I was sitting in a dim exam hall last Tuesday, grading a stack of IELTS essays, when I felt that familiar, sharp pang of frustration. I looked down at a candidate’s paper—a bright, capable student, clearly—and saw it again: a relentless, rhythmic drone of “it was decided,” “it was thought,” and “the results were obtained.” They think they are being formal, but they are actually just being boring. Most textbooks will give you a long-winded lecture on grammatical structures, but they never tell you the truth about how to avoid overusing the passive in a way that actually saves your score. You aren’t being sophisticated; you are just hiding your ideas behind a curtain of weak verbs.
I am not here to give you a dry grammar lesson or a list of academic clichés. I have spent nineteen years watching the same mistakes drain points from high-achieving adults, and I am done watching it happen. In this post, I am going to show you exactly how to spot that “passive drift” in your own writing and how to swap those limp constructions for active, high-impact verbs. We are going to stop treating English like a set of abstract rules and start treating it like a tool for precision.
Table of Contents
Identifying Passive Voice Before It Costs You
So, how do you actually spot the culprit in the middle of a frantic exam session? I tell my students to look for the “by zombies” test. It sounds silly, but it works. If you can add the phrase “by zombies” to the end of your sentence and it still makes grammatical sense, you’ve likely fallen into the passive trap. For instance, “The report was written (by zombies)” is passive, whereas “The committee wrote the report” is direct. Identifying passive voice becomes much easier once you stop looking for complex grammar and start looking for the missing actor.
When you are scanning your draft, look for those tell-tale auxiliary verbs like is, am, are, was, or were paired with a past participle. These are the red flags that signal you are drifting away from writing with authority. Instead of letting the action happen to your subject, make sure your subject is the one doing the heavy lifting. If you find yourself writing “A decision was reached by the board,” stop. Flip it. “The board decided” is leaner, faster, and much more likely to earn you those precious marks.
Strengthening Prose Through Better Sentence Structure
Once you have mastered identifying passive voice, you need to focus on the actual mechanics of improving sentence structure. It isn’t enough to simply “fix” a sentence; you must understand why the change matters for your overall flow. When I look at my students’ essays, the biggest issue isn’t just the grammar—it’s the lack of momentum. A series of passive constructions creates a heavy, sluggish rhythm that makes even the most brilliant arguments feel like they are wading through mud.
To truly succeed, you must practice writing with authority. This means choosing a clear subject and a strong verb to drive the action forward. Instead of writing, “The decision was made by the committee,” try “The committee decided.” It’s a small shift, but it transforms a hesitant observation into a decisive statement. I often tell my students that if you want the examiner to believe your argument, you have to stop hiding behind the “to be” verb. Use those active voice examples we practiced in class to ensure your prose doesn’t just exist, but actually commands the reader’s attention.
Five Ways to Stop Hiding Behind the Passive Voice
- Find the actor. Every time you see a form of “to be” paired with a past participle, stop and ask: “Who is actually doing this?” If you can name the person or thing performing the action, put them at the front of the sentence.
- Watch out for “The Investigation was conducted.” This is a classic mistake I see in my error log every single semester. It’s heavy, it’s clunky, and it’s unnecessary. Instead, try “Researchers conducted the investigation.” It’s leaner and much more authoritative.
- Use “by” as a red flag. If you find yourself writing “by [someone]” at the end of a sentence, you have almost certainly built a passive structure. Use that “by” phrase as a cue to flip the sentence around and start with the agent.
- Prioritize strong, active verbs. Students often default to the passive because they are playing it safe with weak verbs. If you swap a weak passive construction for a punchy, active verb, your writing gains the momentum needed for higher marks.
- Audit your “it” and “there” openings. I often see students start sentences with “It was decided that…” or “There were many mistakes made…” These are lazy ways to avoid committing to a subject. Force yourself to name the decision-maker or the source of the error immediately.
Final Thoughts on Finding Your Voice
Let’s be clear: I am not telling you to banish the passive voice from your lexicon entirely. There are moments in academic writing where the object of the action is the only thing that matters. However, if you find yourself constantly hiding behind “it was decided” or “the data was analyzed” without ever naming the actor, you are making a tactical error. We have spent this time learning how to spot these patterns and, more importantly, how to pivot back to the active voice to give your prose some much-needed muscle. Remember, the goal isn’t just to follow a rule; it is to ensure that your sentence structure serves your argument rather than obscuring it. If you can master this shift, you will stop throwing away marks on muddy, indirect phrasing.
I know how exhausting it feels to sit through another round of exam preparation, especially when you feel like you are just dancing to the tune of arbitrary rules. But I want you to look at this differently. This isn’t about memorizing a list of “dos and don’ts” to please an examiner; it is about developing a sense of agency in your own English. When you choose an active verb, you are taking control of your narrative. You are moving from a passive observer to an active communicator. Practice these shifts until they become second nature, and I promise you, the clarity of your writing will transform your results. You have the tools; now, go out there and use them with intention.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I switch everything to the active voice, won't my writing sound too aggressive or informal for an academic exam?
I hear this concern in almost every seminar I run. You’re worried that being direct equals being rude, aren’t you? Let me be clear: there is a massive difference between being aggressive and being precise. Academic writing isn’t about being “polite” through wordiness; it’s about clarity. You don’t need to shout. You just need to stop hiding the actor. Use the active voice to show who is doing what, and you’ll gain authority, not informality.
How do I know when the passive voice is actually the "correct" choice rather than just a lazy habit?
Look, I’m not a drill sergeant; I’m a linguist. There is a time for the passive voice. Use it when the actor is unknown, irrelevant, or—crucially—when you want to shift the focus onto the recipient of the action. If you’re writing a lab report or discussing a crime where the perpetrator is a mystery, the passive is your friend. Use it for emphasis, not for hiding. If the “who” doesn’t matter, the passive is fine.
Is there a specific word count penalty for using too much passive voice, or does it just lower my score for "range and accuracy"?
There is no “passive voice tax” in the sense of a specific word count penalty, but don’t let that fool you. If you lean on it too heavily, you are effectively sabotaging your score for “Lexical Resource” and “Grammatical Range and Accuracy.” Examiners look for control. If every sentence follows that same “was/were + past participle” pattern, you aren’t demonstrating range; you’re demonstrating a lack of it. It makes your writing feel stagnant and heavy.
