Use the passive when the thing or the result matters more than who did it: when the doer is unknown, obvious or unimportant. My car was stolen. The results will be published on Monday. It's common in formal, scientific and news writing, and for describing processes. In everyday conversation, the active usually sounds more natural.
The results will be published on Monday.
The reader cares about the results, not about who presses the button.
| The doer is unknown | Passive: My phone was stolen. |
|---|---|
| The doer is obvious | Passive: He was arrested. (by the police, of course) |
| The doer isn't important | Passive: The building was finished in 2010. |
| Processes and science | Passive: The water is heated to 80°C. |
| Formal notices | Passive: Smoking is not permitted. |
| The doer matters | Active: Ana painted this! I broke the window, sorry. |
My phone was stolen on the train.
You don't know who did it, so leave the doer out.
He was arrested for speeding.
Everyone knows the police arrested him; saying so adds nothing.
First, the beans are roasted. Then they are ground.
The steps matter, not the workers. This is standard in IELTS Writing Task 1 process diagrams.
Two people were injured in the accident.
The people affected are the news, so they go first.
Common expressions worth learning as they are.
Our flight _____ because of the storm.
From the basic form to the reporting passive.
Paste an email or an essay. Clarigram marks the mistakes you actually make, shows the rule behind each one as a picture, and builds your practice from them.
No. Overusing it can make writing vague, but it's the right choice when the action or the result matters more than the doer. In processes and science, it's standard.
Yes, where it fits: in Task 1 process diagrams, and for a formal tone in Task 2. Using it everywhere doesn't earn extra marks.