It is said that…

  • B2 · Upper-intermediate
  • Grammar lesson
  • 60 min
  • passive reporting

Reporting what people say, think or know without saying who: It is said that a huge animal lives in the loch. Nessie is believed to have a long neck. The photo was later shown to be a fake. The student reads the story of the Loch Ness Monster, matches sentences by their time, finishes a tour guide's script and plays myth or fact.

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It is said thatis said tois thought to

What's in the lesson

  1. 1Warm-up
  2. 2In this lesson
  3. 3Reading: is Nessie out there?Reading comprehension
  4. 4What does it mean?Grammar exercise
  5. 5Find the reporting verbsGrammar exercise
  6. 6It is said that…, he is said to…Grammar rule
  7. 7Which form?Grammar exercise
  8. 8Same meaningGrammar exercise
  9. 9The walking tourGrammar exercise
  10. 10Find the mistakeGrammar exercise
  11. 11Say it naturallySpeaking practice
  12. 12Myth or fact?Speaking practice
  13. 13About youGrammar exercise
  14. 14Wrap-up

Homework

  1. 1Homework: StonehengeGrammar exercise
  2. 2Homework: which sentence is correct?Grammar exercise
  3. 3Homework: build the sentencesGrammar exercise
  4. 4Homework: your own tourDiscussion

Two slides from the lesson

Warm-up

A few questions about you before we start.

  1. What old story or legend did you hear again and again as a child?
  2. Do you trust a photo more than a story? Why, or why not?
  3. When you hear a surprising "fact," how do you check it?

Grammar rule

It is said that…, he is said to…

Two ways to report what people say or think

PatternExample
It + is / was + said, thought, believed, known… + that + clauseIt is said that the old lighthouse keeper has never left the island.
someone / something + is / was + said, thought, believed, known… + to…The old keeper is said to know every rock in the bay.

What comes after to

FormTimeExample
to + verbthe same time as the reportHe is said to swim in the sea every morning, even in winter.
to have + past participleearlier than the reportHe is said to have rescued forty sailors.

A report in the past

Put the first verb in the past for what people said or thought then (it may not be true now): It was believed that the island was empty. = The island was believed to be empty.

The verbs

say, think, believe: maybe true · claim, report: what someone says or a report says · fear: what people are afraid of · know: a fact · show: proved · consider: what people think of it · expect: the future (The storm is expected to weaken tonight.) · For the negative, put not before to: The ice is thought not to be thick enough yet. (The ice is not thought to be… is also fine.)

Watch out

  • One pattern at a time: not The lighthouse is said that it is old, and not It is said the lighthouse to be old.
  • For something earlier, use to have + past participle: not He is said to rescue forty sailors in 1880 → to have rescued.
  • After to have, the past participle: to have went → to have gone.
  • In conversation, people often say They say…, People think… or Apparently,…. The passive forms are more common in the news, in history and on tours.

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