What is Voice?
Active and passive voice are two ways of constructing sentences in the English language. In active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action. In passive voice, the subject of the sentence is acted upon. Understanding the difference between these two voices and when to use them can make your writing more clear and effective.
Active Voice:
In active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action. For example, “The dog chased the cat.” In this sentence, “the dog” is the subject and “chased” is the action. Active voice is direct and to the point, making it a great choice for most forms of writing.
Passive Voice:
In passive voice, the subject of the sentence is acted upon. For example, “The cat was chased by the dog.” In this sentence, “the cat” is the subject and “was chased” is the action. Passive voice can be useful in certain situations, such as when you want to emphasize the action or the object of the action rather than the subject. However, it can also make your writing sound less clear and less interesting.
When to use active and passive voice
It is generally recommended to use active voice in most forms of writing, as it makes your writing more direct and engaging. However, there are certain situations where passive voice can be useful. For example, if you want to emphasize the action or the object of the action rather than the subject, using passive voice can help you achieve this.
Another example is when you want to avoid assigning blame. Consider the sentence “John broke the vase.” This sentence is in active voice and assigns blame to John. But if you want to avoid assigning blame, you can use passive voice and say “The vase was broken.”
Here are some tips to help you identify active and passive voice in your writing:
- Look for the verb in the sentence. In active voice, the verb will be in the present or past tense. In passive voice, the verb will be in the past participle form.
- Look for the subject of the sentence. In active voice, the subject will be performing the action. In passive voice, the subject will be receiving the action.
- Look for the word “by” in the sentence. If it’s present, it’s likely in passive voice.
Active Voice: “The boy kicked the ball.”
Passive Voice: “The ball was kicked by the boy.”
Active Voice: “John wrote the report.”
Passive Voice: “The report was written by John.”
Active Voice: “The cat chased the mouse.”
Passive Voice: “The mouse was chased by the cat.”
Active Voice: “The company launched a new product.”
Passive Voice: “A new product was launched by the company.”
Active Voice: “The teacher graded the exams.”
Passive Voice: “The exams were graded by the teacher.”
Active Voice: “The storm damaged the house.”
Passive Voice: “The house was damaged by the storm.”
It’s important to note that in some cases, the sentence may not make sense or be grammatically incorrect when written in passive voice. The example above can show you the difference and when to use it.
