Passive Voice
Spanish: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 10.4.6
Forming the Passive with 'Se'
The passive with ‘se’ is easy to form: use ‘se’ followed by the third person singular or the third person plural. The passive with 'se' can be used in any tense and only with transitive verbs.
Present tense
- Se come frío.
- It is eaten cold.
- Se venden bocadillos.
- Sandwiches are sold here.
Past tenses
- La casa se pintó de rojo.
- The house was painted red.
- Las casas se constuyeron en 1982.
- The houses were built in 1982.
Future Tense
- Se servirán los aperitivos en el comedor.
- Aperitifs will be served in the dinning room.
- Todo ello se financiará con recursos publicos.
- All this will be funded by public resources.
Forming the Passive Voice with 'Ser'
The passive can be used in any tense. In the passive voice the object is given the active role in a sentence. To form the passive voice you use 'ser' + a past participle. The past participle must agree with the gender and person of the subject.
Present tense
- Él es querido por todos.
- He is loved by everyone.
- Ellos son queridos por todos.
- They are loved by everyone.
Past tenses
- La Mona Lisa fue pintada por Leonardo da Vinci.
- The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci.
- Las casas fueron construidas en 1982.
- The houses were built in 1982.
- Los nuevos empleos eran creados por las empresas.
- The new jobs were created by businesses.
Future Tense
- La ley será aprobada por los ciudadanos.
- The law will be approved by the citizens.
- Un muro será construido por Donald Trump.
- A wall will be built by Donald Trump.
Test yourself on Passive Voice
How do you say 'the houses were built' in Spanish?
How do you say 'it was done' in Spanish?