What is active voice?
In an active sentence, the grammatical subject performs the action described by the verb. The structure is: Subject → Verb → Object.
In each case, the subject is doing something. The sentence is direct, clear, and energetic. The reader immediately knows who is acting and what they are doing.
What is passive voice?
In a passive sentence, the grammatical subject receives the action rather than performing it. The structure is: Object → to-be verb → Past participle (with the actor often appearing at the end as a "by" phrase, or omitted entirely).
Notice that in the third example, the actor has been omitted entirely. We don't know who announced the measures. This is one of passive voice's most significant drawbacks in many contexts.
How to identify passive voice
The passive construction in English almost always follows the same pattern: a form of the verb to be followed by a past participle. The forms of to be are: is, are, was, were, be, been, being, am. Past participles typically end in -ed or take irregular forms (known, seen, built, made, found).
The quick test: can you add "by zombies" after the verb? "The report was written [by zombies]" — passive. "Sarah wrote the report [by zombies]" — doesn't work, so it's active.
Try it yourself: Use our passive voice detector to highlight every passive construction in your text instantly, with an active voice score out of 100.
When to use passive voice
When the actor is unknown
"The window was broken overnight." If you don't know who broke the window, passive voice is the natural and correct choice. Forcing active voice would require inventing an actor.
When the actor is irrelevant
"The results were recorded at hourly intervals." The identity of whoever recorded the results is unimportant. Passive voice appropriately de-emphasises them.
In scientific and academic writing
Scientific convention has long favoured passive voice to convey objectivity. "The samples were heated to 100°C" sounds more objective than "We heated the samples." Many scientific journals still require passive constructions in methods sections, though this convention is shifting in some fields.
To emphasise the receiver of an action
"The prime minister was arrested" emphasises the prime minister — the newsworthy element — rather than whoever made the arrest. The choice between active and passive is fundamentally a question of where you want the reader's focus.
To vary sentence rhythm
A paragraph composed entirely of active sentences can feel relentless. An occasional passive construction provides rhythmic variety and can add emphasis through contrast.
When NOT to use passive voice
When it hides accountability
"Mistakes were made." "The project was delayed." "It was decided that..." These constructions omit the agent — the person or organisation responsible. In political and corporate communications, this is often deliberate. Readers sense the evasion even when they cannot name it.
When it makes writing unnecessarily wordy
Passive constructions are almost always longer than their active equivalents. "The decision was reached by the board" (8 words) versus "The board decided" (3 words). Over a long document, this adds significant unnecessary length.
When it creates ambiguity
"The proposal was rejected and revised" — by the same person? By different people? The active version removes the ambiguity: "The committee rejected the proposal, and the author revised it."
How to convert passive to active
The conversion process follows three steps.
- Identify the actor — who or what performed the action? This is often in a "by" phrase, or must be inferred from context.
- Make the actor the subject — move it to the beginning of the sentence.
- Use the active form of the verb — replace the "to be + past participle" with a direct verb.
Active and passive voice in different contexts
Academic essays and dissertations
Most universities recommend a deliberate mix of active and passive voice. Passive is conventional in methods sections ("Participants were recruited from...") but active tends to be stronger in arguments and conclusions ("This study demonstrates..."). Check your institution's style guide — requirements vary significantly by discipline.
Business writing
Active voice almost always serves business writing better. It is more direct, more accountable, and typically shorter. "We will deliver the project by Friday" is clearer and more committal than "The project will be delivered by Friday." Use active voice in emails, proposals, reports, and any communication where clarity and accountability matter.
Fiction writing
Overuse of passive voice creates narrative distance — the reader feels separated from the action rather than immersed in it. Strong fiction tends to be predominantly active, particularly in action and dialogue. Passive voice can be used deliberately for effect — to create distance, dreamlike quality, or the sense of events happening to a character rather than being initiated by them.
Marketing and copywriting
Active voice is essential in effective copywriting. Calls to action must be active: "Buy now", "Start your free trial", "Sign up today." Passive calls to action — "Your free trial can be started today" — are demonstrably less effective. Studies in conversion rate optimisation consistently show that active constructions outperform passive ones.