According to a Federal document called the Plain Language Guidelines, using the active voice in your writing helps people read faster and understand information better:
"Verbs tell your audience what to do…Active voice makes it clear who is supposed to do what. Not 'It must be done,' but 'You must do it.' Passive voice obscures who is responsible for what…[and] often does not identify who is performing the action.
More than any other writing technique, using active voice and specifying who is performing an action will change the character of your writing."
Active voice tells us what a person or thing does. Passive voice tells us what is done to a person or thing. While both of the following may not appear in every passive sentence, there are two basic features that can help you identify them:
- A form of the verb "to be," such as "are," "were," "could be," "was," "will be," or "have been."
- A past participle (a type of word derived from a verb, generally with "-ed" on the end)
Can you spot both features in the following sentences?
- Additional meeting details will be sent in a few weeks.
- A Form W-9 must be completed to receive the honorarium.
- Qualifications must be submitted before you can RSVP.
To help our volunteers better understand what they need to do and what they can expect, we're revising our instructions to use active voice instead:
- ARRT will send additional meeting details in a few weeks.
- You must complete the Form W-9 to receive the honorarium.
- You must submit your qualifications before you can RSVP.
ARRT encourages our item writers to use the active voice whenever possible, so it is clear to the candidates who is performing the action. If they get a question wrong, we want to be sure it's because they don't know the material, not because the subject or wording is unclear.
You can also use the active voice to improve your communication in the field! Whether writing Standard Operating Procedures for your colleagues, or instructions for your students, specifying who's doing the action will reduce ambiguity.
