Active and Passive Voice

The subject of the sentence is doing the action.

Active & Passive Verbs

Active Verbs

Passive Verbs

Something is being done to the subject of the sentence.

Examples of Active Voice

1. Anna painted the house

2. The teacher always answers the students’ questions.

3. Ali posted the video online.

Examples of Passive Voice

1. The house was painted by Anna.

2. The students’ questions are answered by the teacher.

3. The video was posted online by Ali

​Stephen King on Active and Passive Voice

• Stephen King thinks that passive voice of writing should be avoided when writing

• He thinks that passive voice makes your writing have too much authority

• He thinks when you’re writing you should sound more conversational

Multiple Choice

Select the sentence that uses active voice.

• The coffee was still boiling after it was served.

• The students worked on their papers all night.

Multiple Choice

Select the sentence that uses passive voice.

• We were driven to the beach by Caleb in his minivan.

• Café Moka closed early, so Danielle brewed her own pot of coffee.

Multiple Choice

What is an active verb?

• When the subject of a sentence is doing something

• When the subject of a sentence is still

• When the subject of a sentence is working out

• When the subject of a sentence is a verb

Multiple Choice

What is a passive verb?

• When the subject of the sentence is moving in slow motion

• When the subject of the sentence is passing through something

• When something is being done to the subject of the sentence

• When the subject of the sentence is thinking

Multiple Choice

Which type of verb does Stephen King hate?

• Active verbs

• Passive verbs

Open Ended

Turn this sentence into passive voice:

The teacher released the students from class.

Adverbs

Words that modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. They usually end in -ly.



Ex: quickly, slowly, quietly, etc.

​Stephen King on Adverbs

• While Stephen King says that it is okay to use adverbs, he thinks that they should not be used often in writing.

• He thinks that you should avoid adverbs in dialogue attribution

Dialogue Attribution

words that come at the end (or sometimes the start… or even in the middle) of a line of dialogue.


Ex: “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Gregor said. “Let’s go to the park instead.”

Open Ended

Give an example of a sentence using an adverb.

Poll

Do you use dialogue attribution in your writing often?

• Yes

• Never

• Sometimes