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Verbs without an object (intransitive verb) normally cannot form a personal passive
sentence (as there is no object that can become the subject of the passive sentence).
If you want to use an intransitive verb in passive voice, you need an impersonal
construction – therefore this passive is called Impersonal Passive.

Example: they say – it is said

Impersonal Passive is not as common in English as in some other languages (e.g.
German, Latin). In English, Impersonal Passive is only possible with verbs of
perception (e. g. say, think, know).

Example: They say that tubing protects the casing from the corrosive and erosive
effects. – It is said that tubing protects the casing from the corrosive and erosive
effects.

Although Impersonal Passive is possible here, Personal Passive is more common.

Example: They say that oil is lighter than water. – Oil is said to be lighter than
water.

The subject of the subordinate clause (oil) goes to the beginning of the sentence; the
verb of perception is put into passive voice. The rest of the sentence is added using
an infinitive construction with 'to' (certain auxiliary verbs and that are dropped).

Sometimes the term Personal Passive is used in English lessons if the indirect object
of an active sentence is to become the subject of the passive sentence.

17 Rewrite the following sentences in the passive.

1. The operator has to provide a way for oil and gas to get from the formation and
into the well.
2. A perforating specialist installs the charges in the special gun.
3. They can determine the depth by running a collar locator log.
4. Operators have completed wells over 20,000 feet deep with coiled tubing.
5. Crew members usually run tubing into the well with a sealing device called a
"packer."
6. They install the packer on the tubing string and place it at a depth slightly
above the casing perforations.
7. The packer seals the annular space between the tubing and the casing above the
perforations.
8. The fracturing crew adds a finely graded sand or similar material (a proppant)
to the fracturing fluid.

18 Put the verb in brackets into the Passive. Use an appropriate tense.
Last week a new leisure centre 1) was opened (open) in the town of Malden. The
centre 2)______ (believe) to be the largest in Europe and it 3) _______ (hope) that it

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