Active and passive voice

In the English language two major sentences structure are used to convey information: the active voice and the passive voice.

While both are grammatically correct, they uses, impact, and clarity differ significantly. Mastering these can greatly enhace your writing, making it clearer and more engaging.

Active voice

In the active voice the subject of the sentence performs the actions described by the verb.

This is the more direct, clear, and often prefferd sentence structure because it immediately tells the reader who or what is responsible for the action.

Structure of active voice:

Subject + verb + object

E.g. The teacher (subject) explains (verb) the lesson (object).

The dog (subject) chased (verb) the ball (object).

In these sentences, the subject (the teacher or the dog) is clearly doing the action. This structure tends to be more straightforward and dynamic, making it ideal for most forms of writing.

Why use active voice?

Clarity: the active voice eliminates ambiguity by showing who is responsible for the action.
Concisceness: it typically uses fewer words making sentences shorter and more to the point.
Engagement: active voice tends to make writing more lively and easier to follow.

Passive voice

In the passive voice, the object of the action becomes the subject of the sentence.

The person or thing, performing the action may be mentioned later in the sentence or not at all, depending on the emphasis.

Structure of passive voice

Object + form of "to be" + past participle of verb (+ by + subject)

E.g. The lesson (object) was explained (verb) by the teacher (subject).

The ball (object) was chased (verb) by the dog (subject).

Here the focus shiftes from who is doing the action (the subject) to what is being acted upon (the object).

Why use passive voice

Emphasis on the action or object: If you want to highlight the action itself or the recipient of the action, the passive voice is useful. For instance, in scientific writing, the focus is often on the process or result, not on the person conduting the experiment.__ E.g. The results were analized (the focus is on the results, not the reseacher).
Unknown subject: sometimes, the subject is unknown or unimportant. For example: the Window was broken (we don't know or care who broke it).
Imperson tone: in formal or academic context, passive voice can create a more objective tone by removing Personal subject from sentences.

When to avoid passive voice

Though the passive voice has its uses overusing it can make writing seem vague, indirect, or unnecessarily complicated.

Here are some situations where the passive voice might weaken your writing:

Lack of clarity: sentence can become confusing if the performer the action is omitted or nuclear.
Wordness: the passive voice generally riquires more words and can make sentences longer and more convoluted.
Weaker impact: passive constructions can sound less forceful or energetic, reducing the impact of your statements.

Exemple:

Passive: the novel was read by million of people.

Active: Millions of people reads the novel.

How to identify passive passive voice

One common way to spot passive voice is to look for the verb phrase includes a form of "to be" (am, is, are, was, were etc.) followed by the past participle of the main verb.

You can also ask yourself if the subject it the one performing the action done to it.