‘It should be noted that’ (passives to summarise)

In the English Grammar Profile, C1 point 36 in the category of PASSIVES is defined as:

‘it’ as a dummy subject, to summarise or evaluate in discussions, usually in formal or academic writing.

This point often overlaps C1 impersonal modal passive reporting.


*This might clash with B2.

A search of the formal patterns found in the EGP for the iWeb:

it_P _V _VB _VVN that

1 IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT 38271
2 IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED THAT 7966
3 IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT 5822
4 IT COULD BE ARGUED THAT 5482
5 IT HAS BEEN REPORTED THAT 5130
6 IT HAS BEEN SHOWN THAT 4907

7 IT HAS BEEN ESTIMATED THAT 3793

PELIC STUDENT EXAMPLE:

It has been estimated that in the United States alone, at least 400,000 such embryos are destroyed.

Arabic Female level 5 writing class.

8 IT CAN BE SEEN THAT 3737 (This construction is very common in IELTS task 1)
9 IT CAN BE SAID THAT 3677
10 IT HAS BEEN FOUND THAT 3555
11 IT CAN BE ARGUED THAT 3527
12 IT MUST BE NOTED THAT 3110
13 IT SHOULD BE REMEMBERED THAT 2693
14 IT MUST BE REMEMBERED THAT 2660

15 IT COULD BE SAID THAT 2416
16 IT MUST BE SAID THAT 2248
17 IT CAN BE SHOWN THAT 2055
18 IT HAS BEEN ARGUED THAT 1870
19 IT HAS BEEN PROVEN THAT 1794
20 IT ‘S BEEN SAID THAT 1534
21 IT WILL BE SEEN THAT 1469
22 IT HAS BEEN DETERMINED THAT 1408
23 IT SHOULD BE MENTIONED THAT 1408
24 IT HAS BEEN OBSERVED THAT 1402
25 IT HAS BEEN CONFIRMED THAT 1383
26 IT MAY BE SAID THAT 1375
27 IT CAN BE ASSUMED THAT 1348
28 IT HAS BEEN NOTED THAT 1301
29 IT HAS BEEN PROPOSED THAT 1135
30 IT HAS BEEN REVEALED THAT 1107
31 IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT 1099
32 IT HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED THAT 1077
33 IT SHOULD BE UNDERSTOOD THAT 1025
34 IT SHOULD BE SAID THAT 1004
35 IT HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED THAT 985
36 IT HAS BEEN CLAIMED THAT 869
37 IT SHOULD BE EMPHASIZED THAT 847
38 IT MUST BE UNDERSTOOD THAT 752
39 IT HAS BEEN SPECULATED THAT 739
40 IT HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED THAT 723
41 IT MUST BE ADMITTED THAT 686
42 IT HAS BEEN DISCOVERED THAT 677
43 IT MAY BE NOTED THAT 661
44 IT WILL BE FOUND THAT 656
45 IT MAY BE ARGUED THAT 652
46 IT MIGHT BE ARGUED THAT 645
47 IT ‘S BEEN REPORTED THAT 630
48 IT HAS BEEN STATED THAT 607
49 IT MIGHT BE SAID THAT 549
50 IT SHOULD BE STRESSED THAT 535
51 IT MUST BE STRESSED THAT 512
52 IT WOULD BE EXPECTED THAT 470
53 IT MUST BE EMPHASIZED THAT 468
54 IT HAS BEEN DECIDED THAT 464
55 IT CAN BE DEMONSTRATED THAT 439
56 IT CAN BE EXPECTED THAT 438
57 IT ‘S BEEN SHOWN THAT 416
58 IT ‘S BEEN PROVEN THAT 410
59 IT WILL BE NOTED THAT 402
60 IT HAS BEEN ASSUMED THAT 384
61 IT ‘S BEEN SUGGESTED THAT 379
62 IT CAN BE INFERRED THAT 376
63 IT HAS BEEN HYPOTHESIZED THAT 374
64 IT MAY BE ASSUMED THAT 351
65 IT WILL BE OBSERVED THAT 347
66 IT HAS BEEN KNOWN THAT 343
67 IT WILL BE REMEMBERED THAT 342
68 IT HAS BEEN SEEN THAT 340
69 IT CAN BE PROVEN THAT 339
70 IT SHOULD BE KNOWN THAT 332
71 IT MUST BE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT 322
72 IT WILL BE ASSUMED THAT 315
73 IT SHOULD BE ADDED THAT 314
74 IT SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED THAT 309
75 IT HAS BEEN PROVED THAT 303
76 IT WILL BE NOTICED THAT 289
77 IT MUST BE SHOWN THAT 288
78 IT IS BEING REPORTED THAT 284
79 IT ‘S BEEN ESTIMATED THAT 270
80 IT MUST BE ASSUMED THAT 267
81 IT ‘S BEEN CONFIRMED THAT 262
82 IT MUST BE RECOGNIZED THAT 259
83 IT MIGHT BE THOUGHT THAT 257
84 IT SHOULD BE STATED THAT 255
85 IT HAS BEEN POSTULATED THAT 251
86 IT CAN BE PROVED THAT 250
87 IT HAS BEEN ALLEGED THAT 234
88 IT HAS BEEN HELD THAT 233
89 IT COULD BE SHOWN THAT 222
90 IT ‘S BEEN REVEALED THAT 219
91 IT SHOULD BE ASSUMED THAT 217
92 IT SHOULD BE EXPECTED THAT 214
93 IT HAS BEEN CALCULATED THAT 213
94 IT HAS BEEN RUMORED THAT 210
95 IT WILL BE RECALLED THAT 205
96 IT MUST BE STATED THAT 203
97 IT HAS BEEN AGREED THAT 200
98 IT CAN BE DETERMINED THAT 197
99 IT CAN BE RECALLED THAT 194
100 IT HAS BEEN NOTICED THAT 192

B2 vocabulary:

assumed, calculated, claimed, demonstrated, determined, emphasized, established, estimated, observed, proposed, recalled, revealed, stated

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