Lesson 6: Active Voice and Passive Voice

Definition

Voice is the form a verb takes to show whether the subject performs or receives the action.

Explanation

Think of the subject as the main character in your sentence! In the active voice, your subject is the hero, actively performing the action. But in the passive voice, the subject is just relaxing and receiving the action. A huge clue for spotting the passive voice is that the verb phrase will always contain a form of be (like am, is, are, was, were, been) plus the main verb's past participle.

Examples

Active Voice

• Mr. Smith taught our class. [The subject, Mr. Smith, performs the action of the verb taught.]
• A loud noise woke the baby. [The subject, noise, performs the action of the verb woke.]

Passive Voice

• Our class was taught by Mr. Smith. [The subject, class, receives the action of the verb phrase was taught.]
• The baby was woken by a loud noise. [The subject, baby, receives the action of the verb phrase was woken.]

Definition

When the subject performs the action of the verb, the verb is in the active voice. When the subject receives the action of the verb, the verb is in the passive voice.

Explanation

To figure out the voice, ask yourself who or what is doing the action. If the subject is the one doing it, you've got active voice. If the action is happening to the subject, it's passive voice. Don't forget to look for the passive voice clue: a form of the verb be combined with a past participle, like in was struck or will be planned.

Examples

• P Was the winning goal scored by the team captain? [The subject, goal, receives the action of the verb phrase Was scored.]
• A My friend has volunteered to help with the project. [The subject, friend, performs the action of the verb phrase has volunteered.]
• P During the storm, the old tree was struck by lightning. [The subject, tree, receives the action of the verb phrase was struck.]
• A After the game, she cleaned the dirt from her cleats. [The subject, she, performs the action of the verb cleaned.]