ERROR 9: OVERUSE OF PASSIVE VOICE
Definition
Voice describes the relationship between the subject of a sentence and the verb. In active voice, the subject performs the action: ‘The manager approved the request.’ In passive voice, the subject receives the action: ‘The request was approved by the manager.’ In the passive, the actor (the manager) is either placed at the end of the sentence in a ‘by’ phrase or omitted entirely: ‘The request was approved.’
Passive voice is not incorrect, and it has legitimate uses: when the actor is unknown or unimportant (‘The museum was built in 1892’), when the receiver of the action is more important than the actor (‘The patient was treated immediately’), in scientific writing where the focus is on what was done rather than who did it (‘The samples were analyzed under controlled conditions’), or in diplomatic writing when you want to avoid assigning blame directly.
However, overuse of passive voice makes writing weak, wordy, and evasive. It can hide responsibility, obscure meaning, and create unnecessarily long sentences. Strong, direct writing generally prefers active voice because it is more energetic, clear, and concise. The passive is an error not because it is grammatically wrong but because it is so often the wrong stylistic choice — particularly in student writing, business communication, and journalism.
Rules
RULE: Prefer active voice in most writing. Make the subject of the sentence the doer of the action.
RULE: Use passive voice only when there is a specific reason: the actor is unknown, the actor is unimportant, or the receiver of the action is more important than the actor.
RULE: Avoid using passive voice to avoid stating who is responsible for an action.
RULE: Passive constructions can often be identified by the pattern: form of ‘to be’ + past participle (was completed, is being reviewed, have been approved).
Examples
✗ The report was written by the senior analyst. [Passive — actor known and important]
✓ The senior analyst wrote the report. [Active — direct and clearer]
✗ Mistakes were made in the budgeting process.
✓ The finance team made errors in the budgeting process. [Active — assigns responsibility]
✗ The ball was kicked into the goal by the striker in the final minute.
✓ The striker kicked the ball into the goal in the final minute.
✗ It was decided by the committee that the project would be postponed.
✓ The committee decided to postpone the project.
✗ The results were analyzed by the research team using statistical software.
✓ The research team analyzed the results using statistical software.
✗ The new policy was announced by the president at a press conference.
✓ The president announced the new policy at a press conference.
✗ It has been determined that the building needs to be demolished. [No actor named]
✓ The city engineers have determined that the building must be demolished.
✗ A decision will be made by management regarding the restructuring plan.
✓ Management will decide on the restructuring plan.
✗ The concert was enjoyed by everyone in attendance.
✓ Everyone in attendance enjoyed the concert.
✗ The amendment was passed by Congress with bipartisan support.
✓ Congress passed the amendment with bipartisan support.
Extended Dialogue
In this dialogue, corporate communications director Patricia coaches her new employee, Ryan, on revising his business memo.
Patricia: Ryan, your memo has good content, but it’s written almost entirely in passive voice. That weakens the message.
Ryan: I thought passive voice sounded more professional and formal.
Patricia: That’s a very common belief — and it’s mostly wrong. Passive voice can sound formal, but it often sounds evasive and bureaucratic. In business writing, directness is respected.
Ryan: Can you show me an example?
Patricia: You wrote: ‘It has been decided that the project timeline will be extended by two weeks.’ Who decided?
Ryan: The executive team.
Patricia: Then say that. ‘The executive team has decided to extend the project timeline by two weeks.’ See how that’s cleaner and more authoritative?
Ryan: It does sound more confident. But what about: ‘Mistakes were made in the initial planning phase’? Sometimes it’s better not to say who made the mistakes?
Patricia: That’s actually a legitimate use of passive — and a famous political dodge! When the actor is genuinely unknown or when there’s a strategic reason to omit names, passive is fine. But you should use it consciously, not by default.
Ryan: So the problem is using passive voice when active would be clearer, not using passive ever?
Patricia: Exactly. Look at this sentence: ‘The new software was installed by the IT department on all company computers.’ Is the IT department important here?
Ryan: Probably yes — people need to know who to contact if there are problems.
Patricia: Then keep the actor prominent: ‘The IT department installed the new software on all company computers.’ The IT department is the subject.
Ryan: And if I wrote ‘The new software was installed on all computers’ — passive without naming anyone?
Patricia: That would be appropriate if the focus is on what was installed and the reader doesn’t need to know who did it. Passive is a tool. Use it with a purpose. Don’t use it because you’re avoiding committing to a subject.
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