Reporting Passive — Exercises on it is said that
Practice the reporting passive: it is said that…, he is said to be, is believed to have left, is estimated to be worth — as used in the news.
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The new café on the corner ___ to be the best in town.
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is said
People in general say this about the café → 'is said to be'. The café doesn't say anything itself, so the active 'says' doesn't work.
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___ that the company will close two of its shops next year.
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It is expected
When nobody in particular is expecting it, start with 'It is expected that…'. English needs the subject 'it' — 'Is expected that' has none.
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The thieves ___ the country the day after the robbery.
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are believed to have left
The police believe it now, but the leaving happened earlier → perfect infinitive: 'are believed to have left'. 'To leave' would put the leaving at the same time as the believing.
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___ said that this restaurant makes the best pizza in the city.
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It is
Before a that-clause, only 'it' can start the sentence: 'It is said that…'. With a person as subject you'd need 'to': 'He is said to make…'.
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The castle is said ___ in the 12th century.
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to have been built
People say it now about something done long ago, and the castle didn't build anything → perfect passive infinitive: 'to have been built'.
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More than 200 people ___ to have been injured in the earthquake.
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are reported
The news reports it about the people, so the people are the subject of a passive reporting verb: 'are reported to have been injured'. 'Have reported' would mean the injured people made the report.
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A lost painting comes home
For almost eighty years, a small portrait of a young woman {1} lost forever. It disappeared from a museum in Rotterdam during the war, and nobody knew what had happened to it. Then, last spring, it turned up in the attic of a farmhouse in Belgium. It {2} there, behind a pile of old furniture, since the 1940s. Now it {3} by a famous Dutch artist around 1650. At first, nobody noticed the signature, but while the painting {4} in a laboratory in Brussels, a tiny name appeared under the dirt. The family who owned the farmhouse are happy for it {5} to the museum, and {6} that it will go on display again next year. The painting {7} to be worth several million euros.
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1. was believed to be — For decades people thought it was lost → past reporting passive: 'was believed to be lost'.
2. had been hidden — It was hidden from the 1940s until it was found last spring — before another past moment → past perfect passive 'had been hidden'.
3. is thought to have been painted — Experts think it now; the painting was done in 1650 and the artist did it → perfect passive infinitive: 'is thought to have been painted'.
4. was being cleaned — The cleaning was in progress when the name appeared → past continuous passive 'was being cleaned'. The painting didn't clean anything, so 'was cleaning' is wrong.
5. to be given back — After 'happy for it' we need an infinitive. The painting doesn't give anything — someone gives it back → passive infinitive 'to be given back'.
6. it is expected — Nobody in particular expects it, and a that-clause follows → 'it is expected that…'.
7. is estimated — Experts estimate its value now → 'is estimated to be worth…'. The painting is the subject, so the reporting verb is passive.
The Reporting Passive: It Is Said That and Subject + Is Said To
The reporting passive lets a writer pass on what people in general say, think or believe without naming anyone, which is why it is so common in news reports. It has two patterns. The first starts with it and a that-clause: It is said that this restaurant makes the best pizza in the city, It is expected that the company will close two shops. The second starts with the real subject and continues with an infinitive: The café is said to be the best in town, The painting is estimated to be worth several million euros. Verbs that work in both patterns include say, think, believe, expect, report, know and estimate. The infinitive shows time: to be for the present, to have left for an earlier event (The thieves are believed to have left the country), and to have been built for an earlier passive one. Mixing the two patterns — He is said that he is rich — is the error to avoid.
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