Passive Voice in Italian

Overview

The forma passiva (passive voice) allows you to shift the focus of a sentence from who performs the action to who or what receives it. Instead of "The chef prepares the meal," you say "The meal is prepared (by the chef)." In Italian, this construction is more versatile than in English, with several auxiliary verb options that add shades of meaning.

The standard passive is formed with essere + past participle, with the participle agreeing in gender and number with the subject. The agent (doer) is introduced with the preposition da. Italian also offers two important alternatives: venire + past participle emphasizes an action in progress, while andare + past participle conveys obligation or necessity.

Understanding the passive voice is essential for reading newspapers, academic texts, and formal writing, where it appears frequently. It also helps you vary your sentence structure and sound more natural in contexts where the agent is unknown, unimportant, or obvious.

How It Works

Standard Passive with Essere

Active	Passive
Il cuoco prepara la cena.	La cena è preparata dal cuoco.
Gli studenti leggono i libri.	I libri sono letti dagli studenti.
Maria ha scritto la lettera.	La lettera è stata scritta da Maria.

The past participle always agrees with the subject in gender and number:

Subject	Participle form	Example
masc. sing.	-o	Il libro è letto.
fem. sing.	-a	La lettera è scritta.
masc. plur.	-i	I libri sono letti.
fem. plur.	-e	Le lettere sono scritte.

Passive Across Tenses

Tense	Active	Passive
Present	Preparano la cena.	La cena è preparata.
Imperfect	Preparavano la cena.	La cena era preparata.
Passato prossimo	Hanno preparato la cena.	La cena è stata preparata.
Future	Prepareranno la cena.	La cena sarà preparata.
Conditional	Preparerebbero la cena.	La cena sarebbe preparata.

Alternative Auxiliaries

Auxiliary	Meaning	Tense restriction	Example
venire	Emphasizes action happening	Simple tenses only	La cena viene preparata ogni sera.
andare	Obligation/necessity	Simple tenses only	Questo lavoro va fatto subito.

Important: Venire and andare as passive auxiliaries are used only in simple tenses (present, imperfect, future, etc.), never in compound tenses.

Agent with "Da"

Italian	English
Il quadro è stato dipinto da Caravaggio.	The painting was painted by Caravaggio.
La decisione è stata presa dal consiglio.	The decision was made by the council.
Sono stati aiutati dai vicini.	They were helped by the neighbors.

Examples in Context

Italian	English	Note
La pizza è stata inventata a Napoli.	Pizza was invented in Naples.	Agent omitted (common knowledge)
Questo vino viene prodotto in Toscana.	This wine is produced in Tuscany.	Venire for habitual action
Il problema va risolto immediatamente.	The problem must be solved immediately.	Andare for obligation
Le email sono state inviate stamattina.	The emails were sent this morning.	Compound past, feminine plural
Il museo viene visitato da migliaia di turisti.	The museum is visited by thousands of tourists.	Agent with da
La legge è stata approvata dal Parlamento.	The law was approved by Parliament.	Formal/journalistic
I compiti vanno consegnati entro venerdì.	The homework must be handed in by Friday.	Andare = obligation
Il concerto sarà trasmesso in diretta.	The concert will be broadcast live.	Future passive
La casa era stata costruita nel 1920.	The house had been built in 1920.	Pluperfect passive
Questa canzone viene cantata in tutto il mondo.	This song is sung all over the world.	Venire for ongoing reality
Il contratto andrebbe firmato oggi.	The contract should be signed today.	Andare in conditional = should
I risultati saranno pubblicati domani.	The results will be published tomorrow.	Future passive

Common Mistakes

Forgetting Participle Agreement

• Wrong: La porta è stato chiuso.
• Right: La porta è stata chiusa.
• Why: In the passive with essere, the past participle must agree with the subject. "Porta" is feminine singular, so you need stata chiusa.

Using Venire in Compound Tenses

• Wrong: La cena è venuta preparata.
• Right: La cena è stata preparata.
• Why: Venire as a passive auxiliary can only be used in simple tenses. In compound tenses, you must use essere.

Confusing Passive with "Si" Construction

• Wrong: La pizza si è inventata a Napoli. (attempting formal passive)
• Right: La pizza è stata inventata a Napoli. (true passive) or La pizza si è inventata a Napoli. (acceptable as si passivante, but different nuance)
• Why: The si passivante and the true passive overlap in meaning but behave differently grammatically. At this level, keep them distinct.

Omitting "Da" or Using Wrong Preposition

• Wrong: Il libro è stato scritto con Eco.
• Right: Il libro è stato scritto da Eco.
• Why: The agent in passive sentences is always introduced by da (by), not con (with) or other prepositions.

Usage Notes

The passive voice is significantly more common in Italian formal writing — news articles, legal documents, academic papers, and official communications — than in casual speech. In everyday conversation, Italians often prefer the si passivante construction (e.g., "Si mangia bene qui" instead of "Qui si è mangiato bene") or simply use the active voice.

The andare + past participle construction is particularly common in bureaucratic and instructional Italian: "Il modulo va compilato in stampatello" (The form must be filled out in block letters). It carries a stronger sense of obligation than the essere passive.

In journalism, the passive with venire is preferred over essere in the present tense because it unambiguously signals an action rather than a state: "Il presidente viene eletto ogni sette anni" (action) vs. "Il presidente è eletto" (could be state or action).

Practice Tips

1. Transform newspaper headlines: Take active sentences from news articles and rewrite them in the passive, then check if the original used a passive. News Italian is rich in passive constructions.
2. Practice all three auxiliaries: For each sentence, try it with essere, venire, and andare to feel the different nuances — "La porta è chiusa" (it is closed), "La porta viene chiusa alle 20" (it gets closed at 8pm), "La porta va chiusa" (it must be closed).
3. Focus on agreement: Write passive sentences with subjects of different genders and numbers to build automatic agreement reflexes.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Essere — the primary auxiliary for passive formation
• Next steps: Formal Register — passive voice is a hallmark of formal Italian style