# Active vs passive voice

Canonical: https://duckyhelper.com/learn/grammar/active-vs-passive-voice/
Updated: 2026-10-01

In active voice, the subject does the action: The dog chased the ball. In passive voice, the subject receives the action: The ball was chased by the dog. Passive uses a form of be plus a past participle, often with by. Active is usually shorter and clearer, so use it by default. Passive is fine when the doer is unknown or unimportant: My bike was stolen.

## How to spot passive voice

Look for two parts together: a form of *be* (*is, are, was, were, be, been, being*) plus a past participle (*eaten, built, chosen, broken*). Then ask: is the subject doing the action, or having it done to it?

| Active | Passive | Who acts? |
| --- | --- | --- |
| *Our class planted twenty trees.* | *Twenty trees were planted by our class.* | Our class |
| *A baseball broke the window.* | *The window was broken by a baseball.* | A baseball |
| *Someone stole my bike.* | *My bike was stolen.* | Unknown, so passive is natural here |

> **Watch out: Two traps**
>
> Past tense is not passive: *The kids ate the cake* is active. And *be* plus an adjective is not passive: *The results were surprising* just describes the results. Passive needs a past participle that names an action done to the subject.

## When passive is the better choice

- The doer is unknown: *The painting was stolen in 1990.*
- The doer does not matter: *The bridge was built in 1883.*
- You want to keep the focus on the thing acted on: *Penicillin was discovered in 1928.*
- Some science writing, to describe methods. Check your teacher's or the journal's preference; many style guides now prefer active voice with *we*.

## Worked examples

**Example 1: change passive to active**

Problem: *The decision was made by the committee after a long meeting.*

1. Find the doer: *the committee* (after *by*).
2. Make the doer the subject and use an active verb: *The committee made the decision.*
3. Keep the rest of the sentence.

Answer: *The committee made the decision after a long meeting.*

**Example 2: passive with no by**

Problem: *Mistakes were made.* How do you make this active?

1. The doer is hidden. Ask: who made the mistakes?
2. Name them as the subject. If it was you, say so.

Answer: *I made mistakes.* (or name whoever made them)

## Common mistakes and fixes

| Mistake | Fix |
| --- | --- |
| Calling every past-tense sentence passive | Check for *be* plus a past participle and an action done to the subject. |
| Using passive to hide who did something | In persuasive and personal writing, name the doer. It reads as more honest and direct. |
| Stacking passives in one paragraph | Rewrite most of them as active. Keep passive only where the doer truly does not matter. |
| Thinking passive is a grammar error | It is correct grammar. It is a style choice, often a weaker one. |

## Practice

**Five active and passive questions**

1. Which sentence is in the passive voice?
   A. The kids ate the cake.
   B. The kids were eating cake.
   C. The cake was eaten by the kids.
   D. The kids have eaten the cake.

   Answer: The cake was eaten by the kids.. The subject, *the cake*, receives the action, and the verb is *was* plus the past participle *eaten*. In the other three, *the kids* do the eating, so they are active.

2. Which is the active version of *The window was broken by a baseball*?
   A. The window broke a baseball.
   B. The window had been broken by a baseball.
   C. A baseball was broken by the window.
   D. A baseball broke the window.

   Answer: A baseball broke the window.. The doer, *a baseball*, becomes the subject. *The window broke a baseball* and *A baseball was broken by the window* flip the meaning, and *had been broken by a baseball* is still passive.

3. When is the passive voice a reasonable choice?
   A. Whenever you want to sound more formal
   B. When you want a sentence to be shorter
   C. When the doer is unknown, as in *My bike was stolen*
   D. In every sentence of a lab report

   Answer: When the doer is unknown, as in *My bike was stolen*. Passive is useful when the doer is unknown or matters less than what was done, as with a stolen bike. Passive sentences are usually longer, not shorter, sounding formal is not a good reason on its own, and lab reports do not need passive in every sentence.

4. Which sentence is in the active voice?
   A. Our class planted twenty trees.
   B. Twenty trees were planted.
   C. Twenty trees were planted by our class.
   D. Twenty trees have been planted by our class.

   Answer: Our class planted twenty trees.. *Our class*, the subject, does the planting. The other three make *trees* the subject and use *be* plus *planted*, which is passive.

5. Which sentence is passive?
   A. The results were surprising.
   B. Two scientists reviewed the results.
   C. The scientists were reviewing the results.
   D. The results were reviewed by two scientists.

   Answer: The results were reviewed by two scientists.. *Were reviewed* is *be* plus a past participle, and the results receive the action. *Were surprising* describes the results with an adjective, and the other two have the scientists as the subject doing the action.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is passive voice wrong?

No. It is correct grammar. Writing guides, including Purdue OWL, say most writers prefer active voice because it is clearer and shorter, and use passive only when it helps, such as when the doer is unknown or does not matter.

### Should I use passive voice in a science lab report?

It depends on your teacher or the style guide. Older lab reports often used passive (*The solution was heated*). Many style guides, including APA, now encourage active voice and even *we* where it is clearer. Ask what your class expects.

### How can I find passive voice in my essay quickly?

Search for *was*, *were*, *is*, *are* and *been*, then look at the next word. If it is a past participle like *made*, *given* or *chosen*, and the subject is not doing the action, the sentence is passive. Ask whether naming the doer would make it clearer.

## Sources

- [Purdue OWL, Active Versus Passive Voice](https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/active_and_passive_voice/active_versus_passive_voice.html), accessed 2026-10-01
- [Purdue OWL, Changing Passive to Active Voice](https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/active_and_passive_voice/changing_passive_to_active_voice.html), accessed 2026-10-01

## Related

- [Verb tense](https://duckyhelper.com/learn/grammar/verb-tense/)
- [Misplaced and dangling modifiers](https://duckyhelper.com/learn/grammar/misplaced-and-dangling-modifiers/)
- [How to write a body paragraph](https://duckyhelper.com/learn/essay-writing/body-paragraphs/)
- [Grammar study guides](https://duckyhelper.com/learn/grammar/)

## Try asking Ducky

- "Find the passive sentences in my essay and help me decide which ones to change."
- "Is this sentence passive or just past tense?"
- "Give me five passive sentences to rewrite in active voice."

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