Active voice and passive voice are two grammatical structures used in writing and speaking. Understanding the difference between them is important for effective communication. Tap to read.

This handout is also available for download in PDF format. We refer to a sentence as being in the "active voice" when the subject is performing the action of the sentence (the verb). A sentence is in ...

“Never use a long word where a short one will do. If it is possible to cut a word out always cut it out. Never use the passive voice where you can use the active.” —George Orwell Note: The above is ...

If your resume is full of phrases like "was responsible for ...", then you're using the passive voice. A lot of people make this mistake. If you want a stronger resume, you need to replace the passive ...

The way we interpret a message changes depending on whether it’s framed in the active or the passive voice, University of Toronto researchers have found – even if the content is exactly the same.

I blogged a short while ago about some people’s tendency to mislabel usages they dislike as “passive voice.” But even phrases that really are in the passive voice are often better than their ...