When I was teaching freelance writing at the University, we regularly discussed the difference between active voice and passive voice. It’s much easier to write with a passive voice than an active one, but the benefits of turning it around are powerful.
First, your writing is more concise as you will be using fewer words.
Second, the meaning of your writing will be clear.
Third, the words you use will be more vibrant.
I could go on, but I think you get the idea.
Here are some examples to help you understand the difference between an active voice and a passive voice:
Passive – The envelope was opened by the manager.
Active – The manager opened the envelope.
Instead of writing:
The main switch should be turned on; or
It is recommended…
Reword the instructions to read:
Turn on the main switch; or
I/We recommend…
Readability Statistics
Computer programs are very clever. They can tell when you have written a passive phrase. A green line appears on your computer screen underneath the passive sentence or part of the sentence. This is your wake-up call; now is the time to rewrite it to make it active.
Simply click on Tools in your Word document then click Spelling and Grammar and tick the box to Check Grammar. If this box is active, it will check the grammar as you type.
You can also get readability statistics from your computer program by going to Tools, Options, Spelling and Grammar and tick the Show readability statistics.
After spelling and grammar have been checked, the following will appear:
Readability Statistics
Counts
Words 446
Characters 2,376
Paragraphs 31
Sentences 15
Average
Sentences per paragraph 1.5
Words per sentence 17.9
Characters per word 5.1
Readability
Passive sentences 33% *
Flesch Reading Ease 48.6% **
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 10.9 ***
* The percentage should be as low as possible, try to keep it less than 10%.
** The higher the score, the easier it is to read. Aim for between 60 and 70 per cent.
*** For most standard documents, aim for a level of around 10 to 11.
Readability is everything.
(For the record, the passive sentence percentage for this post was only 4%.)
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