Active Voice and Passive Voice

In English grammar, verbs have five properties: voice, mood, tense, person and number. In this article we will talk about voice. The two grammatical voices are active and passive voice. 

The difference between Active and Passive voice

Active voice 

When the subject of a sentence performs the verb’s action, we say that the sentence is in the active voice. Sentences in active voice sound strong, direct and have a clear tone. 

Examples: 

1. Monkeys like bananas.
2. She counted the money.
3. The dog chased all of us.

In all three sentences, the subject is performing the action. The monkeys, she and the dog. 

Passive voice

When the subject is acted on by the verb. The passive voice is always constructed with a conjugated form of to be plus the verb’s past participle. By doing this, a preposition is also formed.

Examples:

1. Bananas are liked by monkeys.
2. The money was counted by her.
3. All of us were chased by the dog.

In all three sentences, the formula is the object + a form of to be + the past participle + preposition + subject. 

How to change a sentence from active voice to passive voice?

To change an active voice sentence to a passive voice, there are a few steps to be followed. 

1. Move the active sentence’s direct object into the sentence’s subject slot.
2. Place the active sentence’s subject into a phrase beginning with the preposition by.
3. Add a form of auxiliary verb to be the main verb and change the main verb’s form. 

Because passive voice sentences necessarily add words and change the normal formation of the sentence, they may make the reader work harder to read the sentence and understand the intended meaning. 

How to change a sentence from passive voice to active voice?

Here are the steps that change passive voice to active voice.

1. Move the passive sentence’s subject into the active sentence’s direct object slot.
2. Remove the auxiliary verb from the main verb and change the main verb’s form if needed. 
3.  Place the passive sentence’s object of the preposition by into the subject slot.

Most writers prefer using active voice while writing because it is direct and easy for the reader to understand. Passive voice is also used to show sentence variety.