Verbs with two objects

Verbs that have two objects (object + object or object + prepositional object) in active clauses can have two corresponding passive forms.

bring

buy

owe

read

tell

throw

grant

take

send

write

allow

offer

show

award

feed

give

teach

hand

pass

pay

promise

sell

post

lend

Active	Passive
She handed me the plate.	I was handed the plate.
She handed the plate to me.	The plate was handed to me.

Verbs that can’t be followed by object + object in the active have only one of these passive forms.

describe

Introduce

demonstrate

mention

suggest

explain

report

Active	Passive
He described the situation to me.	The situation was described to me.
H e described me the situation.	I was described the situation.

Exercise 1. Find another way to write the sentences.

e.g. I was shown their letters of appointment. – Their letters of appointment were shown to me.

1. I was sent full details of the job. 2. They were all presented with signed certificates. 3. A free sightseeing trip is offered to all passengers. 4. Drinks and snacks have been given to everyone in this group. 5. He was brought the news of their success yesterday evening.

Exercise 2. Rewrite the sentences in the passive in both ways, as in the example.

e.g. His father gave Billy a new bicycle. – Billy was given a new bicycle by his father. A new bicycle was given to Billy by his father.

1. Fred has offered Mary a watch. 2. Lisa is sending Tim an invitation. 3. She brought me some oranges. 4. Sonia is going to lend me some money. 5. Jack will show me his new car. 6. They paid him a lot of money for the job.

Exercise 3. Rewrite the following active sentences using two passive forms, making the underlined words the subject. Omit the agent if it is not necessary.

e.g. The company sent him a letter. – He was sent a letter by the company. A letter was sent to him by the company.

They’ve just sent me a whole lot of junk mail. 2. The Credit Bank lent me two thousand pounds in 1999. 3. They gave each of the children a bottle of milk every day. 4. They showed us the sights of the city. 5. They will pay the workers $50 every Friday. 6. Someone had promised the children more food. 7. The magician told them the secret. 8. They offered her the job. 9. One of his uncles had taught him maths. 10. Someone gave the animal charity a lot of money.

Exercise 4. Make the following sentences passive, as in the example. Give two variants where possible.

e.g. They showed me a very interesting book. – I was shown a very interesting book. A very interesting book was shown to me.

1. My mother told me the news yesterday. 2. Their friends sent them their photographs last week. 3. Did they recommend you any good hotels? 4. The librarian showed the students how to find necessary books. 5. They allowed the children to go to the zoo. 6. They gave us a lot of money. 7. Her parents gave her a computer for her birthday. 8. They lent us some money. 9. My friend offered me a challenging job. 10. They pay him twice a month. 11. My mother teaches them English at school. 12. He promised me this book. 13. Did they show you that new Oxford Dictionary? 14. They sent presents to their relatives and friends. 15. The secretary gave the letter to her boss.

Exercise 5. Make one passive sentence or two, if possible.

e.g. Someone threw a lifebelt to me.

I was thrown a lifebelt. A lifebelt was thrown to me.

1. Someone mentioned the problem to me. 2. Someone had reported the theft to the police. 3. Someone told the story to me. 4. Someone has given $1,000 to the charity. 5. Someone will demonstrate the game to the children. 6. Someone was offering drinks to the guests. 7. Someone explained the procedure to me. 8. Someone sold the car to Tom.