Lesson 8: Reporting with Passive Verbs, Linking Verbs, and Tag Questions

About this lesson

In this lesson, you will deepen your understanding of the passive voice, with a focus on reporting statements in a more formal and objective way. You will explore the use of linking verbs such as 'seem' and 'appear' to express assumptions and impressions. You will also master tag questions and their variations to confirm information or seek agreement in conversation.

40 minutes

What you'll learn

• Report events and statements using a variety of passive structures.
• Understand and use linking verbs such as 'seem' and 'appear' to express opinions and impressions.
• Correctly form tag questions across different tenses and modal verbs.
• Recognise and apply 'same way tags' to express strong agreement or surprise.
• Communicate more effectively and with greater nuance across a range of contexts.

Lesson vocabulary

• It is said that... — Казва се, че... It is said that honesty is the best policy.
• He is believed to be... — Смята се, че той е... He is believed to be the richest man in the city.
• She appears to have... — Изглежда, че тя има... She appears to have a good grasp of the subject.
• It would seem that... — Изглежда, че... It would seem that our efforts were in vain.
• be thought to be — счита се, че е The ancient artifact is thought to be over 2000 years old.
• be known to have — известно е, че има He is known to have a temper.
• be rumored to be — разпространяват се слухове, че е The celebrity couple is rumored to be getting married soon.
• be understood to be — разбира се, че е The agreement is understood to be legally binding.
• seemingly — привидно, на пръв поглед The seemingly simple task turned out to be very complex.
• evidently — очевидно Evidently, they missed the bus.
• apparently — очевидно, както изглежда Apparently, it's going to rain tomorrow.
• presumably — предполагаемо Presumably, the meeting will start on time.

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