Choose the best passive-voice completion for each sentence.
1By the time the committee met on Friday, the revised agenda ..............., and every member had confirmed receipt.
Wrong!
The completed circulation occurred before the meeting, so the past perfect passive "had already been circulated to all its members" is required.
2The missing files are believed ............... during the data transfer last week.
Wrong!
The deletion is believed to have happened last week, so the perfect passive infinitive "to have been deleted" shows earlier completion.
3When the sudden power cut occurred, the samples ..............., and the process stopped halfway.
Wrong!
The power cut interrupted an activity in progress, so "were being analysed" is the appropriate past continuous passive.
4The security seal is intact, the only opening is still locked, and the camera recording is uninterrupted; therefore, the package ...............
Wrong!
The intact seal, locked opening, and uninterrupted recording make opening practically impossible, so "cannot have been opened" expresses a strong negative deduction.
5The consultation began six months ago and is still under way; during that period, the draft guidance ............... three times.
Wrong!
The consultation is still continuing, so "has been revised" connects repeated past changes with the present.
6If the court approved the request, the documents ............... to both parties; however, no application has yet been filed.
Wrong!
No application has been filed, so the approval is hypothetical; "would be released" completes the second conditional.
7Under the protocol, external researchers ............... access to the raw data only after signing a confidentiality agreement.
Wrong!
The researchers receive access rather than give it, so the indirect-object passive "are granted" is required.
8The records were deleted during last year's clean-up, but the audit confirmed that they ............... under the retention rules then in force.
Wrong!
The records have already been deleted, so "should have been retained" expresses criticism of a past action.
9The archive was encrypted to prevent confidential files ............... without authorization.
Wrong!
The encryption is intended to prevent future or unauthorized access, so "from being accessed" is the correct passive gerund form.
10In the final regulatory report, one minor limitation ............... from the published version.
Wrong!
A regulatory report requires a formal passive, so "was accidentally omitted" is more appropriate than the informal get-passive.
11According to the approved timetable, the final report ............... next Friday, after the board meets on Thursday.
Wrong!
The timetable refers to a future publication event, so "is expected to be published" uses the reporting passive with a simple passive infinitive.
12The court's final order left the agency no choice: it ............... the documents within ten working days.
Wrong!
The court's binding order left no choice, so "was ordered to release" expresses obligation rather than permission.
Exercise complete
0 out of 12
correct answers
Answers
- By the time the committee met on Friday, the revised agenda had already been circulated to all its members, and every member had confirmed receipt.
- The missing files are believed to have been deleted during the data transfer last week.
- When the sudden power cut occurred, the samples were being analysed, and the process stopped halfway.
- The security seal is intact, the only opening is still locked, and the camera recording is uninterrupted; therefore, the package cannot have been opened.
- The consultation began six months ago and is still under way; during that period, the draft guidance has been revised three times.
- If the court approved the request, the documents would be released to both parties; however, no application has yet been filed.
- Under the protocol, external researchers are granted access to the raw data only after signing a confidentiality agreement.
- The records were deleted during last year’s clean-up, but the audit confirmed that they should have been retained under the retention rules then in force.
- The archive was encrypted to prevent confidential files from being accessed without authorization.
- In the final regulatory report, one minor limitation was accidentally omitted from the published version.
- According to the approved timetable, the final report is expected to be published next Friday, after the board meets on Thursday.
- The court’s final order left the agency no choice: it was ordered to release the documents within ten working days.