1. Most sentences have a verb and a subject.
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WHAT IS A VERB?
Most sentences have a verb and a subject.
Verbs are action words.
1. A verb can express a physical action
Example: She texted her friend.
Example: She thought about her friend.
2. A verb can express a mental action
Example: She is a good friend.
3. A verb can express a state of being

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WHAT IS A SUBJECT?
The subject of a sentence is the person, place, thing, or idea that is ‘doing’ or
‘being’ something. To find the
subject, locate the verb and ask
the question “who or what? To
the verb and that is your subject.
Example:
She texted her friend.
(Who is texting? She is!)

3. Where are the verb and the subject in the following sentence?
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DO YOU GET IT?
Where are the verb and the subject
in the following sentence?
Josh tweeted about what happened at school that day.
The verb is “tweeted” as it is a physical action. When you ask “Who tweeted?” the answer is John, so John is the subject!

4. TWO TYPES OF VOICE ACTIVE & PASSIVE There are two types of voices:
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TWO TYPES OF VOICE
Voice is the form a verb takes to indicate whether the subject of the verb performs or receives the action.
There are two
types of voices:
ACTIVE & PASSIVE

5. John ate three hamburgers. John (subject) is doing the eating (verb).
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ACTIVE VOICE
Active voice is used to show that the subject of the sentence is performing, doing or causing the action (verb).
John ate three hamburgers.
John (subject) is doing the eating (verb).
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6. Passive voice is used when the subject receives the action (verb).
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PASSIVE VOICE
Passive voice is used when the subject receives the action (verb).
Three hamburgers were eaten by John
The hamburgers (subject) are eaten (verb)

7. PASSIVE VOICE STRUCTURE
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For example
ACTIVE:
Sarah baked a cake.
PASSIVE:
The cake was baked by Sarah.
(was is a form of the verb “to be”).
PASSIVE VOICE STRUCTURE
When you use the passive voice, you are required to use a form of the verb “to be” (am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been) with a past participle of another verb. Passive structure often also includes the word “by” to show who performed the action.
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8. WHICH IS BEST? It is more precise. It is more concise.
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WHICH IS BEST?
Writers are often encouraged to use active voice for the
following two reasons:
It is more precise.
It is more concise.
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PASSIVE VOICE USE
There are some cases, where passive voice is more appropriate to the content.
For example:
If you are intentionally trying to hide your subject:
“The crime was committed by an unknown assailant.”
If you are intentionally trying to focus on the receiver of the action:
“Many victims were hurt by the drunk driver.”
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10. Complete the assignment to demonstrate your own understanding
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PRACTICE
Complete the assignment to demonstrate
your own understanding
of passive and
active voice!
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