[비즈니스영어 이메일12] 영어 이메일에서 수동태 활용법 – 더 세련된 비즈니스 톤

*dimplemood의 비즈니스 영어 공부 기록

 

영어 이메일 수동태 완벽 가이드!

passive voice 비즈니스,

한 단계 더 세련된 비즈니스 이메일을 쓰는 법을 정리했습니다.

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Intro.

비즈니스 영어 이메일을 쓰다 보면 이런 고민이 생기죠.

"The mistake was made" vs "I made a mistake"

"It has been decided" vs "We decided"

"Your order will be processed" vs "We will process your order"

 

어떤 게 더 자연스럽고 프로페셔널할까요?

 

수동태(Passive Voice)는 문법 시간에 "되도록 쓰지 마라"고 배운 기억이 있는데,

비즈니스 이메일에서는 오히려 전략적으로 활용하면 훨씬 더 세련되고 프로페셔널한 톤이 나와요.

 

책임을 부드럽게 희석하거나,

초점을 행동보다 결과에 맞추거나,

사실을 더 객관적으로 전달할 때 수동태가 강력한 도구가 됩니다.

 

오늘은 언제, 어떻게 수동태를 쓰면 좋은지 실전 예문과 함께 정리했어요!

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dimplemood 실무 TIP!

1. 수동태란? – 빠른 복습

능동태: 주어가 행동함

"We shipped your order yesterday." (우리가 → 발송했다)

 

수동태: 행동이 주어에게 일어남

"Your order was shipped yesterday." (주문이 → 발송됐다)

 

수동태 기본 공식: Be동사 + 과거분사 (+ by 행위자)

"The report was submitted (by the team)."

"The decision has been made."

"The contract will be reviewed."

 

활용 팁:

• by 행위자는 생략 가능 (오히려 생략이 자연스러운 경우 많음)
• 시제에 따라 be동사 변화
• 주어 = 행동을 받는 대상

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2. 수동태를 써야 할 때 – 5가지 상황

상황 1: 책임 소재를 부드럽게 할 때

 

실수나 문제 상황에서 직접적인 책임 표현을 피할 때:

❌ 너무 직접적:

"I forgot to attach the file."

"We made an error in the invoice."

 

✅ 수동태로 부드럽게:

"The file was not included in the previous email."

"An error was found in the invoice."

 

더 많은 예시:

"The deadline was missed due to unforeseen circumstances."

(= We missed the deadline → 책임 희석)

"The wrong product was dispatched."

(= We sent the wrong product → 부드럽게)

"Some miscommunication occurred on our end."

(= We miscommunicated → 객관적 표현)

 

주의: 과도하게 쓰면 책임 회피처럼 들릴 수 있어요.

진짜 사과할 때는 능동태 + 사과 조합이 더 진심으로 들려요.

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상황 2: 행위자보다 결과/행동에 초점

 

누가 했는지보다 무엇이 됐는지가 중요할 때:

"Your payment has been received." (누가 받았는지보다 → 받아졌다는 사실)

"Your application has been reviewed." (누가 검토했는지보다 → 검토됐다는 사실)

"The shipment has been dispatched." (우리가 보냈다보다 → 발송됐다는 상태)

"The meeting has been rescheduled to Friday." (누가 바꿨는지보다 → 변경됐다는 결과)

 

자주 쓰이는 패턴:

Your [Item] has been [Action].

The [Document] has been sent/attached/updated.

The [Issue] has been resolved/addressed/escalated.

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상황 3: 공식적이고 객관적인 톤이 필요할 때

 

정책 안내, 공식 통보, 계약 관련:

"Payment is required within 30 days of invoice." (회사 정책이라는 느낌)

"All orders are subject to availability." (일반적 규정)

"This agreement is governed by Korean law." (계약서 문체)

"Complaints must be submitted in writing." (공식 절차)

 

더 많은 예시:

"Prices are subject to change without notice."

"Returns are accepted within 30 days of purchase."

"All transactions are processed in USD."

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상황 4: 행위자를 밝히고 싶지 않을 때

 

내부 결정이나 정책을 전달할 때:

"It has been decided that the project will be postponed." (누가 결정했는지 밝히지 않음)

"It has been brought to our attention that..." (누가 알렸는지 불명확)

"The budget has been reduced by 20%." (누가 줄였는지 명시 안 함)

 

활용 팁: 내부 사정을 외부에 노출하지 않아도 될 때 유용해요.

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상황 5: 전문적이고 격식 있는 문체

 

공식 이메일, 보고서, 제안서:

"The proposal has been carefully reviewed."

"Significant progress has been made."

"The following recommendations have been prepared."

"The attached document has been updated accordingly."

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3. 자주 쓰이는 수동태 패턴 모음

알림/업데이트:

You will be notified once [Event].
> "You will be notified once your order ships."

 

You are advised to [Action].

>  "You are advised to keep a copy of this confirmation."

 

Please be informed that [Information].

>  "Please be informed that our office will be closed on Monday."

 

Please be advised that [Update].

>  "Please be advised that our pricing has been updated."

 

 

확인/접수:

Your [Item] has been received.

>  "Your payment has been received and is being processed."

 

Your [Item] has been confirmed.

>  "Your reservation has been confirmed."

 

Your request has been [Status].

>  "Your request has been forwarded to the relevant team."

 

 

완료/처리:

The issue has been resolved.

>  "The issue has been resolved and we apologize for the inconvenience."

 

The [Document] has been sent.

>  "The revised contract has been sent to your email."

 

The [Action] has been completed.

>  "The refund has been processed."

 

 

지연/문제:

A delay has been caused by [Reason].

>  "A delay has been caused by unforeseen logistics issues."

 

An error was found in [Document].

>  "An error was found in the invoice, which has now been corrected."

 

The [Issue] has been escalated.

>  "This matter has been escalated to our management team."

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4. 능동태 vs 수동태 – 언제 어떤 걸?

능동태가 더 좋을 때:

✅ 직접적인 약속/책임: "I will send you the report by Friday." (능동이 더 명확)

✅ 따뜻하고 개인적인 톤: "I really enjoyed meeting you." (능동이 더 따뜻)

✅ 빠른 행동 촉구: "Please send us the signed contract." (능동이 더 강력)

✅ 진심 어린 사과: "I sincerely apologize for the mistake." (능동이 더 진심)

 

수동태가 더 좋을 때:

✅ 객관적 사실 전달: "Your order has been processed."

✅ 공식적 정책 안내: "Refunds are processed within 7 business days."

✅ 책임 부드럽게: "The file was accidentally omitted."

✅ 결과 중심: "The issue has been resolved."

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5. 실전 이메일 Before & After

상황 1: 배송 지연 안내

Before (능동태만):

"I'm sorry, we delayed your shipment

because we had a problem in our factory.

We will send it next week."

 

After (수동태 활용):

"We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.

Your shipment has been delayed due to an unexpected production issue.

The revised dispatch date has been scheduled for June 15th,

and you will be notified with tracking information as soon as the goods are shipped."

 

차이점:

• 회사 내부 문제를 구체적으로 노출하지 않음
• 결과(dispatch date)에 초점
• 더 공식적이고 프로페셔널

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상황 2: 실수 인정 이메일

Before (너무 직접적):

"Sorry, I sent you the wrong invoice.

I made a mistake. I'm sending the correct one now."

 

After (균형 있게):

"Please accept our apologies for the confusion.

An incorrect invoice was sent in our previous email.

The correct invoice has now been attached to this email.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."

 

차이점:

• 개인 실수보다 회사 차원의 사과
• 해결책(correct invoice)에 초점
• 더 격식 있는 톤

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상황 3: 가격 인상 안내

Before (직접적):

"We are increasing our prices by 10% from next month because our costs went up."

 

After (수동태 활용):

"Please be advised that our prices will be adjusted upward

by 10% effective July 1st, in line with increased production costs.

Updated pricing has been reflected in the attached price list.

We appreciate your understanding and continued partnership."

 

차이점:

• "우리가 올린다"보다 "가격이 조정된다"
• 이유를 간결하게
• 첨부 자료로 연결

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6. 수동태 자주 틀리는 패턴

실수 1: be동사 빼먹기

❌ "The report submitted."

✅ "The report was submitted." / "The report has been submitted."

 

실수 2: 시제 혼동

❌ "Your order is shipped yesterday."

✅ "Your order was shipped yesterday."

 

시제별 수동태:

시제	예시
현재	is/are + p.p. → "It is included."
과거	was/were + p.p. → "It was sent."
현재완료	has/have been + p.p. → "It has been processed."
미래	will be + p.p. → "It will be reviewed."
진행	is being + p.p. → "It is being prepared."

실수 3: 과도한 수동태

❌ 모든 문장을 수동태로 쓰면 딱딱하고 읽기 어려워요.

✅ 능동태와 수동태를 적절히 섞기.

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⚠️ 수동태 주의사항

❌ 책임 완전 회피:

"Errors were made and mistakes occurred."

→ 아무도 책임 안 지는 느낌

✅ 균형 있게:

"An error occurred on our end, and we sincerely apologize."

(수동태로 행동 + 능동태로 사과)

 

❌ 너무 복잡한 수동태:

"The report that was requested by you has been prepared by our team and will be sent."

→ 읽기 어려움

✅ 간결하게:

"We've prepared the requested report and will send it shortly."

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📌 비즈니스 이메일 수동태 빠른 참조

자주 쓰이는 표현 모음:

• 알림:
  Please be informed / Please be advised / You will be notified
• 완료:
  Has been sent / Has been processed / Has been resolved
• 수신 확인:
  Has been received / Has been reviewed / Has been noted
• 진행 중:
  Is being reviewed / Is being processed / Is being prepared
• 예정:
  Will be sent / Will be dispatched / Will be updated
• 공식 정책:
  Is required / Is subject to / Is not permitted / Must be submitted

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📌 연습 문제

다음 능동태 문장을 수동태로 바꿔보세요:

1. "We received your payment."
   → (Your payment has been received.)
2. "Our team is reviewing your proposal."
   → (Your proposal is being reviewed.)
3. "We will deliver the goods next week."
   → (The goods will be delivered next week.)
4. "Someone made an error in the contract."
   → (An error was found in the contract.)
5. "We have resolved the technical issue."
   → (The technical issue has been resolved.)

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🌟 수동태는 전략이다

수동태를 "문법적으로 틀리지 않게 쓰는 것"이 아니라

의도적으로 활용하는 도구로 생각해보세요.

• 초점을 어디에 둘 것인가
• 책임을 어떻게 표현할 것인가
• 어떤 톤을 원하는가

이 세 가지를 고려해서

능동태와 수동태를 전략적으로 섞으면 훨씬 더 세련된 비즈니스 이메일이 완성됩니다!

 

dimplemood의 실전 꿀팁:

이메일 쓰고 나서 한 번 더 읽으면서

"이 문장은 수동태로 하면 더 자연스럽지 않을까?" 체크해보세요.

특히 사과 이메일이나 공식 안내 이메일에서 수동태 하나가 톤을 확 바꿔줘요!

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지난주 클레임 이메일에 이어 오늘은 수동태로 이메일 톤 업그레이드를 다뤘어요!

 

내일은 실무에서 쓴 영어 이메일 Before & After를 다뤄볼게요.