Final answer:
Active voice sentences feature the subject performing the verb's action, like 'The chef prepares a meal', while passive voice sentences have the subject receiving the action, as in 'A meal is prepared by the chef'. Two examples given are 'The students complete the homework' (active) vs 'The homework is completed by the students' (passive).
Step-by-step explanation:
When constructing sentences in active voice, the subject in the sentence performs the action denoted by the verb. For example, in the sentence 'The chef prepares a delicious meal', 'the chef' is the subject actively doing the preparing. In contrast, passive voice sentences are structured in such a way that the subject is acted upon by the verb. The passive construction of the previous example would be 'A delicious meal is prepared by the chef', where 'a delicious meal' receives the action.
Let's take two subjects, 'students' and 'homework', and form sentences in both active and passive voices:
- Active: The students complete the homework before the deadline.
- Passive: The homework is completed by the students before the deadline.
Notice how the meaning remains the same in both constructions, yet the effect and clarity may differ. In many cases, using active voice makes the sentence more direct and vigorous, which typically makes the sentence more engaging for the reader.