1. Active and Passive Voice Voice The voice of a verb tells whether the subject of the sentence performs (agent) or receives (receiver) the action. In English there are two voices: passive and active.

2. Active and Passive Voice Active Voice In active voice, the subject performs the action expressed by the verb: The student wrote a song. The dog bit the mailman.

3. Active and Passive Voice Passive Voice In passive voice, the subject receives the action expressed by the verb: A song was written by the student. The mailman was bitten by the dog.

4. Active and Passive Voice EX. The mailman was bitten by the dog. The mailman has become the subject of this sentence, but he isn't performing the action; the dog is the one doing the biting.

5. Active and Passive Voice Forming Tenses of Passive Verbs The passive voice always consists of two parts: a form of the verb "to be" + past participle.

6. Active and Passive Voice The use of the passive voice is not necessarily grammatically incorrect, but it is stylistically undesirable

7. Active and Passive Voice Problems with Passive Voice: Passive voice obscures or loses part of the substance (the actor) of a sentence. When you use passive voice, the receiver of the action (object) becomes the subject of the sentence; and the actor appears in a prepositional phrase after the verb

8. Active and Passive Voice Problems with Passive Voice: a. Calisthenics were conducted by the Coach. Calisthenics (subject) were conducted (verb) by the Coach (actor). (Calisthenics is not the actor.)

9. Active and Passive Voice Problems with Passive Voice: Worse yet, you can leave the actor out completely and still have a good English sentence. This means you have eliminated part of the substance. Your pay records were lost. Your pay records (subject) were lost (verb). (No actor)

10. Active and Passive Voice Problems with Passive Voice: This construction is beneficial for sources that wish to elude blame: Mistakes (subject) were made (verb).

11. Active and Passive Voice Problems with Passive Voice Passive voice is less efficient than active voice. Active writing usually requires fewer words to get the same message to your audience. Active: George ate the chocolate bar. Passive: The chocolate bar was eaten by George.

12. Active and Passive Voice Appropriate times to use Passive Voice: 1. Use passive voice when you want to emphasize the receiver of the action. Passive: Your mother was taken to the hospital. Active: An ambulance took your mother to the hospital.

13. Active and Passive Voice Appropriate times to use Passive Voice: 2. Use passive voice when you don't know who performed the action. Passive: The rifle was stolen. Active: A person stole the rifle.

14. Active and Passive Voice Appropriate times to use Passive Voice: 3. Distance is created by the writer with the passive voice.