Passive with Complement
The complex passive occurs when verbs that assign a role or state (like 'appoint', 'find', or 'name') are used in the passive voice. The person or thing receiving the role becomes the subject, but the role itself (the complement) stays in the sentence, often introduced by 'tot' or 'als'.
How It Works
The complex passive (passief met een bepaling van gesteldheid) occurs when a sentence containing a predicative adjunct is made passive. Crucially, the 'bepaling van gesteldheid bij het lijdend voorwerp' (object complement) in the active voice becomes a 'bepaling van gesteldheid bij het onderwerp' (subject complement) in the passive voice.
1. Verbs of Appointment and Naming
Verbs like kiezen (to elect) and benoemen (to appoint) usually take the preposition tot to introduce the new role. For the verb dopen (to baptize/name), tot is specifically used when referring to a title or initiation (e.g., tot ridder gedoopt), whereas a bare name is used for naming.
Example: Hij werd tot directeur benoemd.
2. Verbs of Evaluation and Consideration
Verbs like beschouwen (to consider), zien (to view), and erkennen (to recognize) use als to introduce the complement.
Example: Dit wordt als een succes beschouwd.
3. Verbs of Result or Judgment
Verbs like noemen (to call) or verklaren (to declare) take a bare adjective or noun phrase. Note that vinden only follows this pattern when it means 'to deem' or 'to consider' (e.g., Ik vind hem aardig); it does not take a complement when it means 'to locate'. Resultative actions like groen verven (to paint green) also fit here.
Example: De verdachte werd schuldig bevonden.
4. State During Action
Sometimes the complement describes the state of the subject during the action, such as levend begraven (buried alive).
Word Order:
In a standard sentence, the complement usually appears just before the past participle. In a subordinate clause, the complement stays near the verb cluster. Dutch allows for both the green and red word order, meaning the auxiliary verb (worden or zijn) can appear either before or after the past participle.
Examples (6)
- Zij werd door de commissie tot voorzitter gekozen.
She was elected chairperson by the committee.
Word by Word: She was by the committee to chairperson elected.
Here, 'tot voorzitter' is the complement. The verb 'kiezen tot' indicates a change in role.
- Het plan wordt als zeer riskant beschouwd.
The plan is considered very risky.
Word by Word: The plan is as very risky considered.
The verb 'beschouwen als' takes a complement describing how the subject is perceived.
- De patiënt is gisteren dood verklaard.
The patient was declared dead yesterday.
Word by Word: The patient is yesterday dead declared.
Using 'zijn' (is) instead of 'worden' emphasizes the resulting state (the patient is now dead).
- De muren werden door hem groen geverfd.
The walls were painted green by him.
Word by Word: The walls were by him green painted.
This is a resultative complement; the action of painting results in the state of being green.
- Hij werd Johannes genoemd.
He was named Johannes.
Word by Word: He was Johannes named.
Verbs like 'noemen' (to name/call) take a bare noun as a complement without a preposition.
- Ik wist niet dat hij tot koning was gekroond.
I didn't know that he had been crowned king.
Word by Word: I knew not that he to king was crowned.
In this subclause, the complement 'tot koning' stays before the verb cluster. Note that 'was gekroond' and 'gekroond was' are both correct.
Common Mistakes
Using 'als' instead of 'tot' for the new role.
Different MeaningHij is als koning gekroond.Hij is tot koning gekroond.Hij is als koning gekroond can be said, but it presents him as acting in the role of king. For becoming king through the crowning, tot koning is the usual choice.
Confusing this with the indirect object passive.
Hij werd een boek gegeven.Hem werd een boek gegeven. / Hij kreeg een boek.Dutch does not allow the indirect object to become the subject of a 'worden' passive. This 'Complex Passive' only works for object complements (roles/states), not for people receiving things.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand the complex passive, you first need a solid grasp of the basic passive construction using 'worden'. You must also understand how verbs can take complements (secondary predicates) in active sentences, as these complements are retained when the sentence is transformed into the passive voice.
- door (passief)Agent in Passive
Understanding how the agent is expressed or omitted in a passive sentence is necessary for more complex structures.
Level 3 - Secondary Predication
The 'complex' part of this passive involves maintaining a complement (like 'tot voorzitter'), which functions as a secondary predicate.
Level 6
Related Patterns
- worden + Past ParticiplePassive with Worden
The complex passive is a specific type of the standard dynamic passive using 'worden'.
Level 3 - Passive with Zijn (State)
Used when the complex passive describes a finished state or result rather than the process.
Level 4 - Process vs State Passive
Explains the difference between the process of being assigned a role and the state of having that role.
Level 4 - Zijn, Worden, Blijven
The verbs used in complex passives often function similarly to linking verbs, as they connect the subject to a description.
Level 3 - krijgen + Past ParticipleGet Passive
The 'krijgen-passive' is the correct way to handle indirect objects, which learners often confuse with this pattern.
Level 4 - SOV in Subordinate Clauses
Crucial for placing the complement and the verb cluster correctly at the end of a sentence.
Level 3
Words in This Pattern
Practice Passive with Complement in Bubblegum
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