What is a passive reporting structure?
When we want to report information, opinions or rumors without saying who they come from, English uses a passive form of a reporting verb. It sounds more formal and more cautious than People say that…, so you meet it constantly in news reports, research and academic writing.
Some people say that this behavior is normal. → It is said that this behavior is normal.
Researchers think these games increase self-awareness. → These games are thought to increase self-awareness.
Both versions above report the same idea. They show the two possible patterns: start with it, or start with the subject.
Note: the passive is doing a job here. It lets you report a claim while staying neutral about whether it is true — and without naming a source you cannot name.
Pattern 1 — start with it
The reporting verb goes into the passive after an empty subject it, and the information follows in a full that-clause.
It + is/was + past participle + that + subject + verb
It is believed that the ruins are over two thousand years old.
It was reported that nobody had been injured in the fire.
It is estimated that forty percent of all food is wasted.
The clause after that is an ordinary clause with its own subject and finite verb. Keep that — in this formal register it is not usually left out.
Pattern 2 — start with the subject
Here the subject of the that-clause moves to the front of the sentence, and what follows becomes a to-infinitive.
Subject + is/was + past participle + to + infinitive
The ruins are believed to be over two thousand years old.
The painting is now known to be a forgery.
Two paintings are reported to have been stolen from the gallery.
The company is not thought to be in serious trouble.
| Pattern 1 | Pattern 2 |
|---|
| It is said that he is very wealthy. | He is said to be very wealthy. |
| It is claimed that the drug works. | The drug is claimed to work. |
| It was thought that she lived abroad. | She was thought to live abroad. |
Careful: never mix the two. There is no that in Pattern 2 and no infinitive in Pattern 1.
✗ He is said that he is wealthy. ✗ It is said him to be wealthy.
Getting the time right in Pattern 2
Pattern 1 shows time with a normal tense in the that-clause. In Pattern 2 there is no tense to use, so the form of the infinitive carries the time instead.
| Infinitive | Meaning | Example |
|---|
| to + base verb | same time as the report | He is said to live in Lisbon. |
| to be + -ing | happening right now | She is thought to be working abroad. |
| to have + past participle | earlier than the report | The ship is believed to have sunk in 1782. |
It is said that he was a spy. → He is said to have been a spy.
It is thought that they are hiding in the mountains. → They are thought to be hiding in the mountains.
Which verbs, and common mistakes
The verbs most often used this way are assume, believe, claim, consider, estimate, know, recommend, report, say, suppose, think and understand. Most of them work in both patterns, but two behave differently:
recommend — Pattern 1 only: It is recommended that all passengers arrive two hours early.
consider — usually keeps to be, or takes an adjective directly: She is considered (to be) the finest violinist of her generation. / Is the medicine considered safe?
⚠ Common mistakes:
✗ He is said that he is very wealthy. → ✓ He is said to be very wealthy.
✗ The virus is believed to has spread quickly. → ✓ to have spread quickly
✗ The team said to be ready. → ✓ The team is said to be ready.
✗ The paper is thought to being older. → ✓ to be older
✗ It was estimate that a million people watched. → ✓ It was estimated that…