Passive Voice Definition
Understanding Passive Voice And Active Voice
Great writing should have a smooth flow, be crystal clear and concise, and be free of extraneous words and awkwardly worded sentences. Even the most experienced native speakers can make mistakes with the English language due to
its many grammatical quirks and ambiguities. We've all seen a terribly written blog post or press release in our time.
Using passive voice instead of active voice when writing is a typical mistake. But what does active voice actually mean? And why does it typically work better than a more passive voice? In this article, we will talk about passive
voice and active voice, and let you know how you can avoid passive voice in your writings
What is the passive voice?
Many writers make a critical mistake using the passive voice instead of the active one. All the sentences in English have to be in active or passive (static) voice. In an active sentence, the person or thing responsible for the
action comes first.
In a passive sentence, the person or thing that is acted on comes first, and the actor is added at the end, introduced with the preposition ‘by.’ The passive form of the verb is signaled by a form of to be: in the sentence
above was formulated in passive voice while formulated did active.
Here is a passive voice example, "The winner received the award." This sentence is in active voice. In the active voice, the subject and the verb are both in the active voice. In the passive voice, the subject of the
sentence is a thing (award), and the sentence's verb is in the passive voice. For example, "The award was received by the winner." In the passive voice, the subject and the verb are both in the passive voice.
Hoe you've been cleared between Passive voice and Active Voice.
What is the Active Voice?
If the subject carries out the action, the sentence is said to be in the active voice. The majority of phrase structures that we encounter daily are in active voice. Sentences in the active voice are shorter and more concise than
those in the passive voice. As a result, they are clearer and less unclear.
The easiest technique to determine if a sentence is active is first identifying the subject before determining whether the subject is performing the action. When a sentence uses the active voice, the action's doer—a
person, place, or thing—comes before, and the action's recipient—comes after the verb.
Passive voice and Active voice with examples:
The Difference Between Passive voice and Active Voice
The function of the subject in a sentence is the main difference between the passive voice and active voice. The subject of a sentence is the same as the action-taker in an active voice, but in a passive voice structure, the subject
is the recipient of the action rather than the action-taker. In contrast, the doer is either acknowledged after the sentence in the passive voice or is not mentioned at all.
The verb structures used in each voice represent the second distinction between the active and passive voices. The past participle of the verb plus a form of the verb to be is required in passive voice. Lets understand Passive
voice and Active Voice in a better way:
Use of Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: The subject of the sentence is performing the action.
Passive Voice: The action is done upon the subject.
Doer of the action in Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: The verb is followed by the person who is carrying out the activity.
Passive Voice: The verb comes before the actor in the passive voice.
The receiver of the action in Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: The receiver of the action is preceded by the verb.
Passive Voice: The receiver of the action is followed by the verb.
The clarity in Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: More straightforward and clear meaning.
Passive Voice: Meaning can be confusing and indirect.
The tone in Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: The tone is strong and subjective.
Passive Voice: The tone is neutral or objective.
Direct Object in Passive voice and Active Voice
Active Voice: Active voice can be used to write sentences without direct objects.
Passive Voice: Passive voice cannot be used in sentences without direct objects.
