In writing, there are two grammatical voices—active voice and passive voice. And you may have been warned by your well-meaning English teacher to avoid passive voice like the plague. But both voices have a right to be heard. However, one will definitely trump the other in helping you beco...
While active voice is generally preferred in most writing situations, sometimes the passive voice can be useful. Here are a few examples: 1. To emphasize the object of the sentence: If you want to give importance to the thing receiving the action instead of the person doing the action, the...
ThePublication Manual of the American Psychological Association(APA) has similar advice: "Prefer the active voice...The passive voice is acceptable in expository writing and when you want to focus on the object or recipient of the action rather than on the actor."3 These...
Using the active and passive voice in research writingClarinda Cerejo
In the simplest terms, an active voice sentence is written in the form of “A does B.” (For example, “Carmen sings the song.”) A passive voice sentence is written in the form of “B is done by A.” (For example, “The song is sung by Carmen.”) Both constructions are grammat...
What Does Active Voice Mean in Writing? The difference between active and passive voice is one that often confuses students and other writers, but the definition depends on an understanding of English grammar. Most sentences in English have two basic parts: the subject and predicate. The subject...
In part, the use of active voice over passive voice is a matter of word economy and simplicity. If you can say something with fewer words, you probably should. It’s also a matter of making your words workforyou. As Zinsser says, “active verbs push hard and passive verbs tug fitfully...
Sometimes, you'll need to use passive voice because the subject of the sentence isn't known or doesn't matter. But most of the time, you'll want to use active voice. We recommend having less than 50 instances of passive voice per every 1,000 sentences in your writing. ...
Convert these passive voice sentences into the active voice: Alana’s toes were crushed by the garage door. The passive voice has likely been heard of by you. Rebeca’s favorite spot in the lecture hall had been taken by the time she got to class. When the passive voice is overused,...
Active vs. Passive Voice: What's The... It’s cut and dried until it’s not. 5 Writing Rules Destroyed by the... Omit needless rules Cite this Entry Style “Writing.”Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/writing. Accessed 23 May. ...