biti + Passive Participle

A Passive Statement

Level 5

A form of biti plus a passive participle can describe what happens to a subject while leaving the agent unstated.

How It Works

Compare Netko je popravio most with Most je popravljen. The second sentence puts the bridge at the centre and leaves the repairer unstated. The participle agrees with most.

Change the auxiliary group to express other times: most je bio popravljen, most će biti popravljen. Do not translate every English passive auxiliary word separately; identify the intended tense and whether a state or event is being described.

An active sentence is often clearer when the agent matters. Heavy phrases with od strane belong especially to administrative style and need not be copied from English “by.” Passive voice does not make an otherwise unavailable participle grammatical.

Examples (3)

  1. Novi je most otvoren prošlog tjedna.

    The new bridge was opened last week.

  2. Dokumenti će biti poslani sutra.

    The documents will be sent tomorrow.

  3. Ulaznice su bile rasprodane prije podneva.

    The tickets had been sold out before noon.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

biti + Passive ParticipleLevel 5A Passive Statement

Learn This First

The linking auxiliary combines with an agreeing passive participle to form a passive predicate.

Words in This Pattern

biti