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When do we use passive structures?

Interest in the action​

We often choose passive structures when we want to talk about an action, but are not so interested in saying (or not able to say) who or what does/did it. Passives without ‘agents’ (see here) are common in academic and scientific writing for this reason.

  • Those pyramids were built around 400 AD.
  • Too many books have been written about the Second World War.
  • The results have not yet been analysed.

Putting the news at the end​

We often prefer to begin a sentence with something that is already known, or that we are already talking about, and to put the ‘news’ at the end. This is another common reason for choosing passive structures. Compare:

  • Jack’s painting my portrait. (active verb so that the ‘news’ – the portrait – can go at the end)
  • ‘Nice picture.’ ‘Yes, it was painted by my grandmother.’ (passive verb so that the ‘news’ – the painter – can go at the end)

Keeping the same subject​

In order to keep talking about the same person or thing, it may be necessary to switch from active to passive and back.

  • He waited for two hours; then he was seen by a doctor; then he was sent back to the waiting room. He sat there for another two hours – by this time he was getting angry. Then he was taken upstairs and examined by a specialist, after which he had to wait for another hour before he was allowed to go home.
    (More natural than He waited for two hours; then a doctor saw him …)

Putting heavier expressions at the end​

Longer and heavier expressions often go at the end of a clause, and this can also be a reason for choosing a passive structure.

  • I was annoyed by Emily wanting to tell everybody what to do. (More natural than Emily wanting to tell everybody what to do annoyed me – the phrase Emily … do would make a very long subject.)
note

For more about reflexive verbs, (see here).

For active and passive past participles, (see here).

For -ing forms with passive meanings after need and want (e.g. My watch needs cleaning), (see here).

For more about the way information is organised in sentences, (see here).