Passive (1)

Grammar

Active or Passive? Put the verbs in brackets into the correct tense and form.

Five people _____________ (to hurt) in an explosion two days ago. Luckily nobody _____________ (to kill). The explosion _____________ (to cause) by a broken gas pipe, which _____________ (to repair) before the explosion. In Germany most students _____________ (to learn) English as a first foreign language. As a matter of fact, English _____________ (can / to understand) all over the world. At my school, English _____________ (to teach) for ages. Luke would like to go the concert next week, but he _____________ (not to buy) the tickets yet. He shouldn’t wait too long because I’m sure that they _____________ (to sell out) soon.

Reading

Read the text. After reading it, answer the following questions: 

1. What kind of text is it?
2. What is the text about?
3. Who is responsible for that text?
4. Where could you read such a text?
5. Why is it written? 

Looking for an answer? If you’re looking for answers, look no further. Our new encyclopedia, the “Encyclopedia 2013”, sets new standards:
– 300,000 headwords,  
– 40,000 visual elements such as colour photos, charts and diagrams,
– more than 20,000 biographies of important people
fill more than 24,000 pages, so our “Encyclopedia 2013" can be called the biggest encyclopedia ever. With over 125 years of experience and expertise, only the “Encyclopedia 2013” offers its readers an incomparable depth and breadth of various kinds of information. Whether you're up for only a quick access about something that just slipped out of your mind or whether you're interested in detailed articles on almost any imaginable subject, we're here to answer your question! All entries have been thoroughly revised and updated, and more than 30 % of our articles inform you about new technologies, modern innovations and recent inventions in the fields such as nanotechnology and modern genetic research. The 30 volume edition comes with an additional audio-DVD containing high-quality recordings of musical masterpieces, political speeches as well as examples of animal sounds such as the song of the humpback whale etc. 
There's almost no information that you won’t find in our “Encyclopedia 2013" - don’t hesitate: Ensure your own access to first-class, up-to-date knowledge now!

Writing

Write a summary of the text in your exercise book.