informationworksheet
Unit 1
Preferring Active Voice

Exercise #1
Now try your own hand at ruining a nursery rhyme by couching it in all passive voice:

Eencey Weencey spider
Climbed up the water spout;
Down came the rain
And washed poor Eencey out;
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain;
And the Eencey Weencey spider
Climbed up the spout again.


Hard to work against the grain, isn’t it? The passive voice version is longer, harder to read, and less effective. So stop doing this to your own sentences! Let active voice be your “default” voice. Your prose will be crisper, more efficient, and more pleasant.

Exercise #2
Change ALL passive constructions to active constructions in the following sentences. Hint: don’t be afraid to invent an appropriate subject (i.e., agent, person, or organization ) where one or more is lacking:

1. The new chips were sold by the company.



2. The formula was prepared.



3. If the offer is accepted, make sure that the proper form is completed and signed.



4. Software has been provided by Apple Computer for the lab’s current needs as requested.



5. Since only the printer can be considered to be on sale, the computer discount cannot be applied.



6. This drug has been assigned a maximum dosage of 5 milligrams.



7. Standards have been raised and should be discussed with the client, unless these changes are already known.



8. The test results have been analyzed and a decision has been made to request further testing on site.



9. The following guidelines must be observed when documentation packages are being developed.



10. A device-checking circuit is being written into machine control logic because complaints have been made about the difficulty of checking on machine operation.



Now let’s try our hand at re-writing an entire paragraph that suffers from too much passive voice.

Exercise #3
Edit the following paragraph to remove ALL passives:

When your diagrams have been approved, one copy of each diagram will be returned to you. Equipment must also be approved by ACME engineers. All Hydraulic components must be indicated on the diagram, and the function of all components must be explained. It is important that circuitry drawings, also, be made to conform to ACME standards. These are to be drawn to match the cycle starting point of electrical drawings.



Note: in the real world, you won’t have to excise every passive construction. Just be sure you have a good reason to use passive voice. Don’t let it become your “default style.”