Passive Voice in Urdu

Overview

The Urdu passive voice is formed by combining the verb stem with جانا (to go) conjugated in the appropriate tense. At the CEFR B2 level, the passive is important not only for standard passive meaning ("the book was read") but also for two uniquely South Asian functions: expressing inability and expressing adversity.

The agent (doer) in passive sentences is marked with سے se or کے ذریعے ke zarī'e (by means of). However, Urdu passive sentences frequently omit the agent entirely, especially when the focus is on the action or its result.

Unlike English, where the passive is often discouraged in writing, Urdu passive constructions are natural and frequent, particularly in formal, journalistic, and administrative registers.

How It Works

Formation

Verb stem + ا/ی/ے + جانا (conjugated for tense)

Tense	Active	Passive
Present habitual	وہ اردو بولتا ہے	اردو بولی جاتی ہے (Urdu is spoken)
Simple past	اس نے مکان بنایا	مکان بنایا گیا (the house was built)
Present continuous	وہ کتاب پڑھ رہا ہے	کتاب پڑھی جا رہی ہے (the book is being read)

Passive Types

Type	Pattern	Meaning
Standard	Object + verb + جانا	Action done to object
Inability	Experiencer + سے + verb + نہیں + جاتا	Cannot do something
Impersonal	No subject + verb + جاتا	General statement

Examples in Context

Urdu	Transliteration	English	Note
یہ کتاب پڑھی جاتی ہے۔	yeh kitāb paṛhī jātī hai	This book is read.	Standard passive
مکان بنایا گیا۔	makān banāyā gayā	The house was built.	Past passive
مجھ سے چلا نہیں جاتا۔	mujh se chalā nahīṅ jātā	I cannot walk.	Inability passive
اردو بولی جاتی ہے۔	urdū bolī jātī hai	Urdu is spoken.	General passive
یہاں سگریٹ نہیں پیا جاتا۔	yahāṅ sigreṭ nahīṅ piyā jātā	Smoking is not done here.	Impersonal
کام کیا جا رہا ہے۔	kām kiyā jā rahā hai	Work is being done.	Progressive passive
فیصلہ کیا گیا۔	faislā kiyā gayā	A decision was made.	Agentless
خط لکھا جائے گا۔	khat likhā jāe gā	The letter will be written.	Future passive
اس سے برداشت نہیں ہوتا۔	us se bardāsht nahīṅ hotā	He/She can't bear it.	Adversity passive
آج اخبار نہیں بانٹا گیا۔	āj akhbār nahīṅ bāṅṭā gayā	The newspaper wasn't distributed today.	Negative past passive

Common Mistakes

Forgetting Gender Agreement on the Participle

• Wrong: کتاب پڑھا جاتا ہے۔ (masculine form with feminine noun)
• Right: کتاب پڑھی جاتی ہے۔
• Why: The participle and جانا both agree with the patient (subject of passive).

Using نے in Passive Sentences

• Wrong: اس نے کتاب پڑھی گئی۔
• Right: کتاب پڑھی گئی۔ or اس سے کتاب پڑھی گئی۔
• Why: Passive subjects don't take نے; agents take سے.

Not Recognizing Inability Passive

• Wrong: Translating مجھ سے نہیں ہوتا as "it is not done by me"
• Right: "I am unable to do it" — the inability passive
• Why: This construction specifically expresses inability, not just passive voice.

Usage Notes

The inability passive (مجھ سے چلا نہیں جاتا) is extremely common in spoken Urdu and has no direct English equivalent. It elegantly expresses that the agent is unable to perform the action, without the agent being a grammatical subject.

Passive voice is standard in Urdu news broadcasts, official communications, and academic writing, much more so than in English style guides.

Practice Tips

• Convert active sentences to passive by replacing the subject with the object and adding جانا.
• Practice the inability passive with common verbs: مجھ سے نہیں ہوتا, اس سے نہیں چلا جاتا.
• Read Urdu news headlines, which frequently use passive constructions.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Compound Verbs (Vector Verbs) — جانا as a vector verb
• Next steps: Passive Voice Variations and Nuances — Ability, adversity, and impersonal passives