In an active sentence, the subject DOES the action. In a passive sentence, the focus shifts to what HAPPENS to something — often because who did it isn't important or isn't known. German builds the passive with werden + Partizip II.
Types you should know
das Aktiv
active — subject does the action
das Passiv
passive — focus on the action itself
Passiv mit Modalverb
passive with a modal verb
See it in action
Passive = werden (conjugated) + Partizip II (at the end)
Active
Passive
Die Firma baut das Haus.
Das Haus wird von der Firma gebaut.
Der Arzt untersucht den Patienten.
Der Patient wird vom Arzt untersucht.
Present and past passive
Tense
German
Present
Das Haus wird gebaut.
Past (Perfekt)
Das Haus ist gebaut worden.
Passive with a modal verb
German
English
Das Formular muss ausgefüllt werden.
The form must be filled out.
Memory trick: The person/thing doing the action (if mentioned at all) shifts to 'von + Dativ' — von der Firma, vom Arzt — and often disappears completely, which is exactly why the passive is so useful for describing processes and rules.
⚠ Common mistake: Don't confuse the passive 'werden' with the future 'werden' — "Das Haus wird gebaut" is passive (is being built), while "Das Haus wird stehen" is future (will stand). Look for the Partizip II to tell them apart.
🎯 Quick check
What is the passive form of 'Der Koch kocht das Essen.'?