ACT Preparation / Unit 4 ACT 0311 short lesson, about 20 seconds
When the Passive Is Right
Captions available
The idea
The passive is not an error in itself: science writing has long used it for objectivity, and it can leave the doer unnamed.
In practice
"The samples were heated to ninety degrees" keeps attention on the samples, not on whoever heated them.
Where people slip
Choose the passive on purpose. When the doer is known and matters, the active is clearer and shorter.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Builds on
Unlocks
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