Change the following sentence into the most appropriate passive or impersonal construction: The workers expected to finish the job.

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: It was expected by the workers that they would finish the job.

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
Voice change questions assess a learner s ability to rewrite sentences from active to passive voice or into an equivalent impersonal construction without changing the meaning. The original sentence here is The workers expected to finish the job. It focuses on the workers and their expectation about successfully completing a task. The exam tests whether candidates can recognise the best passive or impersonal form that preserves both meaning and tense.


Given Data / Assumptions:

  • Original sentence: The workers expected to finish the job.
  • The subject is the workers.
  • The verb is expected, in the simple past tense.
  • The object or complement is the infinitive phrase to finish the job.
  • Four alternatives show different passive or impersonal patterns.


Concept / Approach:
In English, some sentences using verbs like expect can be rewritten using an impersonal construction beginning with It was expected that. This is especially common when we wish to place emphasis on the expectation rather than on who holds it. When we convert The workers expected to finish the job, we need a structure that clearly indicates that the expectation belonged to the workers and that they expected their own future action. The correct transformation therefore is It was expected by the workers that they would finish the job. This sentence maintains the past expectation, keeps the workers as the source of expectation, and shows that finishing the job was a future action relative to that past time, expressed with would finish.


Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the key elements in the original sentence: subject the workers, verb expected, complement to finish the job. Step 2: Decide to use an impersonal construction with It was expected to preserve the idea of expectation. Step 3: Ensure that the doer of the expectation, the workers, is kept in a by phrase to retain the original meaning. Step 4: Express the action to finish the job as a future in the past using would finish the job. Step 5: Combine these pieces into the sentence It was expected by the workers that they would finish the job. Step 6: Compare this candidate with the given options and see that it matches option d exactly.


Verification / Alternative check:
Check the other options for grammar and meaning. Option a, The job was expecting to being finished by the workers, has incorrect verb forms and oddly personifies the job as expecting something. Option b, It was expected that the workers would be finishing the job, does not specify who held the expectation and also changes the aspect to a continuous sense. Option c, The job was expected to been finished by the workers, is grammatically wrong because to been is incorrect; the form should be to be or to have been. Therefore only option d is both grammatically correct and faithful to the original meaning.


Why Other Options Are Wrong:
The job was expecting to being finished by the workers: Incorrect use of expecting and to being, and wrong subject for the verb expect.
It was expected that the workers would be finishing the job: Does not clearly show that the expectation belonged specifically to the workers and slightly alters the aspect of the action.
The job was expected to been finished by the workers: Contains the incorrect infinitive to been and is not idiomatic English.


Common Pitfalls:
Learners sometimes try to convert every sentence mechanically into a by plus subject pattern without considering whether a verb is actually transitive in the required way. Another mistake is the wrong choice of auxiliary verbs, leading to forms like to being or to been. To avoid such errors, it helps to memorise standard impersonal patterns such as It is believed that and It was expected that, and to pay attention to examples in textbooks and news reports. Understanding meaning should guide transformation rather than blind rule application.


Final Answer:
The correct transformed sentence is It was expected by the workers that they would finish the job. so option d is correct.

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