German Passive Voice: How to Form and Use the Passiv
9 min read
The passive voice (das Passiv) is one of those grammar topics that separates intermediate German learners from truly confident speakers. While beginners stick to active sentences like Ich lese das Buch (I read the book), the passive lets you shift the focus to what is being done rather than who is doing it: Das Buch wird gelesen (The book is being read).
If you are studying for the B1 exam or simply want to sound more natural in German, mastering the passive is essential. This guide walks you through every form you need, with clear examples and practical tips.
The German passive voice is built around one key verb: werden. The basic formula is:
Subject + conjugated form of werden + ... + past participle (Partizip II)
Here is the transformation from active to passive:
| Active | Passive |
|---|---|
| Der Koch kocht die Suppe. | Die Suppe wird (vom Koch) gekocht. |
| (The cook makes the soup.) | (The soup is being made by the cook.) |
Notice three things:
This structure is called the Vorgangspassiv (process passive) because it describes an action in progress. It is by far the most common passive form in German.
| Person | werden |
|---|---|
| ich | werde |
| du | wirst |
| er/sie/es | wird |
| wir | werden |
| ihr | werdet |
| sie/Sie | werden |
Examples:
If you want to drill these verb forms quickly, try our Type Rush game -- typing German words under time pressure is an excellent way to internalize conjugation patterns.
This is one of the most frequently asked questions about the German passive, and the difference is simpler than it looks.
Describes an action happening:
Describes the result of an action:
The key distinction: werden focuses on the process, sein focuses on the resulting state. Think of it this way -- if someone is painting a wall right now, you say Die Wand wird gestrichen (Vorgangspassiv). If the painting is finished and the wall is freshly painted, you say Die Wand ist gestrichen (Zustandspassiv).
This distinction matters in everyday German. When you walk into a shop and the sign says Geöffnet, the shop is open (Zustandspassiv). Nobody is currently in the act of opening it.
The Vorgangspassiv works across all six tenses. The secret is that only werden changes form -- the past participle stays the same.
| Tense | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Präsens | wird + Partizip II | Das Buch wird gelesen. |
| Präteritum | wurde + Partizip II | Das Buch wurde gelesen. |
| Perfekt | ist + Partizip II + worden | Das Buch ist gelesen worden. |
| Plusquamperfekt | war + Partizip II + worden | Das Buch war gelesen worden. |
| Futur I | wird + Partizip II + werden | Das Buch wird gelesen werden. |
| Futur II | wird + Partizip II + worden sein | Das Buch wird gelesen worden sein. |
Important: In the Perfekt and Plusquamperfekt passive, German uses worden (not geworden). This shortened form only appears in passive constructions.
The Präteritum passive (wurde + Partizip II) is the most common past passive in written German. In spoken German, you will also hear the Perfekt passive, though it sounds a bit more formal.
For a deeper dive into how German tenses work in general, check out our German verb conjugation guide.
German uses the passive voice more freely than English in several situations:
German has a unique impersonal passive that English cannot replicate directly:
This form uses es as a placeholder subject or drops the subject entirely when another element starts the sentence.
Combining the passive with modal verbs is extremely common in German, especially in professional and academic contexts. The structure is:
Subject + modal verb (conjugated) + ... + Partizip II + werden
| Modal | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| können | Das kann gemacht werden. | That can be done. |
| müssen | Die Arbeit muss erledigt werden. | The work must be completed. |
| sollen | Der Brief soll heute geschickt werden. | The letter should be sent today. |
| dürfen | Hier darf nicht geparkt werden. | Parking is not allowed here. |
| wollen | Das Projekt will schnell beendet werden. | The project wants to be finished quickly. |
Notice that werden appears as an infinitive at the very end, right after the past participle. This is a pattern worth memorizing because it appears constantly on grammar exams and in formal German.
For a complete overview of modal verbs themselves, see our German grammar exercises where you can practice modals in context.
When you want to mention who or what performs the action in a passive sentence, you use von or durch:
The rule of thumb: use von when a person deliberately does something, and durch when something serves as the instrument or cause. Understanding German cases is essential here, since von triggers the dative and durch triggers the accusative.
Native German speakers do not always use the formal passive. Several alternative constructions convey passive meaning without werden:
The most common alternative:
Expresses possibility:
Expresses necessity or possibility:
Similar to English "-able":
These alternatives (called Passiversatzformen) are extremely popular in spoken German and appear frequently in B1-level texts.
The passive voice is a topic that clicks through repetition. Reading examples is a great start, but actively producing passive sentences is what locks it into memory.
Here are three ways to practice right now on Deutschwunder:
The passive voice might feel unfamiliar at first, but once you recognize the pattern -- werden plus past participle -- you will start noticing it everywhere in German texts, news, and conversations. Keep practicing, and it will become second nature.
This post is part of our German grammar series on Deutschwunder. Explore more grammar guides, interactive games, and quizzes to accelerate your German learning journey.