Should you avoid passive voice?

While in some circumstances the passive voice is called for, the active voice works better in formal argumentation the vast majority of the time. Whenever you have the choice, you should use the active voice. In formal discourse, the passive voice is unacceptable if it is being used to avoid saying who did some thing.

Is it ever better to use passive voice?

Active voice is more direct and gives your writing authority and purpose. However, passive voice is often necessary and the better choice — that is, when the object is more important than the subject, when we don’t know (or it’s not important) who the actor is, and for elegant sentence structure and balance.
 

Is passive voice necessary?

Passive voice makes sense when the agent performing the action is obvious, unimportant, or unknown or when a writer wishes to postpone mentioning the agent until the last part of the sentence or to avoid mentioning the agent at all.

How much passive voice is too much?

You’ll get a green bullet if less than 10% of your sentences have passive voice. It’ll turn red if you go over 15%. Passive voice makes your writing more distant, and your message less clear. So, try to write in an active voice — it will make your writing much stronger!
 

Why do people not like passive voice?

Passive voice has the effect of removing the subject from the sentence. The subject is — well — the subject, and is often the whole point of the writing. Removing it harms the clarity and directness of the writing.

Is passive voice boring?

New writers often use the passive voice because they think it sounds more professional. However, passive voice, instead of making a paper sound more professional, actually makes the writing unclear, hard to follow, and, at times, even boring.

Is passive voice OK in academic writing?

In academic writing, passive voice is used to describe a process, the results of study, or similar material which is objective in nature. But active voice is used to describe actions. Related: Having trouble with grammar and punctuations in your research paper? Get help from native language experts now!
 

Why is passive voice typically a problem?

Second, passive voice often makes sentences weaker and less concise than those written in the active voice. Using more words is not necessarily a bad thing, but when passive voice could easily be replaced by an active sentence without sacrificing meaning, it’s best to stick with the more direct option.
 

Is active or passive voice more effective?

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How do you avoid passive voice?

Avoid Passive Voice And Improve Your Writing

1. Rewrite sentences.
2. Spot the verbs in your sentences.
3. Stop thinking of passive voice as “more formal.” Some writers feel the passive voice sounds less colloquial and more proper.
4. Get to know your character better.

Why is passive voice typically a problem?

Second, passive voice often makes sentences weaker and less concise than those written in the active voice. Using more words is not necessarily a bad thing, but when passive voice could easily be replaced by an active sentence without sacrificing meaning, it’s best to stick with the more direct option.