You’ve probably used spell checker in Microsoft Word and other applications, as it’s a very common feature for any application where you write.
Some applications even have a grammar checker that can add some additional proofreading options and help you avoid common mistakes.
But if you have a problem writing in the passive voice (I do it all the time) and it’s negatively impacting your work, then you might want a little help.
Fortunately there is a passive voice checker in Microsoft Word for Office 365, although it’s not enabled by default. Our guide below will show you the setting to change it Word so that you can start checking your document for instances of passive voice.
How to Enable the Passive Voice Checker in Word
The steps in this article were performed in Microsoft Word for Office 365. Initially the passive voice checker wasn’t a part of the grammar checker in the newer version of Word, but it has been added in. If you still don’t see it after completing these steps then you may need to update the program.
Step 1: Open Microsoft Word.
Step 2: Click the File tab at the top-left of the window.
Step 3: Choose Options in the left column.
Step 4: Click Proofing in the left column of the Word Options window.
Step 5: Check the box to the left of Show readability statistics.
Step 6: Choose Grammar from the dropdown menu, then click the Settings button.
Step 7: Scroll to the Clarity section, check the box to the left of Passive voice (You may also want to check the Passive voice with unknown actor option,) then click the OK button.
You can then click the Recheck document button to have Word scan your document with these new changes.
You can view spelling and grammar suggestions by selecting the Review tab, then clicking the Editor button. Passive voice errors will be listed under “Clarity” in the Editor column at the right side of the window.
Matthew Burleigh has been a freelance writer since the early 2000s. You can find his writing all over the Web, where his content has collectively been read millions of times.
Matthew received his Master’s degree in Computer Science, then spent over a decade as an IT consultant for small businesses before focusing on writing and website creation.
The topics he covers for MasterYourTech.com include iPhones, Microsoft Office, and Google Apps.
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