Passive For Intermediate learners
What is the Passive Voice?
The passive voice is like an alternative verb structure that can be found in both English and German grammar. It is usually used when the action matters more than the doer of that action, or in scenarios in which the doer is unknown and can't be mentioned.
The mechanic repairs the car.
(active)
The car is repaired by the mechanic.
(passive)
Types of passive voice in German
There are two types of passive voice in German:
Process Passive (Vorgangspassiv)
Statal Passive (Zustandspassiv)
Process Passive
This type is more common than statal passive, and it describes the action or process itself. The formula for process passive is the same across all tenses.
[conjugated 'werden' + Past Participle]
Here is the conjugation of warden for the passive:
Present | Simple Past | |
|---|---|---|
ich | werde | wurde |
du | wirst | wurdest |
er/sie/es | wird | wurde |
wir | werden | wurden |
ihr | werdet | wurdet |
sie/Sie | werden | wurden |
öffnen (to open)
Die Tür wird geöffnet.
The door is opened.
present - passive
Die Tür wurde geöffnet.
The door was opened.
simple past - passive
Die Tür ist geöffnet worden.
The door has been opened.
present perfect - passive
Die Tür war geöffnet worden.
The door had been opened.
past perfect - passive
Die Tür wird geöffnet warden.
The door will be opened.
future - passive
In the present perfect and past perfect tense, warden becomes its past participle, worden.
Das Auto ist repariert worden.
The car has been repaired.
Die Entscheidung war lange vorher getroffen worden.
The decision had been made long before.
Note!
You can also mention the agent (doer of the action) by using special prepositions.
Von + Dative (for people)
If the agent of a passive sentence is a person, the agent can be mentioned after the preposition "von".
Das Buch wird von dem Studenten gelesen.
The book is being read by the student.
von + dem Studenten
durch + Accusative (for means or forces)
If the agent in a passive voice sentence is a thing or a process, it can be mentioned after the preposition 'durch'.
Die Stadt wurde durch ein Erdbeben zerstört.
The city was destroyed by an earthquake.
durch + ein Erdbeben
Statal Passive
Unlike the process passive that is more about action and process, state passive is about the resulting state of an action. It tells you about the state or condition of something.
[sein (conjugated) + Past Participle]
öffnen (to open)
Die Tür ist geöffnet.
The door is open.
present - passive
Die Tür war geöffnet.
The door was open.
simple past - passive
Die Tür ist geöffnet gewesen.
The door has been open.
present perfect - passive
Die Tür war geöffnet gewesen.
The door had been open.
past perfect - passive
Die Tür wird geöffnet sein.
The door will be open.
future - passive
Usage
Unknown Agent
Unimportant Agent
Formal or Impersonal Use
Object Emphasis
Unknown Agent
Jemand stahl mein Fahrrad.
Someone stole my bike.
active
Mein Fahrrad wurde gestohlen.
My bike was stolen.
passive
Unimportant Agent
Der neue Bahnhof wird nächstes Jahr gebaut.
The new train station will be built next year.
Formal or Impersonal Use
Es wird hier nicht geraucht.
Smoking is not permitted here.
Object Emphasis
Die Queen wurde von der Menge begeistert begrüßt.
The Queen was enthusiastically greeted by the crowd.
Comparison
The table below shows some of the differences between process passive and statal passive:
Process Passive | Statal Passive | |
|---|---|---|
Focus | the action | the result |
Auxiliary Verb | werden | sein |
Das Fenster wird geöffnet.
The window is being opened.
process passive
Das Fenster ist geöffnet.
The window is open.
statal passive
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