Professional writing: using the passive voice for formality

Business English β€” a B2 lesson. Practise using the passive voice for a formal tone and expand your vocabulary for professional communication.

Professional writing: using the passive voice for formality

Summary

This ESL lesson for B2 English students explores Business English. Using a real audio as the basis for discussion, students develop listening comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar skills across a 90-minute class.

The grammar focus is The Passive Voice (be + past participle). Key vocabulary includes employed (verb (past participle)), optimize (verb), objective (adjective) and more, all drawn directly from the source material. The practical English section gives students useful phrases for real-life situations: You are in a team meeting or writing a report. You need to present findings, decisions, and recommendations in a formal, objective way..

Activities

00:00 When drafting business reports, the passive voice is frequently employed.
00:05 For instance, 'The quarterly results were analyzed thoroughly,' or 'Recommendations were made to optimize workflow.'
00:12 It helps maintain an objective tone and emphasizes the action rather than the doer.
00:17 This approach is especially useful when presenting sensitive information or company-wide policies.
00:23 However, it's important that clarity isn't sacrificed for formality.
00:28 Overall, mastering its usage is key for effective professional communication.
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Passive voice in business reports
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Vocabulary focus

The vocabulary section introduces B2-level words and phrases related to Business English. Key terms include employed (verb (past participle)), optimize (verb), objective (adjective), formality (noun), prevalence (noun). Students practise using these terms in context through exercises drawn from the source material.

Grammar focus

This lesson focuses on The Passive Voice (be + past participle). The passive voice is used to change the focus of a sentence. Instead of the subject (the 'doer') being the most important part, the object (what the action is done to) becomes the focus.

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Passive Voice in Business Reports & Presentations
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