Active Voice vs. Passive Voice: English Grammar Rules and Usage Examples

Understanding Active and Passive Voice

The active voice is used when the agent (i.e., the doer of the action) is to be made prominent.

The passive voice is used when the person or thing acted upon is to be made prominent. The passive voice is therefore preferred when the doer of the action is an indefinite pronoun or noun (e.g., somebody, anybody, they, people, we, etc.).

Usage Examples: Indefinite Agents

In the examples below, the passive structure is preferred because we don’t know who performed the action.

Passive: My watch has been stolen.

Active: Somebody has stolen my watch.

Comparison: Specific vs. Vague Subjects

Case 1: The Doer is Known (Active Preferred)

Peter has stolen my watch.

(This is more natural than ‘My watch has been stolen by Peter’ because the emphasis is on Peter, so we use the active form.)

Case 2: The Doer is Vague or Indefinite (Passive Preferred)

Passive: I was asked my name.

Active: They asked me my name.

Passive: I was told to pay the fine.

Active: They told me to pay the fine.

Passive: English is spoken all over the world.

Active: People all over the world speak English.

Using the "By" Agent

In passive clauses, we usually use a phrase beginning with by if we want to mention the agent – the person or thing that does the action. However, note that the agent is mentioned in only about 20% of passive clauses.

Passive: I was shocked by his arrogant attitude.

Active: His arrogant attitude shocked me.

Passive: The spider was killed by John.

Active: John killed the spider.