Dutch Passive Voice — Worden & Zijn

The passive voice is a grammatical construction where the subject of the sentence receives the action rather than performing it. In Dutch, as in English, using the passive voice helps emphasize the action or the recipient of the action rather than the doer.

🔍 What Is the Passive Voice?

In active voice, the subject does something:

• De man leest het boek. – The man reads the book.

In passive voice, the action happens to the subject:

• Het boek wordt door de man gelezen. – The book is read by the man.

📐 Forming the Passive Voice

There are two main forms of the passive voice in Dutch:

1. Present Passive: worden + past participle
2. Past Passive: zijn + past participle

Present Passive Examples:

• De brief wordt geschreven. – The letter is being written.
• De appels worden gegeten. – The apples are being eaten.

Past Passive Examples:

• De brief is geschreven. – The letter has been written.
• De appels zijn gegeten. – The apples have been eaten.

📚 When to Use the Passive Voice

• When the subject is unknown or unimportant:
• De stad werd gebouwd in 1600. – The city was built in 1600.
• To focus on the action or the receiver:
• De taart wordt geserveerd. – The cake is being served.

🧠 Common Passive Voice Verbs

• worden – to become (used in present passive)
• zijn – to be (used in past passive)
• ge- verbs – past participles like geschreven (written), gedaan (done), gebouwd (built)

🎓 More Examples for Practice

• Het huis wordt schoongemaakt. – The house is being cleaned.
• De studenten worden geïnformeerd. – The students are being informed.
• Het pakket is geleverd. – The package has been delivered.
• De regels zijn veranderd. – The rules have been changed.

🔗 Related Grammar Topics

• Dutch Sentence Structure
• Dutch Present Tense
• Perfectum (Past Tense)