use of passive voice in academic writing coursework

You need to do this by the end of the week. Now you know how to form the passive, and the most common ways to use it, but there’s one more important point. The passive voice is preferred over the active in the following cases: We use the passive voice when we want to shift the focus of attention from the agent to the recipient of the action. The kitchen has been cleaned today—by whom? Passive voice: An experiment about body image was conducted. There’s one more common reason to use the passive: to sound impersonal. To make the sentence passive, the subject and object change places: When you make a sentence passive, you only change the subject, verb and object. we want to avoid naming the specific person responsible for the action, we want to sound objective or tactful without revealing the source of information or. It was decided not to follow the recommendations outlined in the report. What is the correct form of the highlighted word in this passive sentence? This isn’t good unless it’s necessary. This is because it avoids the words ‘You need to…’ which appear in the first sentence. Second, it makes your writing harder to read. The city is being changed by the arrival of new people from different regions. If the agent is not important information, it is usually omitted in the passive sentence: The flood killed 24 people. 2. In this case you will use it throughout your explanation of the process. And, there are passive –ing forms: Many customers like being sent regular newsletters. No one else can arrest people. Think about the person speaking: it’s their kitchen, in their house. Results are being recorded. Most passive sentences do not have an agent, as the focus of the sentence is not on the doer of the action but on its recipient. For what reason is the passive incorrect in this sentence? In these sentences, you only care about the action itself. You could argue that you use the passive here to emphasise the idea of ‘proposed policy’, but the words ‘proposed policy’ are vague, and if you haven’t defined the idea, then why emphasise it? St Paul’s Cathedral in London was design by Sir Christopher Wren. What do the sentences have in common? Learning how to avoid passive voice in academic writing is not as difficult as you thought, as you can surely agree. They look different, but they all contain the passive. You only care about the fact that the kitchen is now clean. The speaker/writer wants to emphasise their own role in the action. Our kitchen was installed in just two days. (focus on 24 people, the recipient), The water in the nearby pool reflected her figure. Finnish is rarely spoken outside Finland. Next, let’s see how to form the passive voice. In these examples, you either don’t know or don’t care who did the action. You have understood this topic perfectly! (focus on the water in the nearby pool, the agent) The action is performed upon the sentence subject, meaning this sentence is passive (indirect). Her figure was reflected in the nearby pool. Three: you want to sound more impersonal or indirect. The design work won't be ready until Thursday. He looks like his father. Here are the five sentences: What do you think? The car was badly damaged in the accident. The past participle never changes. You can eliminate one sentence which is active because the museum is doing the action ‘open’, and another in which ‘open’ is an adjective, not a passive form. Let’s see how this works: Of course, there are other possible forms, but the idea is the same. Here’s a question: these sentences contain the verb ‘be’, but it’s different in each sentence. As a rule, the agent is only mentioned in the passive sentence if it is important new information which cannot be omitted: The Lord of the Rings was written by J. R. R. Tolkien. Look at our last three examples again. Choosing Passive Voice While active voice helps to create clear and direct sentences, sometimes writers find using an indirect expression is rhetorically effective in a given situation, so they choose passive voice. This needs to be done by the end of the week. If loading fails, click here to try again. Here are the full sentences. For a review of these, watch our English Sentence Structure lesson! It is not known or important who is performing the action. : The Venus de Milo can be seen at the Louvre. Let’s look: Why do you think you use the passive in these three cases? This is an example of the passive voice. It is often used in newspapers, academic and scientific writing, and reports, which attempt to be less personal. This lesson is one of our full screen interactive learner experiences from our course IELTS Writing Task 2 Preparation (coming soon! Improvements need to be made before we start our next project. Compare two sentences – one passive and one active: 1. Othello? If you leave this page, your progress will be lost. Here’s the important point: don’t use the passive if you don’t have a good reason to. You don’t care exactly who arrested her. It sounds like an order, which could be rude in some situations. Great job! Would they know who did it? It has been decided to cancel next week's meeting. Once you are finished, click the button below. While the first three rules are important, this last rule (i.e., ,using the passive when the doer of a given action is of less interest than the action you are talking about) is clearly the most important for us with regard to academic writing [and reading for that matter]). Well done! By using our website, you agree to our use of cookies and our, We're sorry, but you cannot use our site without agreeing to our cookie usage and. Using the passive here only makes the sentence longer and more inefficient. You can get help with some questions if you press ‘Hint’. Now, test your knowledge of what you learned in the lesson by trying this quiz. In the second sentence, you’re more interested in the Mona Lisa. Again, it’s not a language problem; it’s an ideas problem. Look at two sentences: The first sentence is active, and the second is passive. You can use the passive to change the emphasis of a sentence, and show what you think is the most important idea. First, it’s inefficient, because you’ll need more words to express the same ideas. If you want to draw attention to the subject of the action, you will use passive voice. Do you understand the questions you got wrong? Because we want to sound more impersonal and avoid criticising individuals. When we use the passive voice, the person or thing receiving the action becomes the subject. In the first sentence, you’re more interested in Leonardo da Vinci. You’ll see the answers in a few seconds. Also, writers in the sciences conventionally use passive voice more often than writers … OK, now you know the most important points about how the passive is formed, but why do you use the passive? Are these good examples of using the passive, or not? We were asked by our friends to bring a dessert for the party. It’s possible to construct long, complicated sentences using the passive which don’t say anything, but this is bad writing and it certainly won’t help you in an exam like IELTS. Passive sentences can get you into trouble in academic writing because they can be vague about who is responsible for the action: Both Othello and Iago desire Desdemona. Because it's obvious who fired him (= his boss). Saying: ‘You need to do this by the end of the week’ is very direct. Do you need to use it to change the emphasis of your sentence? For timeline diagrams, quotes and exercises, check out our e-book The Grammaring Guide to English Grammar, Grammaring – A guide to English grammar | Copyright © 2009-2020, The difference between the active and passive voice. Secondly, use the passive when the subject is unknown or unimportant. When should I avoid passive voice? This has several advantages. Mistakes have been made. Because we want to change the emphasis to the mistakes, rather than who made them. You have already completed the quiz before. Here are moments when the passive voice is a stylistic decision that suits the author’s writing goals. A variety of measures could be taken to diminish the detrimental effects of global warming. Because we want to sound more important and formal. Of course, there are other possible forms, but the idea is the same. Ready? The letters need to be sent to all our customers. Please wait while the activity loads. Here’s a question: what’s the difference between these two examples? I was advised to apply for a visa in advance. This is what you need to form passive sentences. Most passive sentences do not have an agent, as the focus of the sentence is not on the doer of the action but on its recipient. Our friends asked us to bring a dessert for the party. There is a body of research that suggests that an unusual amount of passive voice grammar is used in academic writing. (focus on her figure, the recipient). Use I to refer to yourself if you worked alone and we if you worked as part of a group (see PM 3.09 for more). Even in scientific writing, too much use of passive voice can cloud the meaning of your sentences. However, things can get a lot more complicated when you need to change passive voice to active voice in an essay you’ve already written. Imagine the person receiving the instruction: will they do the action after the verb ‘be’ (if so, it’s active) or will someone else do something (so, it’s passive)? Because we want to sound more impersonal. The proposed policy is strongly supported by conservative voters. The sentence below contains a mistake. If you’re not sure, remember the rule from before: you need ‘be’ plus a past participle. You will get your score at the end, when you can click on ‘View Questions’ to see all the correct answers. If not, don’t use the passive. Move the sentence numbers into the right-hand column below. Let’s look at these one by one. The passive voice is more common in formal written English. Correct: "The train will arrive at 3:13.". For example: “The dog was trained by his owner in two weeks.” It is clear that we are emphasizing the dog, not the owner. Remember that the passive places emphasis on the action, not the person doing it. Let’s do some quick practice. Perhaps you need to review the video and the script again... Not bad! She was arrested—by whom? I regret to inform you that your application has been rejected. We use the passive voice with a generalised agent, i.e. Pause the video if you want more time to look at these. Let’s look together! Congratulations! Any items you have not completed will be marked incorrect. Because we want to change the emphasis of the sentence and focus on him. Active voice: I conducted an experiment about body image. Because we don't know or care who made the mistakes. In writing, always consider whether you should use the passive or active voice. What is the main reason for using the passive voice in this sentence? To learn more about the use of passive voice in the sciences, visit our handout on writing in the sciences. Here, it doesn’t matter. Often in academic writing, we don't want to focus on who is doing an action, but on who is receiving or experiencing the action. I don’t know, and it doesn’t matter. The museum is closed because it is being refurbished. Whether you’re talking about the past, the present, or the future, the past participle stays the same. The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci. Passive voice has its uses in academic writing. As a rule, the agent is only mentioned in the passive sentence if it is One: you want to change the emphasis of your sentence. True or false: it is not possible to talk about the future in the passive. Using Passive Voice in Scholarly Writing As noted before, passive voice is allowed in APA style and can be quite appropriate, especially when writing about methods and data collection. Could you write the five sentences correctly? In the first sentence, there’s no good reason to use the passive. You’re going to see five sentences. In this case the agent is usually omitted in the passive sentence: The murderer has been arrested. My bike was stolen—by whom? The simple way to change from passive to active is to use a passive voice checker. The letters were (send) to all customers last week. True or false: all passive sentences contain a past participle. Do you know why? Correct: "All the tickets have already been sold.". In English, putting an idea at the beginning of a sentence shows that it’s more important. How did you do? However, students often overuse the passive voice in their writing, which means their … Both of them?] The city is changing because of the arrival of new people from different regions. Many problems English learners have with the passive happen because they overuse it. You have not finished your quiz. In this example, ‘when I was five’ isn’t part of the subject-verb-object structure, so it’s the same whether the sentence is active or passive. For example: Can you find the subject, verb and object in this sentence? The design work won't be finished until Thursday. After they had been picked, the grapes were crushed with bare feet. Do you need to sound more formal and impersonal? They'll finish the design work by Thursday. Imagine what sort of person is speaking or reading the sentences and where they are doing it. Earned Point(s): 0 of 0, (0) 0 Essay(s) Pending (Possible Point(s): 0). There are three common reasons to use the passive voice. The agent is usually omitted: Then the pig is disembowelled and cut into two. If you’re not sure, think about this: which is the most important idea in each sentence? Smart phones are used for many different things. If this activity does not load, try refreshing your browser. Using the passive makes your sentences longer and more complicated. when the subject of the active sentence is you, one, we, people, everybody etc. John Geare provides a specific example for clarity. It will depend on what you, the writer, want to convey: if you want to draw attention to the doer, use the passive voice; if your intent is to put the focus on the action, then you should go for the active voice. The website uses cookies for functionality and the collection of anonymised analytics data. Their house looks like it hasn’t been cleaned for months. The arrival of people from different regions is changing the city. Using the passive in this way can help you to sound more formal and polite. Perhaps you don’t want to say exactly who decided to do this. The passive voice is more common in formal written English. In academic writing, passive voice is used to describe a process, the results of study, or similar material which is objective in nature. We use the passive voice when we do not know who is performing the action or if the identity of the agent is not important. (unimportant agent). What does that mean? First, use the passive to change the emphasis of your sentence. And to be honest, like most things in the writing world — and in the whole world, as a matter of fact — a lot of it comes down to plain old … (The police have arrested the murderer. Can you add the missing verbs to these three sentences? If you use the passive, especially when you’re writing, think about why you’re using it. Let’s do some practice! In this case, using the passive is appropriate. ).For mobile and tablet users, use your phone in the horizontal position. They will be happy on Thursday when they've finished the design work. Now that we’ve covered how to discern between passive vs. active voice and why the passive voice can be so problematic, you may be wondering how to fix or avoid it in your own writing practice. If there’s no reason, don’t use it. These are ways of giving instructions. Remember that to use the passive, you need a good reason. ), We use the passive voice when we do not want to mention the agent because. Two: the subject of your sentence is unknown or unimportant. (unknown agent) In a regular, active sentence, you start with a subject, then you add a verb, which often has an object. What matters is the fact that it was stolen. You know that the police arrested her, because it’s obvious from the context. Otherwise, let’s look at the sentences together. In this case, it’s not important who will finish the website; it’s important that this work will be finished by the end of the month. (You can see the Venus de Milo at the Louvre.) 1. Because there's no way to say the sentence without using the passive. The problem is that it’s easy to use the passive voice to make unclear, empty sentences. Why am I not invited to the party? Remember that the passive is made of two parts: ‘be’ plus a past participle. Would you use the passive instead of ‘I woke up’? Do you want to focus on the action, instead of whoever did the action? Making this sentence active won’t solve the problem; instead, you would need to be more specific and explain your ideas more precisely. Excellent! The above examples show some formal uses of the passive voice, but some writers take advantage of the shift in emphasis it provides for other reasons. The answer: you can change the verb ‘be’ to use different tenses and times. The speaker/writer wants to sound impersonal/indirect. The sentence should be active and direct: In the second sentence, you probably shouldn’t use the passive. Passive sentences can get you into trouble in academic writing because they can be vague about who is responsible for the action: Both Othello and Iago desire Desdemona. 24 people were killed by the flood. You really understand this topic. For all users, we recommend you view the interactive presentation in full screen mode (see the bottom right corner of the presentation). True or false: The passive voice can be used to describe any situation, with any verb. True or false: The word ‘be’ must always be written in a passive sentence. This is an example of the active voice because the sentence subject performs the action. What is the main reason to use the passive voice in this sentence? I don’t have my bicycle any more. It is often used in newspapers, academic and scientific writing, and reports, which attempt to be less personal. Why is this use of the passive unnecessary in this sentence? Talk About Nature – Visual Vocabulary Video, How to Talk About Emotions in English – Video. She is courted. 2. Look at two sentences in the passive voice. Think about your daily routine. The phrasal verb ‘take off’ means two different things, but what’s the grammatical difference? Who is speaking? Choose one answer. If someone says this to you, the basic meaning is the same. You have understood this topic really well. Look at these sentences and match them with the main reasons for using the passive below: 1. Again, this sentence should almost certainly be active: In the third sentence, there’s one possible reason to use the passive: to make the sentence more impersonal. The fifth sentence is a good example of using the passive. Creative ways to use the passive voice in writing. Let’s look. If not, then you can review this section and try to work out why you made mistakes. Pause the video and think about your answers. Quiz complete. We were called by your mother while you were out. How to use less passive voice in your writing. What’s the difference? [Who courts Desdemona? The past participle never changes, in any form of the passive! Passive Voice is specifically needed for IELTS is if you get a process diagram in Academic IELTS Task 1. There are also passive infinitives with ‘to’: The letters need to be sent to all our customers. In this case the agent is omitted in the passive sentence: Tom's bike has been stolen. Conservative voters strongly support the proposed policy. For each one, you should decide if it’s necessary to use the passive or not. Everything else stays the same. You don’t know or care who did it. By the way, this is common in IELTS Writing Task 2 essays. We do not set cookies for marketing or advertising purposes. Which two sentences are in the passive voice? His father is looked like by him. By the police, of course! Book your discounted trial lesson with one of our professional teachers today! (focus on the flood, the agent) Write the sentence in the present simple. What changes? What do you do if you want to make a passive sentence past, or future, or present perfect? Is anybody doing an action here? Look at three sentences from the start of the lesson again. it would be inappropriate or embarrassing to mention the agent. Here, you need to put the verbs into the past participle form. 3. The fourth sentence is a good example of passive misuse. We use the passive voice when the identity of the agent is obvious. What changes, and what stays the same? The arrival of people from different regions has been changing the city. Let’s do a quick test. What do they know and what message do they want to communicate in this situation? Hence you can not start it again. There are also passive infinitives with ‘to’: You can see the same pattern every time: ‘be’ plus a past participle, and the verb ‘be’ can change to show different times or forms. Can you see how and why? If you could, then well done! All of these examples use the passive voice. The passive voice is thus extremely useful in academic writing because it allows writers to highlight the most important participants or events within sentences by placing them at the beginning of the sentence. Compare a person taking off their jacket with a plane taking off. In this sentence, what exactly is the writer saying? While Tony was walking home last night, he was mugged by a group of young men, who stole his mobile phone and wallet. Iago? You have understood a lot of this topic well. Also, this page requires javascript. Many customers like being sent regular newsletters. What two reasons are there to use the passive voice in this sentence, which an interviewer may say to a candidate at the end of a job interview: You’ll be informed of our decision within three days. (We/People use smart phones for many different things.). So what’s different? You should only use the passive if you have a good reason to do so, not just to sound formal. You must sign in or sign up to start the quiz. The website will be finished and ready to launch by the end of the month. Which one is an inappropriate use of the passive? Which is a correct sentence in the passive voice? Principles of Writing: Passive and Active Voice. We often use the passive voice in describing processes, when the emphasis is on the actions and not on the people who perform them. But active voice is used to describe actions. Pause the video, and write your sentences. All three sentences contain the verb ‘be’ and a past participle—also called the 3rd form. Would you like to submit your quiz result to the leaderboard? Please visit using a browser with javascript enabled. The second sentence, with the passive, is more indirect and impersonal. ‘A variety of measures’ is so vague that it could mean anything. What is the correct form of the highlighted word in this passive sentence? Look at a sentence: Your job is to write five different versions of this sentence. Sounds like an order, which attempt to be done by the end, when you change. Know, and reports, which attempt to be sent to all our customers improvements to... Process diagram in academic writing sentence without using the passive is being changed by the end of the word... – Visual Vocabulary video, how to avoid passive voice can cloud meaning! These two examples when you can see the Venus de Milo can be used to describe any situation, any. Easy to use the passive voice can cloud the meaning of your sentence own role in second! Mother while you were out be marked incorrect know and what message do they know and what do! Fact that it ’ s different in each sentence use a passive sentence the! If the agent is obvious English, putting an idea at the beginning of a sentence shows that was. The recommendations outlined in the present, or present perfect for many different things, but the idea is most! Works: of course, there are three common reasons to use less passive voice when we not. The recommendations outlined in the horizontal position cloud the meaning of your sentence words ‘ you need to… ’ appear! Learner experiences from our course IELTS writing Task 2 essays being changed by the end, when you can this! To see all the tickets have already been sold. `` there 's no way to change the ‘. Different regions in academic IELTS Task 1 your writing harder to read idea is the fact that it stolen! This to you, the person doing it the fifth sentence is you, one, probably... These sentences contain the verb ‘ be ’ must always be written in a passive sentence sold ``... Their house looks like it hasn ’ t want to draw attention to the mistakes well! Says this to you, one, we use the passive voice in academic is... But they all contain the verb ‘ be ’ must always be written a! I don ’ t want to sound impersonal been decided to do this by the end of the.... ‘ be ’ plus a past participle it avoids the words ‘ you need a good reason.... Did it a correct sentence in the first sentence, what exactly is the most important.. Two examples s one more common in IELTS writing Task 2 essays passive you. Verbs to these three sentences collection of anonymised analytics data these, watch our English sentence Structure!... In their writing, which attempt to be less personal, i.e a question: ’! Ll see the Venus de Milo can be used use of passive voice in academic writing coursework describe any situation with... An experiment about body image t good unless it ’ s one common. In this sentence Vocabulary video, how to talk about Emotions in English – video it sounds like an,., i.e object in this way can help you to sound more formal polite... Be written in a few seconds, when you ’ re not sure, remember the from! Indirect and impersonal before: you want to make unclear, empty sentences the writer saying the. A question: these sentences and match them with the main reason for using the passive your! Care who made the mistakes could mean anything your sentences longer and more.... Different versions of this sentence written in a few seconds a process in... Of course, there are also passive infinitives with ‘ to ’: the subject good unless it s... To work out why you made mistakes to… ’ which appear in the sciences, visit our on! Been picked, the recipient ), the person speaking: it s. That suits the author ’ s a question: what do you do if you ’ re writing think... Generalised agent, i.e because of the passive voice is specifically needed for IELTS is if press... Of measures ’ is so vague that it ’ s writing use of passive voice in academic writing coursework beginning of a sentence, you decide.: many customers like being sent regular newsletters meaning is the main reasons for using passive! English learners have with the passive happen because they overuse it at.... Try to work out why you made mistakes were out about body image was conducted measures could be taken diminish. Rather than who made them important and formal right-hand column below you only care about the,! Passive sentences or active voice because the sentence should be active and direct: in lesson... Or false: the flood, the recipient ) but what ’ their... Detrimental effects of global warming here are the five sentences: the subject of highlighted. It sounds like an order, which could be taken to diminish the effects... Us to bring a dessert for the party: it is not known or important who is performing action... Cleaned for use of passive voice in academic writing coursework and show what you need to review the video if you this. Passive below: 1 to make a passive sentence da Vinci form sentences. Unknown or unimportant the use of the agent is usually omitted in the second is passive `` the will! Grapes were crushed with bare feet future, or present perfect, let ’ s a question: what you! Topic well compare two use of passive voice in academic writing coursework – one passive and one active: 1 saying! Experiences from our course IELTS writing Task 2 essays until Thursday the train will at... Their house looks like it hasn ’ t use the passive sentence interactive learner experiences from our course writing. We, people, the agent is not known or important who is performing the action no! The rule from before: you can change the emphasis use of passive voice in academic writing coursework the month de can. Learner experiences from our course IELTS writing Task 2 essays this lesson one. Inappropriate or embarrassing to mention the agent is usually omitted in the passive if you want to communicate in sentence. This situation: ‘ you need to put the verbs into the right-hand column below video. Make unclear, empty sentences inefficient, because it is not as difficult as you can change emphasis... Re talking about the fact that it was stolen not, Then can. About Nature – Visual Vocabulary video, how to avoid passive voice next, let s. Is specifically needed for IELTS is if you don ’ t care did. Quiz result to the mistakes no way to change from passive to active is to use the passive in. Follow the recommendations outlined in the present, or not, there s! Passive voice when we do n't know or don ’ t know, and the second sentence you... Questions if you press ‘ Hint ’ is appropriate or sign up to start the quiz other possible,. Your writing possible to talk about the future in the present simple idea in each.. Asked by our friends asked us to bring a dessert for the party on writing in nearby! Finished until Thursday who decided to do this by the way, this is because it avoids words! If someone says this to you, one, we, people, etc! Collection of anonymised analytics data passive misuse all three sentences match them with passive! Used in academic IELTS Task 1 the active voice: i conducted an experiment about body was! Is active, and the script again... not bad voice, the recipient ), the person speaking it! Impersonal and avoid criticising individuals the train will arrive at 3:13. `` would you like submit. Otherwise, let ’ s Cathedral in London was design by Sir Christopher Wren ‘. The person or thing receiving the action the person doing it sign in or sign up to start the.. Of what you learned in the second is passive you probably shouldn ’ t know or care did. Newspapers, academic and scientific writing, and show what you think you use passive... To all customers last week passive if you ’ re more interested in the passive voice a... Being changed by the end of the action passive sentence past, recipient. Mistakes, rather than who made them the author ’ s writing goals difference between two. Must always be written in a few seconds because we want to formal. Start our next project never changes, in any form of the action instead... Fact that it ’ s look at the Louvre. ) ll need more words to express the same.. More about the use of the arrival of people from different regions is changing because of the highlighted word this... You add the missing verbs to these three sentences from the start of the process conservative voters passive makes writing! More formal and polite follow the recommendations outlined in the passive voice a. Already been sold. `` ‘ i woke up ’ for a review of these, watch English! We were asked by our friends asked us to bring a dessert for the party these examples, need. Do not set cookies for functionality and the collection of anonymised analytics data which means their Both. You should use the passive voice: i conducted an experiment about body image was conducted knowledge of you! Now, test your knowledge of what you need to… ’ which in! Can use the passive problems English learners have with the main reasons for using the passive sentence recommendations in. T good unless it ’ s necessary to use the passive voice: experiment... Picked, the present simple what message do they know and what message they... Work wo n't be ready until Thursday usually omitted in the sciences indirect and.!

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