Passive Without a Subject
The impersonal passive (onpersoonlijke passief) describes an action as a general event. It uses 'worden' + past participle, often starting with 'er'.
How It Works
The impersonal passive is a unique Dutch construction used to report that an activity is taking place, without focusing on who is doing it. It is used with agentive verbs—verbs where a person performs an action intentionally.
1. Formation:
It is formed using the auxiliary verb worden and the past participle. In the perfect tense, the auxiliary zijn is used, and the participle geworden is omitted (e.g., Er is gedanst).
2. Verb Types and Restrictions:
- Intransitive verbs: Verbs like dansen or lachen that take no object. The verb is always singular.
- Transitive verbs: Verbs like eten (to eat) can be used if the object is omitted (Er wordt gegeten) or indefinite. Note: If an indefinite plural object is included, the verb must agree with it (Er worden appels gegeten).
- The 'Zijn-Verb' Exclusion: You cannot use this construction with unaccusative verbs (verbs of happenings that usually take zijn in the perfect tense, like vallen or sterven), as they lack an intentional agent.
3. The Role of 'Er':
Dutch sentences usually require something in the first position. If no other information starts the sentence, the dummy subject er is used as a placeholder. If a place adverb like hier starts the sentence, er is often omitted. If a time adverb starts the sentence, er moves to the third position (e.g., Gisteren werd er gedanst).
4. Usage and Nuance:
- Atmosphere: To describe a scene (Er wordt gelachen).
- Rules: To state general prohibitions (Er wordt hier niet gerookt).
Examples (6)
- Er wordt in deze gang niet gerend.
There is no running in this hallway.
Word by Word: There is in this hallway not run.
A classic example of a rule. The focus is on the forbidden activity (running) rather than specific people.
- Op het feestje werd veel gedanst.
There was a lot of dancing at the party.
Word by Word: On the party was much danced.
Here, the past tense of 'worden' (werd) is used to describe the atmosphere of a past event.
- Er is gisteren de hele dag hard gewerkt.
Hard work was done all day yesterday.
Word by Word: There is yesterday the whole day hard worked.
In the perfect tense, 'zijn' (is) is used as the auxiliary instead of 'worden'.
- Er worden hier appels gegeten.
Apples are being eaten here.
Word by Word: There are here apples eaten.
When an indefinite plural object (appels) is present, the verb 'worden' must be plural. This differs from the true impersonal passive which is always singular.
- Er wordt gegeten.
There is eating going on / People are eating.
Word by Word: There is eaten.
Transitive verbs like 'eten' can form an impersonal passive if the object is omitted entirely.
- Hier wordt door de studenten gestudeerd.
Studying is being done here by the students.
Word by Word: Here is by the students studied.
Even in an impersonal passive, you can specify the agent using 'door' (by).
Common Mistakes
Using plural verb agreement when thinking about 'people'.
Er worden gedanst.Er wordt gedanst.The impersonal passive has no grammatical subject to trigger a plural; the verb must always be the singular 'wordt' or 'werd'.
Thinking 'er' is always needed in the impersonal passive.
Different MeaningWordt hier gewerkt?Wordt er hier gewerkt?'Wordt hier gewerkt?' is correct: a word like 'hier' can fill the front of the clause, so 'er' is not required. 'Wordt er hier gewerkt?' is also correct.
Using it with involuntary verbs like 'falling'.
Er wordt gevallen.Mensen vallen.The impersonal passive only works with 'activity' verbs (actions controlled by an agent). Involuntary actions like falling or dying cannot be used this way.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand the impersonal passive (e.g., 'Er wordt gedanst'), you first need to know how the standard passive is formed using 'worden' and a past participle. Additionally, you must understand how 'er' functions as a dummy subject (expletive) to occupy the first position in a sentence when no other subject is present.
- worden + Past ParticiplePassive with Worden
The impersonal passive uses the auxiliary verb 'worden' and the past participle, which is the core structure of the standard passive voice.
Level 3 - er (presentatief)Er as a Placeholder Subject
The impersonal passive requires 'er' as a dummy subject because there is no semantic subject or object to fill the first position.
Level 3
Related Patterns
- door (passief)Agent in Passive
Explains how to identify the person performing the action (the agent) using 'door'.
Level 3 - wordenTo Become (Worden)
The verb 'worden' is the primary auxiliary used to form this construction.
Level 1 - menMen (One, People)
An alternative way to express 'one' or 'people' in a general sense, though more formal than the passive.
Level 4 - jeJe for People in General
The informal way to say 'you' or 'people' generally, often used instead of the passive in casual speech.
Level 4
Words in This Pattern
Practice Passive Without a Subject in Bubblegum
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