Active and Passive Voice
Essential Question
In sentences (as in life), what does it mean to be active or passive?
What Do I Know?
Directions: In each of the following sentences, identify whether the verb in bold is active or passive.
Building Blocks
Grammar is a complex system and structure of language. Mizzou Academy Grammar Lab spotlights one skill (or block) at a time, but it’s often helpful to see how a skill works together with other, related blocks to build the language structure as a whole. You may find the following resource topics helpful as context for this lesson:
Learn About Active and Passive Voice
You may have been told by your English teachers to avoid the passive voice, but why? Is the active voice always better? And how can you even tell the difference?
In this situation, whether you choose the active or passive approach would depend on a variety of factors (where you are when the fight breaks out, how well you know your friends, whether they have a history of fights like these, and so forth). The same is true in grammar situations.
The active voice isn’t inherently or always “better” than the passive voice. Rather, the key lies in understanding the difference between them, so that you can make an informed choice about which one works best for the particular idea you want to communicate.
What is Voice?
In grammar, the word voice identifies the relationship between the action of a verb and the things that participate in that action. In other words, it identifies who or what performs the action and who receives it.
When the subject of the sentence performs the action of the verb, it’s called the active voice.
What does the active voice look like?
The active voice is usually structured this way:
subject + verb
or
subject + verb + object
Examples
The flowers smell pretty.
Beth smells the flowers.
The bee stings Beth.
When should I use the active voice?
As a general rule, use the active voice whenever possible.
The active voice demonstrates control over language because it is bolder and more precise. It gets straight to the point.
For example, look at this sentence in active voice:
Active: Gardeners grow Ophrys apifera (or Bee orchid) in the southern regions of England.
VS.
Passive: Ophrys apifera (or Bee orchid) are grown by gardeners in the southern regions of England.
The active voice also makes writing more succinct by helping you cut the fluff out of long sentences
For example, this sentence in passive voice is long:
Passive: Male bees are often fooled by the deceptive blossoms of the Bee orchid.
This sentence in active voice, which gets right to the point:
Active: The blossoms of the Ophrys apifera deceive male bees.
Both the active voice and the passive voice are grammatically correct, so ultimately it’s a style choice. Instances do exist where the passive voice is the better approach, but those instances are more rare, and too much of the passive voice can exhaust your reader.
Generally, the active voice is more direct and, therefore, more engaging and enjoyable to read.
Do I Get It?
What have you learned about choosing the most effective voice for speaking and writing? Use this interactive to check your understanding.
Directions: Read the following paragraph carefully. Click on the verbs that demonstrate the passive voice.
Directions: Read the following paragraph carefully. Click on the verbs that demonstrate the active voice.