Jost Zetzsche Tool Kit

Monday, September 05, 2011

Has the Word 2003 a bee in the bonnet about the passive voice in its spellcheck?


17:11

I use Word 2003. Whenever I do spell checking, I get cautioned when a passive construction is used. The spell check wants me to reconsider the use of passive voice. I get impatient and just ask it to ignore for once. Unfortunately there is no ignore all button. I have to go on ignoring repeatedly only once each time!

What is wrong with passive construction? In fact, during our college days, all the lab records have to be submitted in passive voice only. The instructions were very formal on this point.

After all we are grown up and do not require such sermonizing on the part of the spell checker.

I am curious. Is the passive construction then so bad that it has to be avoided?

I have posted this in proz forum too. Let us see what my colleagues have to say about this.

Regards,
Dondu N. Raghavan

3 comments:

SURY said...

Can you furnish a sample sentence for "passive constructor" please?

SURY said...

There is nothing wrong with a passive constructor.
I argue a propos passive constructor..that the verb ]die' should not be used in active voice.
'You cannot say, "He died." The act of dying is not under our control. If under our control, it becomes suicide!!!!
So it is forbidden and ridiculous to say that so and so 'died '!!
It very very logical, see.

Unknown said...

well idea musing of a translator and great opportunity for the interpreterhow

do i become an interpreter