Passive Voice in Catalan

Overview

The passive voice shifts the focus from who does the action to what receives it. Instead of "She wrote the book," the passive says "The book was written by her." At the B2 level, understanding passive constructions is important for reading formal texts, news, and academic writing.

Catalan has three main passive strategies: the ser-passive (ser + past participle), the reflexive passive (es + verb), and impersonal es constructions. The reflexive passive is far more common in everyday Catalan than the ser-passive, which sounds formal or literary.

The past participle in ser-passives must agree in gender and number with the subject. The agent (who performs the action) is introduced with per: El pont va ser construït per l'enginyer (The bridge was built by the engineer).

How It Works

Ser-Passive

Tense	Example
Present	El diari és llegit per molta gent. (The newspaper is read by many people.)
Periphrastic past	El pont va ser construït el 1900. (The bridge was built in 1900.)
Present perfect	La carta ha estat enviada. (The letter has been sent.)

Reflexive Passive (with "es")

Catalan	English
Es parla català aquí.	Catalan is spoken here.
Es venen pisos.	Apartments are for sale.
Es necessiten treballadors.	Workers are needed.

Comparison

Active	Ser-passive	Reflexive passive
Molta gent parla català.	El català és parlat per molta gent.	Es parla català.
Van construir el pont.	El pont va ser construït.	Es va construir el pont.

Examples in Context

Catalan	English	Note
El pont va ser construït el 1900.	The bridge was built in 1900.	Ser-passive
La carta ha estat enviada.	The letter has been sent.	Ser-passive, perfect
Es parla català aquí.	Catalan is spoken here.	Reflexive passive
Es venen pisos.	Apartments for sale.	Reflexive passive
La llei va ser aprovada ahir.	The law was approved yesterday.	Formal passive
Es necessiten voluntaris.	Volunteers are needed.	Reflexive passive
El llibre va ser escrit per un autor català.	The book was written by a Catalan author.	With agent
S'han tancat les portes.	The doors have been closed.	Reflexive, perfect
Aquesta llengua és parlada per milions de persones.	This language is spoken by millions.	Ser-passive
Es lloguen habitacions.	Rooms for rent.	Commercial use

Common Mistakes

Forgetting participle agreement in ser-passives

• Wrong: La carta ha estat enviat.
• Right: La carta ha estat enviada.
• Why: The past participle must agree with the subject in gender and number.

Overusing ser-passives in casual contexts

• Formal: El cafè és servit a les tres.
• Natural: Es serveix el cafè a les tres. or Serveixen el cafè a les tres.
• Why: The ser-passive sounds literary in everyday Catalan. Prefer the reflexive passive or active voice.

Wrong verb agreement in reflexive passives

• Wrong: Es ven pisos.
• Right: Es venen pisos.
• Why: In reflexive passives, the verb agrees with the grammatical subject: pisos (plural) → venen (plural).

Usage Notes

Catalan strongly prefers active constructions or reflexive passives over ser-passives in everyday communication. The ser-passive is common in journalism, academic writing, and formal texts. When translating from English, resist the temptation to use ser-passives directly — a reflexive passive or active sentence usually sounds more natural in Catalan.

Practice Tips

1. Read a Catalan news article and identify passive constructions. Note whether they use ser-passive or reflexive passive.
2. Convert active sentences to both passive types: "La gent parla català" → "El català és parlat per la gent" (ser) → "Es parla català" (reflexive).
3. Practice reflexive passives for signs and announcements: "Es lloguen pisos," "Es busquen treballadors," "Es parla anglès."

Related Concepts

• Periphrastic Past — the past tense used in passive constructions
• Past Participle and Gerund — participles used in ser-passives