FOCUS ON - passive phrasal verbs, 1

13. FOCUS ON: passive phrasal verbs, 1
The passive voice is used when what happened (the verb) is more important than
who did it (the subject):

The scene of the crime was dosed off by the police.
when the subject is obvious:
The tests were handed in. (by the students — who else?)
or when the subject is unknown:
My dog was run over. (by an unknown person)
The passive is formed with be and the past participle of the verb. Be can be in any
tense and can be continuous:
The game
has been called off.
My name
was left off.
The tent
Is being set up.
The criminals
will be tracked down.
As we saw in the first three examples, saying who performed the action with a by
phrase is optional, but it is always possible. This is a good way to test a sentence to
see if it is in the passive:
The game has been called off by. the, referee.
My name was left off by Charles.
The tent is being set up by.
the campers.
The criminals will be tracked down by the police.
Infinitive


present tense -ing form past tense past participle

call off


call off & calls off calling off called off called off

1. call... off p.v. When you call off an event, such as a party, game, or something else that
had been previously planned, you cancel it.
The football game was called off because of rain.
We can't call the party off— it's going to start in half an hour.
dose off
close off & closes off closing off closed off closed off

1. close ...off p.v. When you close off an area/you prohibit people from entering it or
passing through it by locking the door or blocking the entrance.
The police closed several streets off because of the parade.
The house was so expensive to heat that the owners closed several rooms off.
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closed off part.adj. An area that you are prohibited from entering or passing through because
the door has been locked or the entrance has been blocked is closed off
Three rooms in the museum are closed off.
Infinitive


present tense -ing form past tense past participle

hand in


hand in & hands in handin

g in handed in handed in

1. hand ... in (to) p.v. When you complete a test, report, or project and you give it to the
person who assigned the work, you hand it in or hand it in to that person. Turn in is similar
to hand in.
The tests must be handed in no later than 11:00.
He finished his investigation and handed his report in to the committee.
2. hand ... in p.v. When you hand in your resignation or letter of resignation, you inform your
employer that you are quitting your job.
/ was so furious that I handed my letter of resignation in the next day.
The President asked the cabinet members to hand in their resignations.
3. hand ... in (to) p.v. When you give something to a person of authority who has demanded it
or because you no longer need or want it, you hand it in or hand it in to a person of authority.
Turn in is similar to hand in.
The guard was ordered to hand his gun in after he shot the window washer.
The drivers return to the factory at 5:00 and hand their keys in to the dispatcher before they leave.
hit on hit on & hits on hitting on hit on hit on
1. hit on p.v. When you think of an interesting idea or a solution to a problem, you hit on
it.
/ think I've hit on a way to solve this problem.
After two years of tests, they finally hit on the solution.
2. hit on p.v. [informal] When you hit on a person of the opposite sex, you approach and
aggressively try to interest that person in you romantically or sexually.
Lydia had a terrible time at the party. She was hit on by every guy there.
Let's go somewhere else — Mark keeps hitting on me, and I'm tired of it.
leave off leave off & leaves off leaving off left off left off
1. leave... off p.v. When you do not include people or things on a list, either
accidentally or deliberately, you leave them off.
After what happened at the last party, Dan wasn't surprised that he was left off the guest list.
Check to make sure you don't leave anyone off the list.

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2. leave off p.v. When you interrupt something that you intend to finish later, you leave off
at the point where you stop.
Okay class, we left off on page 92 last week, so open your books to page 93.
Finish your story. Uncle Fred. You left off where the giant octopus was about to eat you.
Infinitive

present tense -ing form past tense past participle

let off
let off & lets off letting off let off let off

1. let... off p.v. When you let someone off a bus or other form of transportation, you stop it
so that person can leave it.
The driver let her off at the corner. That's my house there. Can
you let me off please?
2. let... off p.v. When you are let off by a person in authority, you are not punished or you
are given only a light punishment.
It was Jake's first offense, so the judge let him off with a warning.
People were shocked that he had been let off so lightly.
3. let... off p.v. When you fire a gun or explode bombs or fireworks, you let them off.
(regional) When you let off steam, you express angry feelings or frustration or do
something to relieve those feelings.
The high school was evacuated after someone let off a smoke bomb.
When I was a kid I used to love letting off firecrackers on the Fourth of July.
I'm sorry I was so angry this morning; I was just letting off steam.
light up
light up & lights up lighting up lit up lit up
1. light... up p.v. When you shine lights on something or attach lights to
something, you light it up.

Airport runways are lit up so that pilots can see them in the dark.
The police lit the house up with their spotlights.
lit up part.adj. After a light is shined on something or you put lights inside or attach lights to
the outside of something, it is lit up.
The signs aren't lit up, so it's hard to see them at night.
2. light... up p.v. When you light up a cigarette, cigar, or pipe, you use a match or lighter
to start it burning.
Here are the matches — let's light up. Lighting a cigarette up next to the gasoline truck was the last
thing he ever did.
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Infinitive
present tense -ing form past tense past participle

track down


track down & tracks down

tracking down

tracked down tracked down

1. track... down p.v. When you find things or people after looking very hard for them, you
track them down.
The terrorists were
tracked down
by Interpol.
I finally
tracked down
that book I've been looking for.

EXERCISE 13a — Complete the sentences with phrasal verbs from this section. Be
sure the phrasal verbs are in the correct tense.
1. The judge ________ her ________ with a warning.
2. It wasn't cold enough, so we ________ ________ the hockey game.
3. As soon as Nancy's boyfriend went to the washroom,the guy at the next table ________ ________
her.
4. Every Christmas my father used to ________ ________ our house with thousands
of lights.
5. The police finally ________ the killers ________ and arrested them.
6. The principal caught me as I was _______ _______ a cigarette in the washroom.
7. The room that was damaged by the fire was ________ ________ to the public.
8. I was really angry that I was ________ ________ the list.
9. That's a great idea! You've really ________ ________ something.
10. Three students got a zero because their projects weren't ______ ______ on time.
11. Driver, can you ________ me ________ at the next corner?
12. Dr. Smith resumed his lecture where he had ________ ________ before the lunch break.
13. After Wilson screwed up the finance department, he was asked to ________ _________ his letter of
resignation.
14. Even though the enemy soldiers were half a mile away, we ________ ________
a few shots.
15. The crooked police officers were ordered to ________ their badges ________.
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EXERCISE 13b — Write three sentences using the objects in parentheses. Be
sure to put the objects in the right place.
1. The bride hasn't called off. (the wedding, it) ________ ________ ________
2. Are they closing off? (the gallery, it) ________ ________ ________
3. The accountant handed in. (her report, it) ________ ________ ________
4. Have you left off? (Carmen, her) ________ ________ ________
5. The judge let off. (the pickpocket, him) ________ ________ ________
6.I told him not to light up. (the cigarette, it) ________ ________ ________

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7. The EPA tracked down. (the polluters, them) ________ ________ ________

EXERCISE 13c — Write answers to the questions using phrasal verbs and participle adjectives
from this section. Make all the phrasal verbs passive.
1. He discovered the source of the rumor. What happened to the source of the rumor?
2. The students finished their quizzes and gave them to the teacher. What happened to the
quizzes?
3. The judge never sends first-time offenders to jail. What always happens to first-time offenders?
4. A guy started talking to Heather at the dance. What happened to Heather?
5. The list of candidates didn't include your name. What happened to your name?
6. The referee canceled the game. What happened to the game?
7. They are putting ropes around the plaza so that no one can go in. What is happening to the
plaza?
8. In Question 7, after they finish putting ropes around the plaza, how would you describe it?
9. The battleship shined lights on the enemy submarine. What happened to the enemy
submarine?
10. In Question 9, how would you describe the submarine after the battleship shined lights on it?
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