Grammar passive voice Continuous Tenses

The Present Continuous and the Past Continuous Passive are formed by means of the Present Continuous and the Past Continuous of the auxiliary verb to be and Participle II of the notional verb.

The Present and Past Continuous in the Passive Voice as well as in the Active Voice express an action going on at the present moment or at a definite moment in the past.

Present Continuous Passive	Past Continuous Passive
am being is being + Ved(3) are being	was being + Ved(3) were being
+
Where are the letters? They are being written at the moment.	I entered the room and saw that the letter was being written.
-
The article is not being translated.	When I telephoned she told me that the article was not being translated.
?
Are the magazines being looked through?	Were the magazines being looked through when the mail arrived?

! The Future Continuous, the Present Perfect Continuous, the Past Perfect Continuous and the Future Perfect Continuous are not found in the Passive Voice.

Exercises

1 .Translate into Ukrainian.

A:1.The gates are being painted. 2.The car is being polished. 3.My TV is being repaired. 4.His suit is being dry-cleaned. 5.The gates aren’t being mended. They are being painted. 6.They are being introduced to Mr. Brown. 7.Is the fence being painted? 8.Are you being worried by that man? 9.Is your house being built yet? 10.Why isn’t your radio being repaired?

B:1.The big bridge across the Seim was being built when I came to my native town. 2.When I arrived home last night, the dinner was not being cooked. 3.While I was being introduced to Mary, the telephone rang. 4.Was John being introduced to Mr. Brown when you saw him? 5.The meeting was being held from 6 till 8 o’clock last Monday. 6.The exhibition was being prepared by our firm the whole month. 7.Those goods were being exported to all European countries during the whole summer. 8.Was the new school still being built when you visited your native village?

2. Supply the missing part of the analytical form of the verb in the Passive Voice.

1.He could not do a thing when he knew he ______ being watched. 2.Close the door please, little Jane ______ being washed. 3.The boys watched how the car was _____ cleaned. 4.His speech is ______ translated for the foreign guests. 5.When I came back home a new school ____ being built.

3.Make the following sentences interrogative and negative.

1.The office is being cleaned at the moment. 2.The shirts were being ironed when the actors came. 3.The roof is being repaired. 4.The trees are being cut down. 5.Ben was being invited to the party by Jane when I came to them.

4. Complete the following sentences using the Past Continuous Tense.

M O D E L: When I came to this town three years ago, this bridge across the Volga was still being built.

1.I haven’t been to the show but I was present when the best photos (choose). 2.When I left the Institute I didn’t know yet the marks the students had got because their papers (look through). 3.When I was a worker at this factory this work still (do) by hand. 4.Just this very question (discuss) when I joined in the conversation. 5.He entered the hall in the dark and didn’t understand at first what film (show). 6.She had the feeling that she (watch).

5. Choose the right form of the verb to make the sentences complete.

1. 1.Such long bridges seldom (are built/are being built). 2.Excuse the mess. The house (is painted/is being painted). 3.I can’t give you the articles now. They (are translated/are being translated). 4.Room 47 is not ready yet. It (is cleaned/is being cleaned). 5.Such books (are not translated/are not being translated) easily. 6.At the moment a new road (is built/is being built) round the city. 7.We are expecting guests. Tables (are laid/are being laid).

2. 1.John said they couldn’t take photos. The camera (was repaired/was being repaired). 2.When they arrived home the walls of the dining room (were painted/were being painted). 3.We couldn’t get inside. The floors (were washed/were being washed). 4.Computer games (were not played/were not being played) when I was your age. 5.When Mr.Brown phoned, the article still (was translated/was being translated). 6.When I lived in Germany, newspapers (were brought/were being brought) to us early in the morning. 7.I entered the hotel at 8. Everybody was busy. Rooms (were prepared/were being prepared) for the arriving guests.

6. Use the verbs in bold type in the Passive Voice. Make all necessary changes.

1.They are making a lot of experiments in their laboratory now. 2.He was sure that somebody was following him. 3.Everybody is still laughing at his jokes. 4.We couldn’t give him the daily program, we were still working it out. 5.Are they still painting tea cups by hand? 6.What are they selling in this little shop? 7.What happened? Why was a crowd of people pushing the car? 8.She felt they were looking at her.

7.Use the words in brackets in Indefinite or Continuous Passive to complete the sentences.

1.I can’t use my office at the moment. It is being painted (paint).

2.We didn’t go to the party. We _______ (not/invite).

3.The washing machine ______ (repair) yesterday afternoon.

4.A factory is a place where things ______ (make).

5.A: ______ (the computer / use) at the moment?

B: Yes, Jim is using it.

6.How old are these houses? When _____ (they/build) ?

8.Translate into English.

1.Коли я приїхав до цього міста, цей театр будувався. 2.Це питання зараз обговорюється на зборах. 3.Його слухали з такою цікавістю, що ніхто не помітив, як я увійшов до кімнати. 4.Що будується на тому боці річки? 5.Я довго не міг зрозуміти, чому над ним сміялися. 6.У нього було таке відчуття, ніби за ним хтось іде. 7.Що пояснювали групі, коли ви до них приєдналися? 8.Не заходьте без запрошення, в залі обговорюють дуже важливе питання. 9.–Що там так обговорюють? – Здається, вчорашній фільм. 10.Завтра об одинадцятій годині будуть виконувати вашу улюблену пісню. 11.-Коли було видано цю книжку? – Її було видано в минулому місяці. Вона широко обговорюється зараз у пресі. 12.Листи відправлялися поштою учора в цей час.