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MUSCOVITE Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

active or passive mode?

Hi,

Consider the following example sentence:

If an error occurs when uploading a file, an error message will be displayed in the progress field (*)

(1) Will anything change if I replace "will be displayed" with "will display":

If an error occurs when uploading a file, an error message will display in the progress field.




Now, let's take another example sentence:


  1. Once the memory limit is reached, an error message will display in the pending list. (**)


    (I assume that both (*) and (**) are perfect English)


    (2) Will anything change if I use the passive mode for the active one here?



Once the memory limit is reached, an error message will be displayed in the pending list.

Which mood is more appropriate in technical writing (at least in contexts like this)?

mus-te
  

Top answer

MUSCOVITE (1) Will anything change if I replace "will be displayed" with "will display": No, that's OK. MUSCOVITE (2) Will anything change if I use the passive mode for the active one here? No, that's OK, too.

— Mister Micawber

  • MUSCOVITE (1) Will anything change if I replace "will be displayed" with "will display": No, that's OK.
  • MUSCOVITE (2) Will anything change if I use the passive mode for the active one here?
  • No, that's OK, too.
  • MUSCOVITE Which mood is more appropriate in technical writing (at least in contexts like this)?
  • Both are in use.
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1 Answers
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MUSCOVITE(1) Will anything change if I replace "will be displayed" with "will display":
No, that's OK.
MUSCOVITE(2) Will anything change if I use the passive mode for the active one here?
No, that's OK, too.
MUSCOVITEWhich mood is more appropriate in technical writing (at least in contexts like this)?
0

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