Short answer: Use the passive when the action matters more than who does it.
That makes it essential for Task 1 process diagrams (the leaves are dried and then crushed), useful for maps (the factory was demolished) and helpful for formal Task 2 phrasing (it is widely believed that).
Form it with be plus the past participle, and never make verbs like happen or consist passive.
Accurate passives are part of the range that the Grammatical Range and Accuracy criterion rewards, and in a process diagram the Task 1 descriptor's "accurate" reporting of stages depends on them. All examples below were written for this article.
How to form the passive in every tense
The passive is be + past participle. The verb be changes for tense; the participle never does.
| Tense | Passive form | Example (written for this article) |
|---|---|---|
| Present simple | is / are + participle | The beans are roasted at high temperature. |
| Past simple | was / were + participle | The old market was demolished in 2005. |
| Present perfect | has / have been + participle | The car park has been replaced by a park. |
| Future | will be + participle | A new bridge will be built across the river. |
| Modal | can / should / must be + participle | Plastic packaging should be taxed. |
| Present continuous | is / are being + participle | The station is being extended. |
Process diagrams: the passive's home ground
A process diagram shows how something is made or how a natural cycle works. The people who do each step are rarely named, so the passive is the natural choice, in the present simple:
First, the raw clay is dug from the ground and transported to the factory. It is then mixed with water and shaped into bricks, which are dried for 48 hours. After that, the bricks are fired in a kiln before they are packaged and delivered.
Three habits make this read well. Vary your sequencing words (first, then, after that, once, finally) so the stages stay clear. Mix in the occasional active verb for natural processes (the water evaporates, since evaporate has no object).
And keep the tense consistent: a process is a general truth, so the present simple throughout.
Our process diagram lesson in the Band 8 Trainer walks through a full model answer.
Maps: change over time
Map questions compare a place at two dates. The passive describes what was done to it:
- Between 1990 and 2020, the farmland to the north was converted into housing.
- The old railway line has been removed, and a cycle path has been built in its place.
- The school was extended to the east.
Use the past simple for a finished past period and the present perfect when the map shows the present day.
Task 2: impersonal passives for a formal tone
Impersonal passives let you report views without naming who holds them, which suits the discursive tone Task 2 expects:
- It is often argued that university education should be free.
- It is widely believed that social media harms concentration.
- Remote work is thought to improve productivity for some roles.
Use them to introduce the views you then evaluate, not as a replacement for your own position. I believe or In my view is still the clearest way to state your opinion.
Common passive errors
| Error | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| Missing be | The leaves dried in the sun. | The leaves are dried in the sun. |
| Passive of a verb with no object | The accident was happened at night. | The accident happened at night. |
| consist made passive | The process is consisted of five stages. | The process consists of five stages. |
| Wrong participle | The bricks are builded. | The bricks are built. |
| Agreement with the subject | The materials is transported. | The materials are transported. |
When not to use the passive
Overused, the passive makes writing vague: It was decided that changes would be made hides who decided and what changed.
In Task 2, prefer the active when the actor matters to your argument: Governments should fund public transport is clearer than Public transport should be funded if your point is about government responsibility. Range means choosing the right voice for each sentence, not converting everything.
Practice: rewrite in the passive
- Workers pick the tea leaves by hand.
- The council knocked down the cinema in 2010.
- Engineers have added a second runway.
Answers: (1) The tea leaves are picked by hand. (2) The cinema was knocked down in 2010. (3) A second runway has been added.
Related structures: relative clauses for describing each stage, and comparatives for the other Task 1 chart types.