Passive Voice: Present (werden + Partizip II)

The passive voice (Passiv) is a grammatical construction that shifts the focus from who performs an action to the action itself or its result. German uses the passive voice extensively — far more than English in many contexts, especially in formal, academic, and technical writing.

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Active vs Passive

Voice	Focus	Example
Active	The doer (subject performs action)	Der Lehrer erklärt die Grammatik. (The teacher explains the grammar.)
Passive	The action or receiver	Die Grammatik wird erklärt. (The grammar is explained.)

In the active sentence, der Lehrer (the teacher) is the subject and performs the action. In the passive sentence, die Grammatik (the grammar) becomes the subject, and the focus is on what happens to it.

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Formation: werden + Partizip II

The German passive (called Vorgangspassiv — "process passive") is formed with:

conjugated form of werden + Partizip II (past participle) at the end

werden in the Present Tense

Person	werden
ich	werde
du	wirst
er/sie/es	wird
wir	werden
ihr	werdet
sie/Sie	werden

Examples

Active	Passive
Man baut ein Haus. (Someone builds a house.)	Ein Haus wird gebaut. (A house is being built.)
Der Koch kocht das Essen. (The cook prepares the food.)	Das Essen wird gekocht. (The food is being prepared.)
Die Firma produziert Autos. (The company produces cars.)	Autos werden produziert. (Cars are produced.)

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Step-by-Step Conversion: Active → Passive

1. The accusative object of the active sentence becomes the nominative subject of the passive sentence.
2. The active verb becomes a Partizip II at the end of the clause.
3. Add the appropriate form of werden as the conjugated verb.
4. The original subject (the doer) can be added with von + Dativ (optional).

Detailed Example

Active: Der Mechaniker repariert das Auto. (The mechanic repairs the car.)

Step	Action	Result
1	das Auto (accusative) → nominative subject	Das Auto ...
2	repariert → Partizip II	... repariert.
3	Add werden conjugated for das Auto (3rd person singular)	Das Auto wird ... repariert.
4	Optional: der Mechaniker → von dem Mechaniker (dative)	Das Auto wird vom Mechaniker repariert.

Final: Das Auto wird vom Mechaniker repariert.

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The Agent: von + Dative

The person or thing performing the action is called the agent. In a passive sentence, the agent is introduced with von + dative:

Active	Passive with Agent
Die Polizei verhaftet den Dieb.	Der Dieb wird von der Polizei verhaftet.
Mozart komponierte die Oper.	Die Oper wird von Mozart komponiert.
Die Studenten schreiben den Test.	Der Test wird von den Studenten geschrieben.

In many passive sentences, the agent is omitted because it is unknown, unimportant, or obvious:

• Hier wird Deutsch gesprochen. (German is spoken here.) — who speaks it is irrelevant
• Das Fenster wird gerade geputzt. (The window is being cleaned right now.) — the cleaner is obvious from context

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durch + Accusative (Means/Instrument)

When the cause is not a person but a means, instrument, or force, use durch + accusative: