Active or Passive
We were invited by our neighbors to attend their party.
PASSIVE
Amy mailed the letter.
The letter was mailed by Amy.
The car was repaired by Sam.
Sam repaired the car.
A sentence in passive voice will usually contain the word was or were before the action.
TRUE
The painting was sold to someone who did not live in the area.
PASSIVE
Once a week, John cleans the garage.
Once a week, the garage is cleaned by John.
Right now, the letter is being written by Sarah.
Right now, Sarah is writing the letter.
"Brandon pulled the fire alarm by the bathroom." This is written in passive voice.
FALSE: it's active
Peter is going to build a house this summer.
ACTIVE
Adam should finish the work at 6:00 PM.
The work should be finished by Adam at 6:00 PM.
A delicious dinner is going to be made by Sally tonight.
Sally is going to make a delicious dinner tonight.
The passive voice is used if you want to reveal who did the action.
FALSE: It is used when you DON'T want to reveal who did the action.
After the meeting, the boardroom was cleaned.
PASSIVE
The famous artist is painting a beautiful mural for the church.
A beautiful mural is being painted for the church by a famous artist.
Michelle is saddened by the recent events that have taken place in school.
The recent events that have taken place in school made Michelle sad.
A sentence in active voice is not required to have the "doer" listed.
FALSE: The "doer" will be the subject and every sentence must have a subject.
The quiet cat secretly snuck up on the still and dirty rat and killed it using its paws.
ACTIVE
Chef Nick was preparing a fantastic dinner for two.
A fantastic dinner for two was being prepared by Chef Nick.
The customer was being helped by the salesman when the thief came into the store.
The salesman was helping the customer when the thief came into the store.
"Daniel was strongly encouraged to confess his crime." This is written in active voice.
FALSE