Every sentence you write puts the action somewhere. Either the subject is doing something, or something is being done to the subject. That choice, which most people make without thinking about it, is the difference between active and passive voice. It shapes how direct your writing feels, how much authority it carries, and whether your reader stays engaged or starts to drift. Understanding the difference between active and passive voice will immediately improve the quality of everything you write.
Active voice is when the subject of the sentence performs the action. “The dog bit the man.” The dog (subject) is doing the biting. Passive voice is when the subject of the sentence receives the action. “The man was bitten by the dog.” The man (subject) is having something done to him. Active voice is direct and clear. Passive voice is indirect and often more formal.
Difference Between Active and Passive Voice: Comparison Table
| Feature | Active Voice | Passive Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | Subject + verb + object | Object + “to be” + past participle + (by subject) |
| Who does the action? | The subject performs the action | The subject receives the action |
| Tone | Direct, clear, energetic | Indirect, formal, detached |
| Length | Usually shorter | Usually longer |
| Common in | Journalism, fiction, everyday speech | Science reports, formal writing, official documents |
| Example | “The chef cooked the meal.” | “The meal was cooked by the chef.” |
| Agent always named? | Yes, the subject is always present | No, the agent can be omitted |
What is Active Voice?
In active voice, the subject of the sentence is the one doing the action. The structure is straightforward: subject, then verb, then object. The actor comes first, the action comes second, and what the action is done to comes last.
Active voice is the more natural and direct way to write in English. It tends to produce shorter, cleaner sentences that are easier to read and more engaging. Most good writing advice recommends using active voice as your default because it keeps the reader focused on who is doing what.
Examples of active voice sentences:
- “The teacher explained the homework.” (Teacher = subject doing the action)
- “Scientists discovered a new planet.” (Scientists = subject doing the action)
- “The government passed a new law.” (Government = subject doing the action)
- “Shakespeare wrote Hamlet around 1600.” (Shakespeare = subject doing the action)
- “The lion chased the zebra across the plain.” (Lion = subject doing the action)
What is Passive Voice?
In passive voice, the subject of the sentence receives the action rather than performing it. The thing being acted upon moves to the front of the sentence, and the person or thing doing the acting either moves to the end or disappears entirely. The structure always involves a form of the verb “to be” followed by a past participle.
Passive voice is not wrong. It is widely used in scientific writing, formal reports, and official documents, often deliberately. When you want to emphasise what happened rather than who did it, or when the agent is unknown or unimportant, passive voice is often the right choice.
Examples of passive voice sentences:
- “The homework was explained by the teacher.”
- “A new planet was discovered by scientists.”
- “A new law was passed by the government.”
- “Hamlet was written by Shakespeare around 1600.”
- “The zebra was chased across the plain by the lion.”
Notice that in passive voice, the agent (the doer) can be removed entirely. “A new law was passed” works as a complete sentence even without “by the government.” This is one of the reasons politicians and officials often prefer passive voice. It allows them to describe actions without identifying who is responsible for them.
How to Convert Between Active and Passive Voice
Understanding how to move between the two forms is a key skill in English exams.
Active to Passive:
Take the object of the active sentence and make it the subject.
Add the correct form of “to be” and the past participle of the main verb.
Move the original subject to the end with “by” or remove it entirely.
Example:
Active: “The council approved the planning application.”
Passive: “The planning application was approved by the council.”
Or simply: “The planning application was approved.”
Passive to Active:
Find the agent (usually after “by”) and make it the subject.
Remove the “to be” verb and use the active form of the main verb.
Move the original subject to the object position.
Example:
Passive: “The window was broken by the children.”
Active: “The children broke the window.”
Example 1 – News reporting:
Active: “Police arrested three suspects last night.”
Passive: “Three suspects were arrested last night.”
Newspapers often use passive voice in headlines when the agent is less important than what happened. But in the body of the article, active voice keeps the reporting sharp and direct.
Example 2 – Science writing:
Active: “We heated the solution to 80 degrees Celsius.”
Passive: “The solution was heated to 80 degrees Celsius.”
Science reports traditionally use passive voice because the experiment itself matters more than who conducted it. The passive voice creates the impression of objectivity and removes the personal “we” from the description.
Example 3 – Political language:
Active: “The government cut funding to the health service.”
Passive: “Funding to the health service was cut.”
Notice how the passive version removes the government entirely. This is often deliberate in political communication. Passive voice can obscure responsibility, which is why critics say politicians use it to avoid accountability.
Example 4 – Creative writing:
Active: “The wolf stalked the children through the dark forest.”
Passive: “The children were stalked through the dark forest by the wolf.”
In most fiction, active voice creates more tension and pace. “The wolf stalked” is more visceral and immediate than “the children were stalked.” Strong fiction writers use active voice as their default and passive voice sparingly for specific effects.
Example 5 – Formal documents:
Active: “You must submit your application before 5pm on Friday.”
Passive: “Applications must be submitted before 5pm on Friday.”
Formal documents, instructions, and official notices often use passive voice to sound authoritative and impersonal. The passive version does not address the reader directly, which suits certain formal contexts.
Example 6 – Avoiding blame:
Active: “I made a mistake in the report.”
Passive: “A mistake was made in the report.”
The passive version removes “I” completely. This is why passive voice is sometimes called the voice of evasion. It describes what happened without naming who is responsible. In genuine writing, this can be appropriate. In personal communication or apologies, it often comes across as evasive.
Actor first or actor last:
Active = the Actor comes first. “The dog bit the man.” The dog (actor) is at the front, doing the action.
Passive = the actor is pushed to the back or disappears. “The man was bitten by the dog.” The man (receiver) is at the front. The dog appears at the end or not at all.
Another way to spot passive voice quickly: look for a form of “to be” (is, was, were, has been, will be) followed by a past participle (bitten, written, approved, discovered). That combination is almost always passive. Active sentences rarely need “to be” as a helping verb.
Quick Quiz: Active or Passive?
1. “The prime minister signed the treaty.” This sentence is in:
2. “The treaty was signed by the prime minister.” This sentence is in:
3. “Mistakes were made.” This sentence is in:
4. “The students completed their essays before the deadline.” This is in:
5. “The solution was heated to 80 degrees.” This is in:
6. Convert to active voice: “The cake was eaten by the children.”
Difference Between Active and Passive Voice in Exams
The difference between active and passive voice is tested directly in GCSE English Language. You may be asked to identify whether a sentence is active or passive, explain the effect of using passive voice in a particular text, convert sentences between the two forms, or discuss why a writer has chosen one over the other. In your own writing, examiners want to see that you can use both voices deliberately and appropriately rather than defaulting to one without thinking.
When to Use Each Voice
Use active voice when:
You want writing that is direct, clear, and energetic. In most everyday writing, fiction, journalism, and personal essays, active voice keeps the reader engaged. If your writing feels flat or sluggish, switching passive sentences to active will often immediately improve it.
Use passive voice when:
The action matters more than who performed it. In scientific writing, the process is more important than the researcher. In formal documents, an impersonal tone is sometimes appropriate. When the agent is unknown (“the window was broken overnight”) or when you deliberately want to omit the agent for stylistic or rhetorical reasons, passive voice is the right choice.
The key principle:
Use voice deliberately, not accidentally. The problem is not passive voice itself. The problem is writers who use passive voice without realising it, producing sentences that are longer and less clear than they need to be. Know which voice you are using and why, and your writing will always be stronger for it.
Mastering when to use each form is really what the difference between active and passive voice is all about in practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is passive voice always wrong?
No, and anyone who tells you never to use passive voice is giving you bad advice. Passive voice is entirely appropriate in scientific reports, formal documents, and situations where the agent is unknown or unimportant. The issue is overusing passive voice in writing where active voice would be clearer and more direct. Good writers use both and choose deliberately.
How do I spot passive voice quickly?
Look for a form of “to be” (is, was, were, has been, have been, will be, being) followed by a past participle (a verb ending in -ed or an irregular past form like written, broken, or eaten). That combination almost always signals passive voice. “The report was written” is passive. “She wrote the report” is active. The presence of “by” after the verb is another strong signal that you are reading passive voice.
Why do teachers tell students to avoid passive voice?
Because students who do not understand voice tend to overuse passive voice, which makes their writing wordy and unclear. “It was decided that the meeting would be cancelled” is much weaker than “We cancelled the meeting.” Teachers push students towards active voice as a corrective habit. Once you understand both voices properly, you can make informed choices rather than defaulting to passive out of habit.
Does passive voice always use “by”?
No. The “by” phrase naming the agent is optional in passive constructions. “The letter was delivered” is passive even without “by the postman.” Many passive sentences omit the agent entirely, especially when the agent is obvious, unknown, or deliberately being hidden. The defining feature of passive voice is the structure of subject receiving action, not the presence of “by.”
For more on writing style and voice, the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary entry on passive gives clear examples of how passive constructions work in practice.
Voice is closely connected to other aspects of writing style covered on this site. You might find it useful to read about the difference between formal and informal language, since passive voice is much more common in formal writing than informal contexts.
The difference between active and passive voice is ultimately a choice about where you put the focus in a sentence. Active voice focuses on the doer. Passive voice focuses on what was done. Neither is universally better. The writer who understands the difference between active and passive voice and chooses deliberately will always produce cleaner, more purposeful writing than one who lets voice happen by accident.
The more you read with the difference between active and passive voice in mind, the more instinctive your choices will become. Pick up any newspaper article, science report, or novel and try identifying which sentences are active and which are passive. Ask yourself why the writer made that choice. That habit of noticing the difference between active and passive voice in published writing is how students develop the kind of stylistic awareness that examiners reward. The difference between active and passive voice is not just a grammar rule to memorise. It is a writing tool to master.
