Is this a passive or active sentence accidents are witnessed every day?

Answer 1

Any time the verb is a form of "to be", it is passive voice. The passive verbs include:

is, are, were, be, being, been, have, had

Additionally, one clue to passive sentences is when the verb is followed by "by". "

Example:

The accidents are witnessed by other motorists every day."

Sometimes, passive sentences are perfectly okay to use when the "actor" (who is doing the action) is unimportant. But too many passive sentences make reading boring, and passive makes longer sentences.

Example, passive

Every day, accidents are witnessed by other motorists. Records of accidents are kept by local police departments and statistics are compiled by State agencies and by insurance companies. As determined by authorities, most accidents are caused by people who are inattentive or distracted.

Example, active.

Other motorists witness accidents every day. Local police departments keep records, which State agencies and insurance companies use to create statistics. These authorities determined that inattentive or distracted drivers cause the most accidents.

Note that the both examples say the same thing but the noun is followed by an active verb (witness; keep; use; determined). Also note that the passive example is longer than the active example. The active example uses fewer words, is easier to read, and still makes the same points.

Answer 2

This is an active sentence because the subject (accidents) is performing the action of being witnessed. In a passive sentence, the subject would receive the action rather than perform it.