (see) and catch, find, keep, leave,
lose, spend, and waste.