Das Passiv – Passiv übungen

The Passive Voice in German.

German uses a similar structure for the passive, but with “werden” as the auxiliary verb. Here the accusative object of the action becomes the nominative subject: Ich sehe dich. -> Du wirst gesehen.

If we still want to identify the active subject, we put the information into a prepositional phrase, usually with “von” – which of course takes the dative case: Du wirst von mir gesehen.

The preposition “durch” can be used when the active subject is an instrument of the action, rather than an initiator: Er wird durch eine Explosion geweckt (He is awakened by an explosion). Berlin wurde durch eine Mauer geteilt (Berlin was divided by a wall). Of course durch takes the accusative, as always. As with the English “with,” “mit” can be used to indicate a tool used to carry out the action: Die Tür wurde mit einem Schlüssel geöffnet (The door was opened with a key). Read more »