What is passive voice?

Passive voice is a grammatical construction where the subject of the sentence is acted upon rather than performing the action. This construction often downplays or removes the agent responsible for the action, which can lead to a lack of clarity about who is responsible for what. For instance, in the sentence "The ball was thrown by John," the focus is on the ball, while John, the subject, is less emphasized. This can deny agency, making it unclear who instigated the action, thus making the passive voice particularly useful in contexts where the agent is either unknown or irrelevant.

In contrast, the other options focus on different aspects of communication or grammatical structure that do not accurately define passive voice. Enhancing clarity typically requires active voice, where the subject and action are clearly defined, and emphasizing the subject is also more aligned with active constructions. Lastly, a style of communication that encourages dialogue relates more to interpersonal communication dynamics rather than specific grammatical terminology.