G5-d Use verbs primarily in the active voice.
Printed Page H-21
active voice The verb form that shows the subject in action.
passive voice The verb form that shows something happening to the subject.
The active voice calls attention to the actor performing an action. By contrast, the passive voice emphasizes the recipient of the action or the action itself over the actor.
| ACTIVE | The monkey lived in the garden. |
| PASSIVE | The story is told by a girl as she reflects on her own childhood. |
Change passive verbs to active in most writing situations.
Straightforward and direct, the active voice creates graceful, clear writing that emphasizes actors.
Eliminate awkward, unnecessary passive verbs.
Note: The passive voice is sometimes useful if you want to shift information to the end of a sentence. It is also frequently used in impersonal writing that focuses on an action rather than an actor, as in a scientific research report.
- When the generator is turned on, water is forced down the tunnel, and the animals swim against the current. Their metabolism is measured. They have participated in this experiment before, and the results from that run and this new one will be compared.