1. ASManager2.zip Driver
2. g_active.txt File Contents

g_active.txt Driver File Contents (ASManager2.zip)

Name: <  >
Class: <  >
Date: <  >



Active/Passive Voice

If you have been awake most of the time in most of your English classes since the seventh grade, you have probably had a teacher who told you:

"Don't write in the passive voice"

And you probably thought, "I have no idea what he is talking about, but if he wants my voice to be active when I write, I'll talk as much as I can." And then you got in trouble. Well, forget that! Remember this:

Active voice is a form in which the subject does the action of the verb.

Passive voice is a form in which the subject receives the action.


This is active voice:

I <won> the game with a homer in the ninth.

This is passive voice:

The game <was won> by me with a homer in the ninth.


What's the difference? Not much. But notice two things here:

1. In active voice, the emphasis is on the subject ("I") and that's where you usually want it.

2. Active voice is more economical and direct. In this example, it uses ten words instead of twelve.


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There are times, however, when passive voice is better. If no one is doing anything in the sentence, passive voice might be more effective. For example:

We were told we had flunked out of school.

Repeating "we" with the passive construction gives that word the most emphasis, more than it would have by saying:

The principal told us that we had flunked out of school.

If you want to emphasize the receiver rather than the doer of the action, it is quite appropriate to use the passive voice.


Example of passive voice:

Each candidate must be considered very carefully.   
(emphasis on candidate)

Example of active voice: 

The voters must consider each candidate very carefully. 
(emphasis on voters)


But, most of the time, write in active voice and your writing will be stronger. 


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Activity 1

Proofread the sentences below. Some need the passive voice changed to the active voice; rewrite these sentences. Some sentences are better left in the passive voice. Some are already in the active voice and do not need to be changed. When you have finished, look at the suggestions on the screen that follows and compare your work.


1. The mailman was bit by my dog.


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2. The team was embittered by the loss.


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3. The President declared war.


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4. After the blizzard, school was called off.


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Name and save this file now. (Press ctrl+S, type a name for the file, and press enter.)



Suggested Answers:


1. My dog bit the mailman. 

2. The team was embittered by the loss.
(Don't change it, since the team is more important than the loss.)

3. The President declared war. 
(This is already active voice.)

4. After the blizzard, school was called off.
(You could say "After the blizzard, the superintendent called off school," but you want to emphasize that there's no school, not who called it off.)


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Rewrite these sentences in the same way, changing passive voice to active voice where needed.


5. The forest was completely destroyed by the fire.


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6. The money was lost by the paper boy.


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7. When the party was over, the police arrived.


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8. Tiffany's tuition was paid by her grandparents.


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Please save this document now.




Suggested Corrections:


5. The forest was completely destroyed by the fire. 
(Don't change it since the passive voice emphasizes the forest rather than the fire.)

6. The paper boy lost the money. 
(The active voice emphasizes who lost the money.)

7. When the party was over, the police arrived. 
(This is already in the active voice.)

8. Tiffany's grandparents paid her tuition. 
(This emphasizes who paid, not what was paid.)


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Rewrite these, if necessary.


9. The skier's leg was broken when he fell off the lift.


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10. Boulder was selected by the students as "the party capital of the Free World."


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Suggested Corrections:


9. The skier broke his leg when he fell off the lift.

10. Boulder was selected by the students as "the party capital of the Free World." 
(The passive voice emphasizes Boulder, a city in Colorado, rather than the students.)


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Activity 2

With your partners, copy one of the previous ten sentences next to the marker below. Then write a paragraph of at least five sentences about it in the active voice.



Active:

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Now copy your "active" paragraph to the "Passive Rewrite" marker and change it so that it is totally passive.



Passive Rewrite:

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Now, explain which paragraph you feel is stronger and why.


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If your teacher requests it, print both paragraphs and your explanation of which is stronger.



If you haven't done so already, name and save this file now. (Press ctrl+S, type a name for the file, and press enter.)

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end of activity
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