La Voz Pasiva

La Voz Pasiva The Spanish voz pasiva is used for two reasons: 1. To focus on the direct object receiving the action Un niño escribió este libro. Este libro fue escrito por un niño. vs. A child wrote this book. This book was written by a child. 2. To focus on an action without identifying the performer José escribió este libro en 1927. Este libro fue escrito en 1927. vs. José wrote this book in 1927. This book was written in 1927. La voz pasiva is rather formal and is much less common in spoken Spanish than spoken English. In Spanish, the passive tends to be reserved for writing, such as newspapers and literature. The passive is used mainly when there is a named agent (e.g., Este libro fue escrito por un niño).

Voice is a grammatical term which indicates the relationship between a subject and verb. There are three different voices in Spanish (and English): active (what you might call normal), reflexive, and passive. In the passive voice, the action described by the verb is being done to the subject by an agent. Active Voice Reparo los coches.

I repair the cars.

Ella lee el libro.

She reads the book.

Todo el mundo le respeto a él.

Everyone respects him.

Mis amigos la quieren a mi madre.

My friends like my mother.

Passive Voice Los coches son reparados por mí.

The cars are repaired by me.

El libro es leído por ella.

The book is read by her.

La comida es cocinada a las ocho.

The meal is cooked at 8 o'clock.

Él es respetado por todo el mundo.

He is respected by everyone.

Mi madre es querida por mis amigos. My mother is loved by my friends. Notes: •

The agent (the person performing the action on something else) is introduced by the preposition por.

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The passive voice has two parts: the conjugated verb ser + the past participle.

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The past participle has to agree with the subject, not the agent, in gender and number, just like adjectives.

La voz pasiva can occur in all tenses and moods by conjugating ser into that tense or mood: Voz activa

Voz pasiva

presente

yo hago la comida

la comida es hecha por mí

pretérito

yo hice la comida

la comida fue hecha por mí

imperfecto yo hacía la comida

la comida era hecha por mí

futuro

la comida será hecha por mí

yo haré la comida

subjuntivo ...que yo haga la comida

MODELO:

...que la comida sea hecha por mí

El secretario arregló los papeles. Los papeles fueron arreglados por el secretario. 1. La recepcionista encontró el número de teléfono. ______________________________________________________ 2. El bibliotecario ha preparado el folleto. ______________________________________________________ 3. Los agentes de viajes tradujeron los documentos. ______________________________________________________ 4. El programador reparó la pantalla de la computadora. ______________________________________________________ 5. Los mensajeros han puesto los recados en los escritorios. ______________________________________________________

Se Pasivo As an alternative to the voz pasiva, the se pasivo can be used when you want to focus on an action without identifying the performer. The “agent phrase” (por Juan) is not used with the se pasivo. The verb is used in either the 3rd person singular or 3rd person plural depending on whether the subject is singular or plural.

El locator dio los premios.

The announcer gave out the prizes.

Los premios fueron dados por el locator.

The prizes were given out by the announcer.

Se dieron los premios.

The prizes were given out.

Se sabe el motivo. know the reason. /One knows the reason.

The reason is known. /You (They, People)

Se entregó el trabajo.

The paper was handed in.

Se entregaron los informes.

The reports were handed in.

Notes: •

For verbs that do not take a direct object (intransitive verbs), the verb is always used in the 3rd person singular. ○ Se sale por aquí. You go out this way./This is the way out. ○ Se vive bien en este país. People live well in this country. ○ Se trabaja con entusiasmo. We (You, They) work enthusiastically.