Choosing between Active and Passive Voice Verbs when Writing Usually, effective writing uses the active voice and shuns the passive. Nevertheless, some situations are awkward or inappropriate when expressed in the active voice. Certainly, these situations call for the passive voice. Reasons to use the passive voice: The agent (doer) of the action is unimportant. The pyramids were built thousands of years ago. The agent is unknown. Several robberies were committed during the night. The agent is common knowledge, and mentioning it would be redundant. George Bush was elected in 2000. The writer desires to control focus of sentence. 1) to de-emphasize the agent’s role in the action The alarm was triggered by my son. [Passive construction shifts focus away from the son’s responsibility.] 2) to emphasize the party receiving the action. Jack was kicked by Jill. Reasons to use the active voice: The active voice is shorter and more direct. Compare: Active: The waiter dropped the tray of food. Passive: The tray of food was dropped by the waiter. The active voice is less awkward and clearly states relationship between subject and action. Compare. Passive: Your request for funding has been denied by the review committee. Active: The review committee denied your request for funding. The active voice sentence pattern propels the reader forward through your writing thus avoiding weak prose. from http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/qwrtcntr/resources/handouts/activepassive.htm Practice 1: Directions: Change the sentences below to the passive voice.
Choosing between Active and Passive Voice Verbs when Writing Usually, effective writing uses the active voice and shuns the passive. Nevertheless, some situations are awkward or inappropriate when expressed in the active voice. Certainly, these situations call for the passive voice. Reasons to use the passive voice: The agent (doer) of the action is unimportant. The pyramids were built thousands of years ago. The agent is unknown. Several robberies were committed during the night. The agent is common knowledge, and mentioning it would be redundant. George Bush was elected in 2000. The writer desires to control focus of sentence. 1) to de-emphasize the agent’s role in the action The alarm was triggered by my son. [Passive construction shifts focus away from the son’s responsibility.] 2) to emphasize the party receiving the action. Jack was kicked by Jill. Reasons to use the active voice: The active voice is shorter and more direct. Compare: Active: The waiter dropped the tray of food. Passive: The tray of food was dropped by the waiter. The active voice is less awkward and clearly states relationship between subject and action. Compare. Passive: Your request for funding has been denied by the review committee. Active: The review committee denied your request for funding. The active voice sentence pattern propels the reader forward through your writing thus avoiding weak prose. from http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/qwrtcntr/resources/handouts/activepassive.htm Practice 1: Directions: Change the sentences below to the passive voice.
Active%20and%20passive%20voice.docx