The difference between the active voice and passive voice is easy to understand.

In the active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action. The active voice answers the question “Who or what performed the action?”. Examples are: “John dropped the ball.” and “The dog barked at the cat.”

In the passive voice, the subject receives the action. The passive voice answers the question “What action was done by whom?” or “What action was done by what?”. Examples are: “The ball was dropped by John.” and “The cat was bitten by the dog.”

Why use the active voice

• It emphasizes who or what performed the action.
• Your reader grasps the meaning more quickly. This is important especially if your reader is using your content to do something urgent.
• Your content is more powerful and direct, which keeps the reader interested.

When to use the passive voice

• It is useful if you want to emphasize the receiver rather than the doer of the action.
• You use the passive voice if you do not know who is performing the action.
• You can use it to protect someone’s name from being released or to be tactful, for example, “Mistakes were not noticed.”

What are your thoughts on the active versus the passive voice? Please share them in the comments.