Passive Voice in Hebrew

In Brief

Hebrew usually forms the passive through a binyan (a verb pattern): Nif'al often supplies a passive related to Pa'al, Pu'al is the passive partner of Pi'el, and Hof'al is the passive partner of Hif'il. Hebrew also uses passive participles such as כתוב “written” and סגור “closed,” especially to describe a resulting state rather than the event itself.

Overview

A sentence is passive when its subject is the person or thing affected by an action rather than the one performing it. Compare the active sentence העירייה בנתה את הבית “The municipality built the house” with הבית נבנה “The house was built.” In the passive version, הבית is the subject, and the builder can be omitted.

This is especially useful when the actor is unknown, obvious, unimportant, or deliberately left unnamed. You will meet passive forms in news reports, instructions, academic writing, official notices, and descriptions of products or processes. At B1, the central task is to recognize common Nif'al passives and use them in simple sentences. A complete picture also includes Pu'al, Hof'al, and passive participles.

English often builds the passive with a separate form of “be” plus a past participle: “was written,” “is closed.” Hebrew frequently puts the passive meaning inside the verb pattern itself: נכתב can mean “was written,” while ייכתב means “will be written.” There is therefore no separate Hebrew equivalent of English “be” in many passive clauses.

How It Works

From active object to passive subject

An active sentence normally presents an actor, an action, and an affected object:

Role	Active sentence	Passive sentence
Actor	העירייה בנתה את הבית.	Usually omitted
Affected item	העירייה בנתה את הבית.	הבית נבנה.
Meaning	The municipality built the house.	The house was built.

The direct object (the person or thing directly affected by the active action) becomes the subject of the passive sentence. Because it is now a subject, it does not take the direct-object marker את:

• Active: הם כתבו את הספר. — They wrote the book.
• Passive: הספר נכתב. — The book was written.

The passive verb agrees with its new subject where Hebrew grammar marks gender and number: ההזמנה נשלחה “the invitation was sent,” but המכתבים נשלחו “the letters were sent.”

The three main passive patterns

Hebrew verbs are organized into binyanim, recurring patterns that combine a root with a characteristic shape. Three patterns are central to the passive:

Active pattern	Passive partner	Active example	Passive example
Pa'al	often Nif'al	כתב — wrote	נכתב — was written
Pi'el	Pu'al	פרסם — published	פורסם — was published
Hif'il	Hof'al	הזמין — invited	הוזמן — was invited

These pairings help you recognize relationships, but they are not a machine for inventing forms. Not every active verb has a common passive counterpart, meanings can shift, and Nif'al has important non-passive uses. Learn a verb together with the forms actually used by Hebrew speakers.

Nif'al: a common passive and more

Nif'al often expresses the passive of a Pa'al verb:

• כתב → נכתב — wrote → was written
• בנה → נבנה — built → was built
• סגר → נסגר — closed something → was closed
• שבר → נשבר — broke something → was broken

Tense is carried by the Nif'al verb itself:

Time	Hebrew	Meaning
Past	הספר נכתב.	The book was written.
Present	הספר נכתב עכשיו.	The book is being written now.
Future	הספר ייכתב בקרוב.	The book will be written soon.

In unvocalized Hebrew, context is essential. The form נכתב can represent past nikhtav “was written” or masculine singular present nikhtav “is being written/is written”; the surrounding words usually settle the time.

Nif'al is not always passive. It can also be inchoative (describing entry into a state) or otherwise function as an ordinary lexical verb. Thus הדלת נפתחה may naturally mean “The door opened,” without implying that someone opened it. Similarly, נכנס means “entered,” not “was entered,” and נשאר means “remained.” Do not label every initial נ־ form as passive.

Pu'al: the passive partner of Pi'el

Pu'al commonly presents the affected participant of a Pi'el action:

• העיתון פרסם את הכתבה. — The newspaper published the article.
• הכתבה פורסמה בעיתון. — The article was published in the newspaper.

Common forms include פורסם “was published,” צולם “was photographed,” שולם “was paid,” בוטל “was cancelled,” and בוצע “was carried out/performed.” Pu'al is very common in past-tense reports and formal contexts. Without vowel points, the internal vowels that distinguish patterns are invisible, so learning each form in a sentence is more reliable than relying only on spelling.

The present forms agree like adjectives or present-tense verbs:

Subject	Form	Example
Masculine singular	מפורסם	המאמר מפורסם באתר.
Feminine singular	מפורסמת	הכתבה מפורסמת באתר.
Masculine/mixed plural	מפורסמים	המאמרים מפורסמים באתר.
Feminine plural	מפורסמות	הכתבות מפורסמות באתר.

Be aware that מפורסם also commonly means “famous.” Context determines whether it describes publication or fame.

Hof'al: the passive partner of Hif'il

Hof'al corresponds to many Hif'il verbs:

• החברה הזמינה את העובדים. — The company invited the employees.
• העובדים הוזמנו לפגישה. — The employees were invited to the meeting.

Other frequent examples are הוכן “was prepared,” הוחלט “it was decided,” הוסבר “was explained,” הועבר “was transferred,” and הוכנס “was put in/brought in.” Hof'al is particularly visible in administrative, journalistic, and procedural Hebrew. Some forms are extremely common even in ordinary conversation, especially הוזמן, הוכן, and הוחלט.

Passive participles and resulting states

A participle is a verb-related form that can behave like an adjective. Hebrew passive participles such as כתוב “written,” סגור “closed,” פתוח “open,” and שבור “broken” agree with the noun in gender and number:

Gender and number	סגור	כתוב
Masculine singular	סגור	כתוב
Feminine singular	סגורה	כתובה
Masculine/mixed plural	סגורים	כתובים
Feminine plural	סגורות	כתובות

These forms often describe a state, not an unfolding action:

• הדלת סגורה. — The door is closed.
• ההוראות כתובות בעברית. — The instructions are written in Hebrew.

Modern Hebrew normally omits “to be” in present-tense descriptions, so there is no word corresponding to “is” in הדלת סגורה. In the past or future, a form of להיות can appear:

• הדלת הייתה סגורה. — The door was closed.
• הדלת תהיה סגורה. — The door will be closed.

This construction usually locates a state in time. Compare:

• הדלת נסגרה בשמונה. — The door closed/was closed at eight. (event)
• הדלת הייתה סגורה בשמונה. — The door was closed at eight. (state at that time)

That event–state contrast is more useful than trying to translate every English “was + participle” word for word.

Naming the actor

The actor is often omitted because omission is one reason to choose the passive. When it must be named, formal Hebrew commonly uses על ידי “by”:

• הספר נכתב על ידי עמוס עוז. — The book was written by Amos Oz.

This is grammatical but can sound heavy in everyday speech. If the actor matters, Hebrew often prefers an active sentence:

• עמוס עוז כתב את הספר. — Amos Oz wrote the book.

Examples in Context

Hebrew	English	Note
הספר נכתב בשנה שעברה.	The book was written last year.	Nif'al, completed event
הבית נבנה ליד הים.	The house was built near the sea.	Nif'al passive
העברית מדוברת בישראל.	Hebrew is spoken in Israel.	Ongoing/general passive
הדלת סגורה עכשיו.	The door is closed now.	Resulting state
הכתבה פורסמה הבוקר.	The article was published this morning.	Pu'al, feminine singular
התמונות צולמו בירושלים.	The photographs were taken in Jerusalem.	Pu'al, plural
החשבון כבר שולם.	The bill has already been paid.	Pu'al; completed result
הפגישה בוטלה בגלל הגשם.	The meeting was cancelled because of the rain.	Pu'al, feminine singular
כל האורחים הוזמנו לארוחה.	All the guests were invited to dinner.	Hof'al, plural
הארוחה הוכנה מראש.	The meal was prepared in advance.	Hof'al, feminine singular
הוחלט לפתוח את המשרד מחר.	It was decided to open the office tomorrow.	Impersonal passive
המכתב יישלח ביום ראשון.	The letter will be sent on Sunday.	Future passive
החדרים יהיו סגורים בלילה.	The rooms will be closed at night.	Future state with להיות
ההוראות כתובות בצורה ברורה.	The instructions are written clearly.	Passive participle, plural feminine
המאמר נכתב על ידי חוקרת ישראלית.	The article was written by an Israeli researcher.	Explicit actor; formal style

Common Mistakes

Keeping את before the passive subject

• Wrong: את הספר נכתב בשנה שעברה.
• Right: הספר נכתב בשנה שעברה.
• Why: In the passive sentence, הספר is the subject, not a direct object. Subjects do not take את. Fronting את הספר is possible in a different active structure, but then an active verb and actor are required.

Translating English “was” mechanically

• Wrong: הספר היה נכתב בשנה שעברה.
• Right: הספר נכתב בשנה שעברה.
• Why: A completed passive event is normally expressed by the past passive verb נכתב. היה + present participle has other uses, including habitual or conditional meanings, and is not the default copy of English “was written.”

Confusing an event with a state

• Unclear for an event: הדלת הייתה סגורה בשמונה על ידי השומר.
• Better: הדלת נסגרה בשמונה על ידי השומר. — The door was closed at eight by the guard.
• Why: הייתה סגורה says that the door was in a closed state at eight. נסגרה presents the closing as an event.

Forgetting gender and number agreement

• Wrong: ההזמנות נשלח אתמול.
• Right: ההזמנות נשלחו אתמול.
• Why: The passive verb must match the plural subject. Passive participles agree too: ההזמנות כתובות, not כתוב.

Treating every Nif'al verb as a passive

• Wrong analysis: הוא נכנס לחדר = “He was entered into the room.”
• Right: הוא נכנס לחדר. — He entered the room.
• Why: Nif'al has passive, middle, change-of-state, and independent lexical meanings. Learn the meaning of each verb rather than guessing solely from its pattern.

Overusing על ידי

• Heavy: הקפה הוכן על ידי דנה.
• More natural when Dana matters: דנה הכינה את הקפה.
• Why: An explicit “by” phrase is useful in formal prose or when the actor must be added afterward. Everyday Hebrew often switches to the active instead.

Usage Notes

Passive constructions are more frequent in written and formal Hebrew than in relaxed conversation. News reports use them to foreground events and results: הכביש נסגר, החשוד נעצר, ההחלטה פורסמה. Official instructions and academic prose use the passive to keep attention on a procedure or finding rather than on an individual actor.

Spoken Hebrew often prefers an active clause with an ordinary subject such as הם “they,” even when the people are not specifically identified. English “I was told that...” may therefore appear naturally as אמרו לי ש־..., literally “They told me that...,” rather than a formal passive equivalent. Likewise, בנו פה בית חדש “They built a new house here” can sound more conversational than נבנה פה בית חדש.

Passive does not automatically mean “formal,” however. Common phrases such as הפגישה בוטלה “the meeting was cancelled,” הכול סגור “everything is closed,” and הוזמנו למסיבה “we were invited to a party” are normal in everyday speech.

Hebrew is usually written without vowel points. Pu'al and Hof'al are therefore easiest to master through familiar word families and complete sentences. Recognition in context matters more than reconstructing every vowel pattern from abstract rules.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Passive, middle meaning, and spontaneous change

The boundary between passive and “happened to itself” is not always sharp. הכוס נשברה may be translated “The glass broke” or “The glass was broken,” depending on context. If no actor is mentioned, Hebrew often leaves open whether the change was caused deliberately, accidentally, or without a relevant agent. This flexibility is one reason Nif'al cannot be reduced to a simple English-style passive formula.

Impersonal passives

Formal Hebrew often uses a masculine singular passive with no concrete subject:

• הוחלט לדחות את הדיון. — It was decided to postpone the discussion.
• נמסר כי הרכבת תאחר. — It was reported/stated that the train would be late.
• נאמר לנו לחכות. — We were told to wait.

English may insert dummy “it,” but Hebrew does not need an equivalent pronoun. These constructions are useful for reading news and official communication, though active alternatives may be clearer when responsibility matters.

Choosing between a verbal passive and an adjective

Some forms have become ordinary adjectives or have meanings that cannot be predicted from a current active verb. מפורסם can mean “published,” but very often means “famous”; מקובל may mean “accepted,” “customary,” or “an accepted expert,” depending on context. Ask whether the sentence reports an action, describes its result, or simply assigns a quality.

English also allows many passives that Hebrew would recast entirely. Instead of searching for a passive equivalent word by word, identify what the sentence highlights: the action, the result, the affected person, or the unnamed actor. Then choose the Hebrew construction that naturally highlights the same information.

Practice Tips

1. Build active–passive pairs. Start with five frequent pairs such as כתב–נכתב, פרסם–פורסם, and הזמין–הוזמן. Say one active sentence and then promote its object to the passive subject, removing את.
2. Sort examples into “event” and “state.” Contrast החלון נשבר with החלון שבור, or החנות נסגרה with החנות הייתה סגורה. Add a time expression to make the intended meaning clear.
3. Collect passives from real notices and headlines. Highlight Nif'al, Pu'al, and Hof'al forms, identify their subject, and ask whether an active rewrite would sound more conversational.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Nif'al Verb Pattern — introduces the pattern behind many common passive and change-of-state verbs.
• Next step: Pu'al and Hof'al Patterns — gives a fuller treatment of the passive partners of Pi'el and Hif'il.
• Next step: Participles and Verbal Adjectives — develops the contrast between verbal events and states such as כתוב, סגור, and שבור.