How to form the German Passive Voice
After you learn to make correct sentences in German, the next step is to learn how to use the passive tense in German. Let's explore this topic in this article.
What do active & passive voices mean in German?
In German and English, sentences can be structured in both active and passive voices. The choice between using the active or passive voice in a sentence affects how the information is presented and focuses on different parts of the sentence. Please note that this post does not include modal verbs, which will be part of another article.
In an active sentence, the subject performs the action of the verb and is the focus.
For example:
Der Koch bereitet das Essen vor. → The chef prepares the meal.
In this sentence, "der Koch" (the chef) is the subject who is doing the action (vorbereiten = prepare), and "das Essen" (the meal) is the Accusative object “receiving” the action. When using an active sentence, you focus on the subject rather than on the action.
Recommended study materials on the topic:
Exercise – German passive in the present tense (incl. answers)
Exercise – German passive in the past tense (incl. answers)
Conversation exercise – speaking with Passive voice in present tense
Conversation exercise – speaking with Passive voice in past tense
A-Grammar: Practice German grammar German (incl. answers)
German self-study book for A1-B1 (incl. answers)
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The Passive Voice in German
The passive voice is often chosen when the emphasis is on the action or the object affected by the action rather than on who or what is carrying out the action. This means using the passive voice is a good approach if you want to highlight the action more than the doer. We will dive deeper into this concept as we go on.
The German Passive in Present tense (Präsens)
If you wish to form a passive sentence in German, you need two things: the verb “werden” and the “Partizip 2”, the past participle of the main verb (which you already know from the Perfect tense) that always comes at the very end of the sentence.
Structure: werden + Partizip 2 at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen wird vom Koch vorbereitet. → The meal is prepared by the chef.
Here, "das Essen" (the meal) becomes the focus of the sentence, acting as the subject of the action. The agent "vom Koch" (by the chef) is optional and can be omitted if the performer of the action is unknown or irrelevant, like in English.
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The German Passive in the past tenses
The German Passive in simple past (Präteritum)
You form the German passive in the simple past the same way as in the present tense, but the verb “werden” becomes “wurden”. When speaking in the passive tense, you usually use the Präteritum rather than the Perfekt.
Structure: wurden + Partizip 2 at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen wurde vom Koch vorbereitet. → The meal was prepared by the chef.
The German Passive in present perfect (Perfekt)
In the German present perfect, there is the tricky part because in the passive tense, the verb “werden” becomes an auxiliary verb, and hence it becomes “worden”.
Structure: sein …. Partizip 2 + worden at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen ist vom Koch vorbereitet worden. → The meal has been prepared by the chef.
The German Passive in Past Perfect Tense (Plusquamperfekt)
You will barely use the passive tense in the Plusquamperfekt, but it is the same as in the Perfekt; you just need to transform “sein” into “waren”.
Structure: waren … Partizip 2 + worden at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen war vom Koch vorbereitet worden. → The meal had been prepared by the chef.
The German Passive in the future tenses
The German Passive in future tense (Futur 1)
Now, when forming the GErman future tense, you will need to use the verb “werden,” which means, in the form of Futur 1, you will need to use “werden” as an auxiliary verb twice. This might sound weird at first but it is not so difficult.
Structure: werden … Partizip 2 + werden at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen wird vom Koch vorbereitet werden. → The meal will be prepared by the chef.
The German Passive in future tense (Futur 2)
You will barely use the Passive in Futur 2 but to make the list complete. The Futur 2 describes an action that will have been finished in the future and hence it is rarely used in German and English.
Structure: werden … Partizip 2 + worden + sein at the end of the sentence
For example:
Das Essen wird vom Koch vorbereitet worden sein. → The meal will have been prepared by the chef.
Remember: The passive voice is used to focus on the action or its recipient, rather than the doer.
Conclusion
I hope that after reading this article, you understood how to form the German passive tenses as with everything, once you understood the structure the rest is not too difficult. You should check out also the difference between “werden”, “wurden”, “worden” and “würden”.
Bis bald!
Steffie
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