Active and Passive Voice

• In the active voice, the subject is performing an action:

  e.g The dog chases the ball.
• In the passive voice, the action’s target, ball, is positioned first as the focus of the sentence.

  e.g The ball is being chased by the dog. 
• The active voice has a direct, clear tone. Use it when you want the reader to focus on the subject of your sentence and the action it is doing rather than on the action’s target.
• In the passive voice, the action’s target is the focus, and the verb acts upon the subject. Or, to put it in the passive voice, the subject is acted upon by the verb. Every sentence in the passive voice contains two verbs:

  
  

  • A conjugated form of “to be”
  • The main verb’s past participle
• E.g Summer break is [conjugated form of “to be”] loved [past participle of the main verb] by [preposition] my friends. 
• Shira likes birdwatching. ?


  Active
• She loves twilight.  ?


  Active
• Birdwatching is liked by Shira. ?

  Passive
• Twilight is loved by her ?

  Passive
• The check was paid.  ?

  Passive
• He will be remembered.  ?

  Passive
• The Philippines is known for its marine biodiversity. ?

  Passive
• A car was broken into on Elm Street last night.  ?

  Passive
• Cash was stolen from the register.  ?

  Passive
• The rats were placed into the maze.  ?

  Passive
• There are other kinds of writing where the action itself, rather than the doer of the action, is the primary focus. These include scientific and, in some cases, historical reports. These use the passive voice to keep the reader’s focus on what has happened or is happening.

  e.g: The governor was inaugurated at the statehouse.
• Turn them into passive voices.

  • Is Ajani visiting us today?
  • Please remove your shoes before entering my house
  • Lock the door! ?

  Will we be visited by Ajani today?

  Shoes should be removed before entering my house.

  Let the door be locked!
• Use the active voice in any sentence that focuses on the doer of the action.

  The passive voice is meant for sentences where you need to emphasize the target of an action or the action itself rather than who or what is performing the verb.